As an avid movie-watcher and resident Cinema and Media Studies major, I’ve seen a wide range of films from various genres, time periods, and visual styles. One type of film whose entertainment value I believe is often overlooked is that of the animated feature. Now I’m as big of a fan of Disney/Pixar films as anyone else, but if those are the only animated movies one has ever seen, then they’re missing out on some quality entertainment. Here’s five animated movies that any film fan should add to their must-watch list:
1. Fantastic Planet (France, 1973)
If you want to watch a movie where you’re constantly questioning what the fuck is going on, Fantastic Planet is a good option. The film is so unlike anything else that it’s hard to describe what it’s exactly about. It’s got humans (or “Oms”) and giant, blue, humanoids (or “Draags”) on the planet Ygam. The Draags consider the Oms to be animals. Some Oms are kept as pets while some live in the wild. And they are also periodically slaughtered. The sci-fi visual style is very artistic-looking, with each frame being its own little work of high-value art. Though the imagery is sci-fi and unfamiliar, parallels can be drawn between the struggles faced in the film and struggles witnessed in real life, such as the Apartheid in South Africa or the Civil Rights Movement. Though very obscure, one doesn’t have to be a high-brow film scholar to notice that the film is allegorical to animal rights, human rights, and racism.
Also, SIFF Cinema Egyptian is showing Fantastic Planet on May 30th.
2. Waltz with Bashir (Israel, 2008)
Waltz with Bashir is an animated war documentary film directed by Ari Folman. The film depicts Folman as he tries to remember his lost memories from his time serving in the 1982 Lebanon War. The animated style and illustrations closely resemble comic books. Dark hues and imagery permeate the film to represent the overall gruesome, tragic, and grim tone of films that depict war. The film emphasizes the atrocities of war through unforgettable, surreal imagery. It also reminds its audience that these things were very much real by utilizing actual footage from the aftermath of the Sabra and Shatila massacre. Waltz with Bashir is the kind of movie where upon finishing it you have to kind of just sit there and gather yourself. It’s the kind of movie that stays with you long after the credits roll.
3. Persepolis (France, 2007)
A common theme amongst the films on this list is that they’re definitely not best suited for kids. Things get real serious in Persepolis, a film based upon an autobiographical graphic novel by Marjane Satrapi of the same name. The film is a coming of age story of a young girl during the Iranian Revolution (as if growing up wasn’t already hard enough). The girl, Marji, tries to make sense of the changing world around her as the Islamic Fundamentalists take over the Iranian government. In the midst of civil unrest and the implementation of repressive laws, Marji takes pleasure in acts of rebellion, such as listening to modern Western music. The visual style is reminiscent of graphic novel imagery. The film utilizes a flashback narrative structure and is almost entirely in black and white.
4. Akira (Japan, 1988)
Akira is a Japanese post-apocalyptic, cyberpunk film. In the film Tokyo in 1988 is destroyed by a singularity. Then in 2019 a new “Neo-Tokyo” is rebuilt. Corruption, anti-government protests, terrorism, and gang violence plague the new Neo-Tokyo. A lot of time, talent, and money (over 1 billion yen/9 million dollars) went into Akira, and it really shows. The animation flows cleanly and there’s such a high level of attention to detail and nuance in the film that each frame is filled with things to look at and notice. Even after repeated viewing after repeated viewing, one is able to notice something they hadn’t before.
5. My Entire High School Sinking Into the Sea (United States, 2017)
I don’t know what the minds behind this film were smoking when they came up with this idea but I’m all for it. (The pitch was probably something like, “man, what if like, an entire high school was sinking into the sea?” and that was it). Nevertheless, I thank them for it because the film is super unique and is actually sort of funny. The animation style is very ~trippy~ with brightly colored, attention-grabbing visuals. Unlike Fantastic Planet, where each frame carries high artistic value, each frame in My Entire High School Sinking Into the Sea resembles more like something out of a child’s art project. There’s scribbles of colored pencil, scrawls of marker, and blotches of paint that make the whole thing messy in a can’t-take-your-eyes-off-it kind of way.