The Greatest Animated Options Robbed on the Oscars
Oscar season has started once again, and animation fans can’t wait to see which film will take home the award for Best Animated Feature.
With the category becoming more competitive every year, the time has come to go back and reflect on the animated features that didn’t win a trophy but definitely deserved accolades.
1. 2001 – Monsters, Inc.
No one should envy Monsters, Inc. for having the misfortune of competing against Shrek. But this film put up as strong of a fight as we could hope from Pixar in their peak era. The innovative 3D animation holds up even today, having conquered the difficult task of rendering lots of furry creatures. Mike and Sully make for an unforgettable duo that elevates this list to the all-time greats list.
2. 2003 – The Triplets of Belleville
Mobsters have kidnapped Madame Souza’s cyclist grandson, and she must travel to America to get him back. This film takes cues from silent cinema to blend music and animation (the film contains little to no dialogue), all while having its own unique animation style that makes it unforgettable.
3. 2005 – Howl’s Moving Castle
Regarded as one of Hayao Miyazaki’s finest films, Howl’s Moving Castle tells a powerful story of peace and compassion. Its animation continued Ghibli’s legacy of excellence while having an anti-war message that the world should heed.
4. 2006 – Monster House
Monster House remains one of the pillars of horror animation. The then-novel motion capture animation technology gives this film a unique look that fits perfectly well with the creepy story.
5. 2007 – Persepolis
The animated adaptation of Marjane Satrapi’s comic of the same name exceeds the source material. The expert use of black and white made this film much more visually striking than any other cartoon movie that year.
6. 2008 – Kung Fu Panda
Dreamworks’ filmography has a hit-or-miss reputation, but Kung Fu Panda reminds us that when it hits, it really hits. Jack Black gives one of the best performances of his career against incredible 3D martial arts animation.
7. 2009 – Coraline
Along with Fantastic Mr. Fox, 2009 proved a strong year for stop-motion animation. The Nightmare Before Christmas director Henry Selick brought new life to Neil Gaiman’s source material that still captures the audience’s hearts over a decade later.
8. 2009 – Fantastic Mr. Fox
Wes Anderson’s directing style translates sublimely into animation. Fantastic Mr. Fox has a quiet tone and rustic stop-motion aesthetic that stands tall against the typical Pixar visuals in Up.
9. 2009 – The Secret of Kells
The Secret of Kells brought Irish mythology to a worldwide audience in Cartoon Saloon’s first feature film. It follows the young monk Brendan as he befriends the fairy Aisling and lives under the shadow of an impending Viking invasion.
10. 2010 – How to Train Your Dragon
How to Train Your Dragon set off a hit franchise for Dreamworks. Its fascinating Viking-based world-building with a variety of dragon designs made it one of the more unique fictional settings in American animation.
11. 2011 – Chico and Rita
Romantic comedies for adults rarely end up animated, but Chico and Rita scratches that itch. The film takes place in late 1940s Cuba and details the love affair between the titular Cuban musicians as they show that not even an international blockade can quell their love.
12. 2012 – ParaNorman
While Brave came out as a middling Pixar release, ParaNorman represented the pinnacle of Laika’s animation prowess. The innovative marriage of stop-motion animation and digital visual effects gave us a film like no other.
13. 2012 – Wreck-It Ralph
It may seem odd to pit Disney against Disney, as Brave won this year. Empa Wreck-It Ralph made a big cultural splash that Brave simply didn’t. Ralph’s story of self-acceptance won our hearts. This film also represented a breakthrough in the recognition of video games in film.
14. 2013 – Ernest & Celestine
This film mixes a children’s storybook art style with animation Studio Ghibli-esque animation to tell a delightfully sweet story. We see the unlikely friendship between the bear Ernest and the mouse Celestine as tensions between their respective species threaten to tear them apart.
15. 2014 – The Tale of Princess Kaguya
Studio Ghibli legend Isao Takahata directed The Tale of Princess Kaguya as his final film before his death. Its style, based on traditional Japanese watercolor paintings, created the perfect send-off to one of the greatest anime directors in history.
16. 2015 – Anomalisa
As the first R-rated film to receive a nomination in this category, Anomalisa pushed back against the perception of animation as a kids’ only zone. This spectacular stop-motion film follows a man who perceives all humans as identical except for one.
17. 2016 – Kubo and the Two Strings
Laika has propped up the medium of stop-motion animation on its shoulders, and Kubo and the Two Strings shows how they continue to elevate their craft.
18. 2017 – Loving Vincent
Loving Vincent took a highly experimental risk, and it paid off. The film’s artists painstakingly made 65,000 oil paintings on canvas in Vincent van Gogh’s style to bring this story to life.
19. 2017 – The Breadwinner
Few children’s animated features tackle as sensitive subject matter as The Breadwinner. The tale of a young girl disguising herself as a boy to rescue her father from Taliban-ruled Afghanistan deserves a spot on everyone’s watch list.
20. 2019 – Klaus
New Christmas animated features don’t come often, but Klaus delivered. Its modernized 2D animation dazzled audiences and will keep this movie in the holiday rotation for years to come.
21. 2020 – Wolfwalkers
In 2020, Cartoon Saloon completed its glorious trilogy of animated films exploring Irish mythology. This one centered around the Werewolves of Ossory. As the sole 2D animated film nominated that year, it served as an excellent representative for the medium.
22. 2021 – The Mitchells vs. the Machines
This film proved that we could no longer dismiss the studio’s success with Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse as a fluke. Sony Animation Studios and Netflix now had the chops to fight toe-to-toe with Disney and Dreamworks. This movie tells a heartwarming story of familial connection dressed with frenetic internet humor and evil robots.
23. 2022 – Turning Red
Pixar may not have the consistent quality it used to, but Turning Red reminded us that magic still lurks inside the studio. We got an incredible coming-of-age story with bombastic fun built into every scene—all with a soundtrack so good that even the grumpiest boy band haters took notice.
24. 2022 – Puss in Boots: The Last Wish
Puss in Boots surprised everyone by making the sixth entry in the Shrek franchise the best one. The animation in this film represents nothing less than a renaissance in 3D animation following the lead of 2018’s Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse.