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Best Animated Films of 2016 (10+1list)

Best Animated Films of 2016

written by Souranath Banerjee

Animation films are pure magic!

On one hand animation movies are the enjoyment package for a complete family and on the other hand, perhaps there are no other medium in this world that gives an artist such freedom of expression and creativity other than Animation!

Similar Interest: Best Animated Films of 2015

And so, it’s time to celebrate some of the Best Animated Films of 2016! Enjoy!

10. Kung Fu Panda 3

Film trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fGPPfZIvtCw

kung-fu-panda-three-posterAfter a long wait of 5 years, finally the third one comes along where Po, the Panda gets a chance to show off his amazing Kung Fu skills!

Directed by Alessandro Carloni,  Jennifer Yuh Nelson, and voiced by Jack Black this DreamWorks Animation produced instalment is packed with enough action and fun! 

Far from being the last movie in the franchise, another 3 Kung Fu Panda films are planned ahead!

9. Moana

Film trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LKFuXETZUsI

moana-poster1“lassoed the sun with a fish hook and pulled the land from the ocean.”

A brilliant adventure from  Walt Disney Animation Studios that has the most amazing look and feel – a visual treat for everyone.

Directed by Ron ClementsDon HallJohn Musker and Chris Williams – and then there is Dwayne Johnson‘s eyebrows, I mean voice.

8. Sing

Film trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RYHBD9RF2dk

sing-posterIllumination Entertainment owned by Universal Pictures presents their second musical film, first one was The Lorax in 2012.

The story of the greatest singing competition of the year, featuring over 85 hit songs from the 1940s till the present day!

Directed by Christophe Lourdelet,  Garth Jennings, this one is a treat specially for music lovers!  

7. Sausage Party 

Film trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MBdeE7mzED4

sausage-party-posterTruth about life and death, about the world and it’s existence – well know it all from a sausage!

Directed by Greg Tiernan,  Conrad Vernon, the most unique concept I have come across specially for an animation movie. Seth Rogen is hilarious!

Presented by Annapurna Pictures,  Columbia PicturesPoint Grey Pictures, jokes a bit on the adult side but very much recommended!

6. Finding Dory

Film trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MKJA-VLpiCo

finding-dory-poster1

Pixar Animation Studio’s seventeenth feature film!

Ellen DeGeneres voices for the most popular animation character Dory, the blue tang fish who suffers from memory loss every 10 seconds or so!

Brilliantly directed by Andrew Stanton,  Angus MacLane, this is the second instalment of the superbly successful Pixar Animation StudiosWalt Disney Pictures presentation Finding Nemo (2003). 

5. Kubo and the Two Strings

Film trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p4-6qJzeb3A

kubo-and-the-two-strings-poster1Laika Entertainment famous for their earlier production Coraline (2009), this time presents the longest stop-motion animation film till date!

Directed by Travis Knight, this is the adventurous story of a boy named Kubo!

A unique blend of animation and origami, made out of 145.000 photographs, turned into one of the most visually spectacular film!

4. Ethel & Ernest

Film trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JXDlEw5u8u8

Ethel-&-Ernest-posterDirected by Roger Mainwood and produced by Ethel & Ernest Productions and Lupus Films, the tale of a family from the early 30’s in London! 

With the backdrop of WWII this hand drawn animated film is based on the award winning graphic novel by Raymond Briggs and the story (it is a true story) is based on the lives of Raymond Briggs’s parents. A brilliantly well-made emotional film – a must watch!

3. Your Name

Film trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xU47nhruN-Q

Your-name-posterThis year CoMix Wave Films presents the most successful anime film of Japan and also an artistic brilliance.

A surrealistic fantasy tale of two strangers getting connected in the most unconventional way possible!

Brilliantly directed by Makoto Shinkai, this is one film that cannot be missed this year.

2. The Red Turtle

Film trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sw7BggqBpTk

red-turtle-posterA man marooned on a deserted tropical island which is only populated by turtles, crabs and birds.

A superb film without dialogues, the first non-Japanese film to be produced by Studio Ghibli.

Directed by Michael Dudok de Wit, same director who made the best animated short film seen by me ‘Father and Daughter‘. 

  1. Zootopia

Film trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jWM0ct-OLsM

zootopia-poster1It’s the world of anthropomorphic animals and a rabbit becomes a cop. With her partner, a con artist fox, they solve the most mysterious case in town!

(click for the review)

Directed by Byron Howard,  Rich Moore and Jared Bush, a Walt Disney Animation Studios presentation and undoubtedly the best animation film of the year!

and (The ‘+1′ film is not necessarily the best but certainly the most innovative one. A must watch)

+1. Doctor Who: The Power of the Daleks

Film trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=McRfaIjicvg

Doctor-who-posterIn 1974, all six episodes of the original tapes for “Power of the Daleks” were erased from the BBC archive!

But luckily fans at the time recorded the soundtrack directly from the television and so after 50 years BBC America presents the animation version of the series – directed by Christopher Barry and perfectly synced with the original lost-footage audio. 

A brilliant Si Fi totally worth your patience.

A few other films that didn’t make the list but still worth your time are StorksTrollsThe Angry Birds MovieLeap!Ice Age: Collision CourseOne Piece Film: Gold and The Secret Life of Pets.

Similar Interest: Best Animated Short Films

Similar Interest: Best Animated films not for kids

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Best Animated Films of 2015 (10+1list)

Best Animated Films of 2015.

written by Souranath Banerjee

Quality animation films are always a treat to watch; they are probably the only perfect definition of family entertainers that brings a smile to each of our faces regardless of our age.

A glance ahead confirms that 2016 promises some of the best yet-to-release animated films such as Kung Fu Panda 3, Finding Dory, The Secret Life of PetsMoanaKubo and the Two StringsThe Red TurtleZootopia and Ice Age: Collision Course.

But before we take the leap into the future, let’s appreciate our present and be thankful for the Best Animated Films of 2015!

And the list begins.

10. Shaun the Sheep Movie

Film trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tQvwiOWpj7o

shaun-the-sheep-movie-posterFrom Aardman Animations, the animation studio that earlier gave us the adventures of Wallace & GromitChicken Run and also Shaun the Sheep (TV Series).

Directed by Mark Burton and Richard Starzak, a film that continues the legacy of Shaun (who is ‘the sheep’ of course).

Highly entertaining without having a single dialogue (only animal sounds), and it’s made over a period of six years by twenty animators each producing two-second footage per day!

9. Battle of Surabaya

Film trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jar7zUU_Kls

Battle-of-Surabaya-posterDirected by Aryanto Yuniawan, it’s about (as the title suggests) the historic battle of Surabaya, more of a dramatic version of it punched with a romantic side line.

Shown from the view point of a patriotic young lad named Musa, and his heroic adventures during the time of war.  

Superb animation, brilliant music and a decent story line, an Indonesian animation feature with great promise.

8. The Prophet aka ‘Kahlil Gibran’s The Prophet’

Film trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lwQbMxDcRGE

Prophet-poster8 segments directed by 8 different directors including Roger Allers (the director of popular films like The Lion King and Open Season).

The film as the name suggests is a take on Kahlil Gibran’s best seller book ‘the Prophet’.  Though not as inspiring as the book, but definitely it’s worth a watch.

Voiced by celebrities like Liam NeesonAlfred Molina and Salma Hayek (she is also one of the producers of the film).

7. April and the Extraordinary World

Film trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-39w9wsaq4s

April-Extraordinary-World-posterDirected by Christian Desmares and Franck Ekinci, this film has the most unique tale to tell.

In the 1941 France, the scientists are getting disappeared and thus the world is deprived of it’s inventions!

A young girl Avril (voiced by Marion Cotillard) is in search of her scientist parents and tries to solve the entire mystery.

6. The Peanuts Movie

Film trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8pCoVQDD-OY

peanut-movie-posterThe disastrous Charlie Brown and the ever-confident Snoopy – you simply can’t get enough of them.

A hilarious and charming story of the beloved ‘Peanuts’ gang, presented by Blue Sky Studios (the creators of Ice AgeHorton Hears a Who! and Rio).

Directed by Steve Martino, this is the first theatrical ‘Peanuts’ film after 35 years, since the death of creator Charles M. Schulz in 2000.

5. The Good Dinosaur

Film trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=daFnEiLEx70

good-dinosaur-posterDirected by Peter Sohn, this is the unique story of an Apatosaurus named Arlo who strays away from the comfort of his home and in his quest to return back he makes new friends and experience life in his own way. 

From mega studios Pixar Animation Studios and  Walt Disney Pictures, this is a film full of joy, warmth and inspiration. 

Nothing new in the story though but told with great style and conviction. A visual treat.

4. The Little Prince

Film trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fEPqgSNLfK8

Little-Prince-Poster

A French production, the film is an adaptation of Antoine de Saint-Exupéry‘s The Little Prince.

A beautiful story about a little girl who is preparing herself for the grown-up world!

Directed by Mark Osborne, and voiced by famous stars like Rachel McAdamsPaul RuddJeff BridgesMarion CotillardJames FrancoBenicio Del ToroPaul Giamatti and Vincent Cassel. 

3. The Boy and the Beast

Film trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uifJLWoWv8c

boy-and-beast-posterWritten and directed by Mamoru Hosoda, this one is a brilliant fantasy film from Japan.

 A Studio Chizu production who gave us Wolf Children in 2012, this is the story of a boy who is trained in the arts of fighting by a beast (from an imaginary world) and it’s also about the special bonding they share.

Breezy story telling, classy animation and a few moments of pure emotions.

2. Inside Out

Film trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=seMwpP0yeu4

Inside-Out-Poster1Joy, Fear, Anger, Disgust and Sadness – the ultimate conflict of emotions inside the head of a young girl and much more.

(Click for the review)

Directed by Pete Docter and Ronnie Del Carmen, and presented by Walt Disney Pictures and  Pixar Animation Studios, this one is a must-watch for all film lovers.

For me, the film has by far the best concept for any animated film ever.

  1. Anomalisa

Film trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DT6QJaS2a-U

anomalisa-posterDirected by Duke Johnson and Charlie Kaufman, this film is a rare gem that needs to be cherished and relished to its maximum potential.

(Click for the review)

A man bored with his life is seeking for some excitement, some incentive to go on. And then he meets a girl who seems to be the solution of his problem!

A highly sensitive yet melancholic film with the best stop motion animation till date!

and (The ‘+1′ film is not necessarily the best but certainly the most innovative one. A must watch).

+1. Extraordinary Tales

Film trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j4IDwG_FMpM

Extraordinary-Tales-posterDirected by Raul Garcia, this is an animated anthology of 5 dark and haunted stories, all of which are adapted from the works of the brilliant writer Edgar Allan Poe.

The film has great animation and visual story telling and the stories can’t be any better (since written by Poe).

Something different from what you generally expect from an animation feature. Worth a watch.

And finally, a few entertaining films of 2015 that didn’t make the list: Minions, Hotel Transylvania 2Asterix and Obelix: Mansion of the GodsHomeAdamaStrange MagicThe SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water and Dragon Ball Z: Resurrection ‘F’.

Similar Interest: Best Animated Short Films (10+1list)

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