10 Top Animated Movies
Animation ROCKS!!!
Sep 29 '03
The Bottom Line Watch them for the sake of the child in
you.
Ok, Animation. It used to be just cartoons and artwork, but
now it is more than that. There's also stop-motion animation, computer
animation, and hybrids where there's a bit of everything, including live action.
So here's a list of some of my favourites ... the problem is that it always seem
to grow longer.
1) Mulan : This is based on a classic Chinese tale, Hua Mu-Lan. A girl's aged
father is drafted into the army as he has no sons. His daughter, Mu-Lan, takes
his place, and does such a good job no one suspects till she reveals it in the
end. In this Disney version, her character is fleshed out and given a rebellious
streak. There's of course a love interest who finds himself falling for her
(with a bit of paranoia along the way). This cartoon ranks as one of Disney's
best. Great artwork, great story line, great songs (Lea Salonga is the singing
voice for Mulan). A gag here that non-Chinese speaking audiences may miss ...
Mulan gives her name as Ping. 'Hua' is Chinese for 'Flower'. 'Hua Ping' is
'Vase'. It also symbolises a female who's there just for decoration. The
wonderful song, Reflections, is done by Christina Aguilera (English), and Coco
Lee (English and Chinese). I like both singers' renditions.
2) Prince Of Egypt: Not exactly a light and airy subject for a cartoon, but it
was a good gamble. The movie boasted great artwork and a stellar cast. Providing
voices are Val Kilmer, Ralph Fiennes, Michelle Pfeiffer, Sandra Bullock to name
a few. Great artwork (the parting of the Red Sea was memorable), and a great
song sung by 2 great divas, Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey (she actually sings
on this one, instead of doing those breathy vocalisations she's so fond of these
days). Michelle Pfeiffer also sings too.
3) Chicken Run: By the same people who gave us Wallace & Gromit. Who would
have thought plasticine could look so good? Here's a bunch of chickens who try
to fly the coop managed by the Tweedys. It's fun and funny! Mel Gibson is the
voice of Rocky, a rooster, who helps the chickens.
4) Beauty & The Beast: Another Disney classic. A great story and really good
songs. The characters are very cute and memorable. Even the Beast looks good. My
gripe is Gaston, who's not the best of villains.
5) Flight of Dragons: I am not sure if this made the big screen. I saw this on
TV when I was a kid and it left a BIGGGG impression, even memorised the song.
It's about a writer who gets transported into a fantasy world of wizards and
magic. He has to battle an evil wizard, the Black Wizard. Politically correct,
the good wizards are the Green (white man), the Yellow (Asian man), and the Blue
(black man). The Black wizard looks like a rodent/man hybrid. The main
character, Peter, is voiced by the late John Ritter.
6) The Little Mermaid: Based on a tragic tale. In most versions the mermaid dies
in the end, but in this Disney version she lives happily ever after.
Nevertheless, it's a great version. I love the songs and the characters. And
what an interesting villain, who's half a woman and half an octopus!
7) Shrek: Mike Myers provides the voice to a lovable green ogre, and Eddie
Murphy the voice of a donkey. Cameron Diaz is Princess Fiona, a feisty princess
with a dark secret. A great story-line that turns a lot of fairy tales on their
heads. Very fun.
8) Aladdin: Another Disney winner. A rags to riches and glory story, with a
genie and flying carpet thrown in. Lovable characters, a good song. I love the
cartoon series too!
9) The Nightmare Before Christmas: A Tim Burton wonder. Stop-motion animation at
its best. Jack Skellington rules the land of Halloween. He chances upon the land
of Christmas, and kidnaps Santa Claus to take his place. Weird and wacky with
interesting characters that are not quite your fluffy candy-coloured fare. Very
original.
10) A Bug's Life: This came out roughly the same time as Antz. Both featured
ants. For some reason I prefer A Bug's Life, probably because it seemed more
creative than Antz. Great characters too!
11) Finding Nemo: I just watched this recently and liked it. The plot is simple:
Nemo the clownfish is separated from his dad after being captured by divers. His
dad goes on an ocean-wide search for him. Great characters, like Dory the fish,
Crush the sea-turtle. But what I am fascinated by most is how they have
recreated the underwater world!!!! All the ripple-effects are just mind-blowing.
Worthy Mentions:
1) Flatworld: This is a short feature, one of the most creative, imaginative
pieces of work I've seen. If you can find it, it's worth a look.
2) James & The Giant Peach: Great story by Roal Dahl. The characters are all
brought to life beautifully. My gripe is the live-sequences at the beginning,
they don't seem to fit well.
