R2D2's Ultimate Top 10 Countdown Of The 2000s #3 - Animated Films.

[For the last 10 days of the decade, I'm doing a Top 10 list a day, all culminating into an ultimate post of Top 10 lists. We have previously seen Top 10 Comedies and Dramas. Now we're moving on.]

Top 10 Animated Films of the 2000s

It's Christmas Eve, a day children everywhere want to wish upon a star and believe in magic and the fantastic. So what a better genre to discuss on this most wishful of days than animated films? Sure, animation can span many genres and many languages. But no matter if it was sci-fi, fantasy, foreign, or whatever, if it's animated, it's on this particular list. That being said, let's get to it (as a note, it was surprisingly easy to list these in 'countdown' order... until the top 3).

10. Final Fantasy 7: Advent Children (2005)

I place this in the #10 spot for one simple reason: it's geared only towards those who've played the video game. If you've never played FF7, you probably wouldn't understand (nor would you be watching) Advent Children. But I wanted to include it on this list. Why? First, because it was a long-time coming, highly anticipated story. Second, because regardless of whether or not you understand the movie, the animation is freakin' amazing. Advancing on the technology used in Spirits Within, Advent Children takes it to a whole new level, making it much more realistic. And for those who have played the game, the movie is a real treat. The action is stunning, the music is great... the story itself is so-so, but who cares? It's an FF7 movie with amazing animation.

9. The Incredibles (2004)

I know this movie would probably make a bunch of a lists. It's a good one. Families of superheroes and the drama around them keeping quiet. Jason Lee as a villain. Jokes about capes. It's all here, and it's a wonderful film.

8. Shrek (2001)

Can you make this list without including Shrek? Of the series thus far, I've really only cared for the first one. It's your classic fairy tale turned on its head, making the monster a hero, the 'hero' an idiot, the sidekick a donkey, and the princess... well, you know. And you gotta love all the fairy tales walking around. If you're any kind of fairy tale fan, this movie is great just for that aspect. But what's really at the heart of the film is the friendship between Shrek and Donkey. I think if they hadn't made it as heartwarming as it was, the film would not have worked like it did.

7. Titan A.E. (2000)

This is probably one of the 'earliest' films on any of my lists. It'll probably not show up on anybody else's either (I seem to have a knack for picking those kinds of films). But it's one I really enjoy. I love the sci-fi aspect of it, trying to create a new world after the old one was destroyed. There's action, comedy, romance... it's all there. The animation is really good, too. And the voice cast is excellent: Matt Damon, Bill Pullman, John Leguizamo, Nathan Lane, Janeane Garofalo, Drew Barrymore, Ron Pearlman... hell, even Tone Loc is in this (remember him?). Not to mention Jim Cummings, who has a voice role in another film on this list, as well. It's just an all-around fun film with great animation. Completely underrated, in my opinion.

6. The Girl Who Leapt Through Time (2006)

This was one of the first movies I rented through Netflix. Now usually, I watch a movie once and send it back. I think by the time I sent this film back, I had watched it at least 3-4 times. This is the first anime film on my list, as well. The story is, apparently, a well-known one in Japan. It's the story of a girl who, after having an incredibly bad day ending with almost dying, finds she has the ability to throw herself back in time. At first, she keeps redoing the same day over and over until she likes where she's at. Then she gets to the point where she just does it with important things. There are funny little moments where she tries to stop certain things from happening (like a friend telling her he loves her). But, of course, there are consequences to her actions that she must face. And there is so much more to the story I'm not saying. It sounds like a sci-fi movie, but it's really a drama. The film's main focus is on the relationship between the girl and her friends (and a bit on her family). The first time I saw it, I was a little confused toward one character (the 'aunt'), but I later found out this is kind of a sequel to the actual story, while being the same story anyway, but the 'aunt' character was the original girl. That made parts of the film make much more sense. Still, it's an amazing film with gorgeous animation... and I dare you not to feel emotional at the end.

5. Kung Fu Panda (2008)

I remember when this movie came out, I thought it was going to be one of the stupidest movies ever. But I was bored one day after it had been out for many weeks and decided to check it out. Boy, was I surprised. I totally loved the movie. The action was surprisingly fun, much like any other kung fu film. And while some of the secondary characters weren't very developed, their interactions were funny. I also remember sitting through this movie going "I recognize some of these voices..." and not being able to figure them out (besides the obvious Jack Black and Seth Rogen). And then when the closing credits started, I sat in awe at the star cast of vocals this movie had. Very fitting for such a good movie.

4. The Princess and the Frog (2009)

I didn't want to do this list until I had seen this movie. But now that I have, I went ahead and did this list. Similar to the previous film, I wasn't exactly hopping (no pun intended) out of my seat to go see this. But, yet again, I was wrong. The movie had some surprisingly adult moments, some incredibly sad moments, some really fun/funny moments, and some amazingly creepy/scary moments. The animation is classic. The songs are great. The villain is both fun and scary. The movie was a throwback to some of the more classic Disney films, but it made itself a new classic in the process.

3. Up (2009)

This is a film that would probably be on many people's lists, if not #1 spots. They took a risk with this film... centering a movie around a geriatric and a young, overweight Asian kid? But they somehow pulled it off. The film is highly emotional, and the first 10 or so minutes is incredibly sad and moving... probably more moving than some entire films as of late. The film is bursting with imagination, but more importantly, it's bursting with heart. And I think that's why it's so good.

2. WALL-E (2008)

Another film that's gonna end up on a lot of lists, possibly some #1 spots. In fact, it almost made my #1 spot, and it was tough trying to decide some order here. Similar to Up, they took some risks here. A children's movie with virtually no dialogue, especially in the first 20 or so minutes? A children's movie centering around a robot love story? A children's movie with a strong environmental message (I mean, we all remember Fern Gully)? But it worked. It all worked. Children and adults alike sat enthralled, completely taken in by WALL-E's naivety and childish wonderment. And then when EVE shows up, our hearts jump with glee to see WALL-E trying to impress this female robot. And in an age of sex and violence, we sit on the edge of our seats, just waiting for these two lovable robots to hold hands. Oh, not to mention the animation is astounding.

1. Spirited Away (2001)

It was tough trying to decide whether I should put this over WALL-E or not, but in the end, I think it deserved it. This is one influential little film... the first, if I recall correctly, anime to not only be nominated for an Academy Award, but win. Miyazaki is a genius at what he does, and it really all culminated together in this film. The animation is great and fills you with wonderment. The story is fantastic. The characters are complex. The morals aren't shoved down your throat, but are present. Even if you don't like anime, you should check out this film. If there was any anime film to see before you die, it's this one. And even if you don't like reading subtitles, I would actually go so far as to say that, for once, the dubbing isn't bad. They actually did pretty well with it, and I'll watch this movie either way. It's just full of imagination and completely inspiring. An all-around great film.


End Note: Please don't kill me for not including the likes of Finding Nemo or Ratatouille. Nemo's good, but doesn't really stick with me, and I've only seen Ratatouille once... a while back.

LKMYNTS: Re-Cycle.

Man, I haven't done a Little Known Movies You Need To See in a long time. Anywho, I wasn't sure what exactly I was getting into when I started this movie. It had a synopsis similar to In The Mouth Of Madness and was directed by the typically hit-or-miss Pang Brothers. And even after the film started, I wasn't sure what I was getting into. I started it late last night and had to stop it about 30 minutes or so in because I was falling asleep (because of the time, not the movie), and I finished it this morning. And damn did I turn it off at the wrong (or right?) time last night.

The movie is about romance novelist Ting-Yin (Angelica Lee). After finishing a trilogy of best-selling romances, Ting-Yin wants to try her hand at horror/supernatural with her next book, Re-Cycle. But a mix of writer's block and her ex-boyfriend returning with news that he's getting a divorce with the woman he left her for originally keep her from really getting far with the book. But then, slowly, freaky things start happening to Ting-Yin as she comes to realize that the things she's writing, but then tossing away are coming back to haunt her. And soon she ends up in a completely different dimension full of "the abandoned" and needs to find a way home before this dimension destroys her completely. So she gets the help of a little girl and an old man to help her find her way to "the Transit," where she'll find her way home.

If you do research on this movie, one of the things you'll notice being said repeatedly is how it's so similar to 'such-and-such' movie/book. And that's true. But I also think that's one of the film's many brilliances. Whether intentional or not, the fact that the movie does feel so similar to other stories just ties in with the overall theme of abandoned (or 'recycled') things. Just in my personal opinion, and I've seen others agree, I felt the movie was most like the following: In The Mouth Of Madness, Silent Hill, Alice in Wonderland, MirrorMask, Dante's Inferno/What Dreams May Come (they're close enough to lump together), and Miyazaki's Spirited Away. Hell, I even found similarities to one of my own books, though I'm relatively sure they didn't take ideas from that.

Now I'm sure you're thinking "that's an odd mix of things." Well, it is. But it's because the movie is set up as one thing, but then twists into something else not too long after. The beginning starts off slow, building up as a supernatural horror movie. But around that 30/35 minute mark (right after I first turned it off to go to sleep), it changes completely. It still has some horror/scary elements, but it's more of a dark fantasy than a horror film. Ting-Yin's journey through the world of the abandoned is harrowing, scary, imaginative, and beautiful all at the same time. I loved all the little places she visits, but one of my favorite was like a live-action version of a scene from Spirited Away (though I'm sure it's from an Asian mythology). The little girl must guide Ting-Yin over a bridge riddled with the walking dead/spirits/abandoned/whatever, and Ting-Yin has to hold her breath as they slowly make their way across, or else she'll be noticed as an outsider... not a good thing.

Besides its obvious imagination, one of the best things about the movie is its beauty. And this movie is beautiful (in more ways than one). Visually, this film is utterly stunning. There are the more obvious stunning visuals that most will pick up on, but there's little nuances that the cinematically trained eye might pick up, as well. I just couldn't go on more about the film's visuals. Honestly, I was mostly afraid about the visuals (I saw a screencap on the back of the DVD box in the store... and out of context, it didn't strike me as stunning. In the film, however...). But, as I've said, they were amazing.

I can't say everything is positive about the film, though. It does have a few downsides. For instance, the first half of the movie is a bit slow and confusing. Even after Ting-Yin gets to the parallel world, it takes her a while before she meets anybody to tell her what's going on. So it's just kind of "throw in a scene, have a scare, she gets chased." Rinse, repeat. Though that really only goes on for about 10-15 minutes, I'd say. And it really only gets monotonous right before it stops doing it, so that's good. And although it does this, I still wished that there would have been more time spent in the fantasy world. I can't say the movie is poorly paced, but I would have liked it to have a few more 'down time' spots with some character/relationship building between Ting-Yin and the little girl. Instead, it kinda goes from major scene to major scene with maybe one brief interlude. Because as is, the ending of the film is the only place that really makes the characters a little more well-rounded. Otherwise, they're relatively flat.

Another issue for some people, though not me, is that the movie might become a bit too preachy. I don't want to say on what subject, because I think it should be a surprise, but I've seen plenty of things written about the film and how it's too preachy or whatever. Honestly, I don't think it is. I feel that the movie handled the subject very well, and people who get offended by it are too tightly wound to begin with. Don't get me wrong, it is a bit shocking at first, but it makes perfect sense in the realm of the story.

And even if you don't like that, how can you not love the ending? I don't want to touch on the ending too much, because I don't want to spoil anything, but I felt the ending was equally brilliant and ambiguous, leaving things up to interpretation.

Overall, the film isn't perfect (it could have used a bit better character development), but the Pang Brothers make a visual and atmospheric masterpiece. There really isn't that much of a story, but the film is more of an allegory, and allegories don't need to have fully coherent stories to be brilliant. I was going to give a literary example here, but then I realized that the example I was going to use deals with the exact same issue as the film, so any of you who knew the story could instantly pick up on the issue... I try to avoid major spoilers (for good films) at all costs. I really recommend the film.


A Keanu 'Whoa'

Recent East Asian Cinema #2: Spirited Away.

Welcome to the second of seven posts that will detail East Asian cinema, giving genre history leading up to a recent movie which will be reviewed! I hope you enjoy the series. For more information or previous entries, check the posts below this one.

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Genre: Anime.

History: Anime is short for animation, and is primarily used to describe Japanese animation that usually stems from Manga (Japanese comic books). The term itself, in Japan is used for all animation; however, it is used, as stated, to describe Japanese animation for English speakers. Anime isn’t your typical animated family-type film. It can be, but that’s not what it’s stuck to. The genres of Anime are just as broad (and then some) as any other type of movie.

Believe it or not, Anime as we know it began because of Walt Disney. Japanese animators were impressed with the style of Snow White and the Seven Dwarves, so they decided to try and mimic the style. It was only meant, however, to be temporary for animators with little skill when production companies were in a pinch.

But when Manga became popular in the 1970s, they began to become adapted into an animated format in this Anime style. The “father of Anime,” and overall Japanese equivalent to Disney himself, is Osamu Tezuka, who was both a creator of Manga and Anime. He was responsible for such works as Astro Boy and Kimba the White Lion (which, ironically, later came into controversy with Disney's own The Lion King).

But Anime was still primarily a Japanese thing. It wasn’t until the 1988 anime film Akira (based on the Manga of the same name) that Anime began to become popular in the Western World. After Akira, which brought a second wave of Anime fans all around, the style began to grow and expand even more, having any movie type from giant robot action/dramas to slapstick comedy to gay porn. There wasn’t a subject that anime wouldn’t tackle.

Currently, the most acclaimed director of Anime is Hayao Miyazaki, co-founder of Studio Ghibli. He became well-known in the Western World with his film Princess Mononoke in 1997, which was, at that time, the highest grossing film of all time in Japan. He later created Spirited Away, the film we will be focusing on today, which was the first Anime film to ever win an Academy Award.

Spirited Away (2001).

Country of Origin: Japan.

Original Title: Sen to Chihiro no kamikakushi.

Director: Hayao Miyazaki (and Kirk Wise for English version).

Spirited Away is a weird (as most Anime can be considered… cultural thing), yet endearing movie. Chihiro is a rather whiny and stubborn young girl moving to a new town with her parents. When her dad tries to make a shortcut to their new house, they get lost and end up in front of an old, abandoned theme park (or so it seems). Even with Chihiro’s refusals to go in, they end up wandering around until they find some food, which they chow down on (except for Chihiro, who denies). Chihiro wanders off and discovers and old bathhouse. But when it starts to get dark, a mysterious young man, Haku, warns her to hurry and get across the river before it gets dark. She goes to her parents, but they have been literally transformed into pigs… and then the previously empty riverbed is now so full it’s like an ocean. Chihiro has thus been ‘spirited away’ into the spirit realm. Haku helps her to get a job at the bathhouse, run by the cranky old witch Yubaba, who takes her name away and re-dubs her Sen. There, Chihiro/Sen must work it out with spirit creatures/gods, as well as face the hatred from the other workers for being human, until she can figure out a way to get her parents back to normal and get home.

There’s a lot of bizarre things in this movie, but it all works for the world we’re given. My favorite scene in the movie has to be the ‘stink spirit’ (who is more than he seems), and Chihiro has to work harder than she ever has before to help make this situation right. It’s a great scene in the movie, and is really a turning point.

If there was anything that would be negative about this movie, it’s that there’s no real plot. The purpose is about Chihiro making it through long enough until she can find a way to return her parents to normal and get home. It’s a basic enough thing. But in between that time, so many other random things happen. They all do have some sort of purpose to the ending of the movie, but it’s really difficult to put this into a first/second/third act. It’s almost as if the movie has 4 acts: The human world, bathhouse part 1 (up through the stink spirit), bathhouse part 2 (the No-Face stuff), and the Zeniba stuff. It just makes the movie feel disjointed at points. But that’s probably just me.

The animation style is great, as it’s a mix of hand-drawn animation and computer graphics. And, amazingly enough, the American dubbing actually doesn’t suck. Chihiro is kinda shouty at times, but that’s how the character is anyway. Another thing I loved about the movie were its usually subtle commentaries. It touched a lot on gluttony and greed, via the food/pig stuff and No-Face respectively. And, ironically, Chihiro is renamed Sen (sin), and she’s the only character who doesn’t give in to any of the bad things in the movie.

Overall, the movie is a great film. It has amazing character development with Chihiro, which is really what the whole thing was about. The English dub actually, I think, added something to it that worked really well. Miyazaki has stated that, in the original Japanese version, Chihiro doesn’t remember a thing about the spirit world and there’s no real proof that she learned anything from the experience. However, in the English dubbing, they add in a line at the end that contrasts feelings Chihiro had about her new school, showing that she’s really grown as a person. And that really gives the movie meaning. However, regardless, it is still a great movie either way.

A Keanu 'Whoa'