BOT Top 150 Animated Films Countdown begins...

[chasmmi]

This is it. The time to reveal all is here... well here in about 45 hours. 

 

As a precursor to the reveals, I put something together as a little bit of fun which I will post half of today and half tomorrow, before beginning the count on Thursday.

 

Watch this space.

 

(And yes, as the title says, if 150th place has not been revealed yet, I will accept last gasp lists. But you do not have a lot of time left so if you are reading this, I would advise to just put it together now and send. 

[chasmmi]

So I am having a bit of fun here before I start the countdown…

 

Before I looked at any members vote list (except my own), I went and looked at what were the most high profile animated releases since the last list. (So anything from January 1^st 2018 up until Raya, this year. I decided I would have a go at predicting how well each film will fare on this latest list and then I can see how awesomely I predicted them all. I am only going to list the most high profile of each year so my apologies to Batman Ninja and Bungo Stray Dogs. So here goes….

 

(It goes without saying that I have since watched a few of these, which also would have changed my opinion in those halcyon days of mid June)

[chasmmi]

 

2018 (Alphabetical Order)

 

Dr. Seuss’ The Grinch – Prediction: 255th

 

I feel this film just came and went and was forgotten before it even left cinemas. Maybe a couple of people will read this and think, “Gosh Darn it, I should have put that in 83^rd place instead of Ice Age 2!” but overall, this will maybe get one or two votes and find itself in about 3-400^th.

 

Dragon Ball Super: Broly – Prediction: 296^th

 

The story of one angry umbrella’s quest for vengeance, this was a film that had a brief explosion of interest upon its release and then quietly remembered its place as being a Dragon Ball cartoon. A couple of people will have forgotten it, a couple others will have it midway on their list, and the rest will wonder why I even brought it up.

 

Early Man – Prediction: 179th

 

Oh… I forgot about this one myself. Into 92^nd spot it goes… Anyhow, back to how it will fare. I kind of expect it to not really factor. As charming as the film was, I think it will end closer to Flushed away than Wallace and Gromit. Maybe break top 200.

 

Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation – Prediction: 215^th

 

I actually really, really like the first two films of this franchise (both are in my top 100), yet still somehow I managed not to watch this one (as of writing). I imagine this is a film that just came out without enough fanfare to carry it to the heights of the previous two (I think the first makes the top 100, maybe not the 2^nd)

 

The Incredibles 2 – Prediction: 45^th

 

It’s Pixar. It’s the Incredibles, one of the best animated films ever, and it is a sequel we had all been waiting for, which is why I was so happy to see that it was a generally average film interspersed with a couple of stand-out moments. For my personal list, Incredibles 2, just misses the top 100, but I think for the forum at large it just about breaks the top 50.

 

Isle of Dogs – Prediction: 173^rd

 

I make no secret of the fact that I believe Paul W.S. Anderson to be the best filmmaking Anderson. That said, this is probably my favourite thing from Wes Anderson as it wasn’t completely terrible to me. I am expecting it to receive a small number of decent ranked votes that will see it potentially challenge the top 100, but not break into it.

 

Mirai of the Future – Prediction: 304^th

 

It’ll get 1 vote from the one forum member that saw it and gets angry that if you aren’t Ghibli or a naked 80s robot girl, you don’t make this lists. 

 

Norm of the North – Prediction: 1^st

 

Clearly the runaway leader of this countdown. Why even bother releasing the results.

 

Spoiler

It’ll finish about 500^th with one ironic vote and one unironic one.

 

Sherlock Gnomes – Prediction: N/A

 

I never saw this, I assume very few here saw this, and the ones that did, did not consider it for their list. It won’t get a vote.

 

Smallfoot – Prediciton: 306th

 

A saw the trailer for this, I thought it looked very promising. I never saw it though (I hope to do so before the deadline). I’m thinking it is going to be a film that get almost zero votes, but potentially is a film that deserves a lot more.

 

Spider-man Into the Spiderverse – Prediction: 8^th

 

This will easily be the top rated film of 2018. There is an immense amount of love for it and I agree with that. I think that a percentage of voters will snub it completely due to its Superhero nature, or its animation style or other reasons and that is a valid prerogative. However, I do expect it to get multiple top 5 votes and that will carry it into the top 10.

 

 

Teen Titans Go To the Movies – Prediction: 181st

 

I think this will be the most, “D’Oh, I forgot that one!” film of 2018. It’ll get a bit of love and maybe a couple of top 20 votes, but it will not challenge the top 100.

 

Addendum – I have since watched this one and it is one of the worst things ever brought into existence, 1012^th is too good for this awfulness.

[chasmmi]

2019 (Alphabetical Order)

 

Shaun the Sheep: Farmageddon – Prediction: 234th

 

I have heard nothing but great things about this film from everyone who saw it. Sadly that is only about 3 people so it will likely not challenge the list.

 

Abominable – Prediction: 325th

 

So it turns out that there are two yeti films. This feels like a Dreamworks film that nobody remembers happening and thus I am going to guess it gets a couple of 90^th places to finish close to last.

 

The Addams Family – Prediction: 311th

 

This came out like a year ago and I already forgot it was ever a thing. This is another film that maybe gets a stray vote or two, but no better.

 

Angry Birds 2 – Prediction: 167th

 

This is the best video game film ever made (until Sonic came along at least). I mean it is still like a 7/10 at best, but that beats pretty much everything that preceded it. I think this will get a respectable haul of points, but not enough to reach 100^th

 

Frozen 2 – Prediction: 68th

 

If this was a forum for 12 year olds, this could challenge for the crown. Oh wait… no, this will make the top 100 in the same way that Incredibles 2 will – Falling a few dozen places short of its predecessor.

 

How to Train Your Dragon 3 – Prediction: 37th

 

There is a case to be made that this was the best animated film released since the last list. It was pretty fantastic and further proof that Dreamworks are the best studio out there for completing trilogies what with this and Kung Fu Panda 3.

 

Klaus – Prediction: 191st

 

This is a Santa Claus film created for Hulu or some such and seems pretty popular with the Stream watching folks. I don’t know if that will be enough, but this one could surprise me.

 

Lego Movie 2 – Prediction: 178th

 

Another sequel that will drop big from its previous installment. However, I think this one may even fail to make the list, and the biggest question will be whether it outscores Ninjago or not (I expect Lego Batman to tickle the bottom of the list).

 

Missing Link  – Prediction: 214th

 

This is the follow up to Kubo right? One of the most undervoted films on this list (I am predicting at least). Missing Link however, did not seem to really have as much impact as Kubo before it and as such will likely disappoint with its placement.

 

Playmobil: The Movie – Prediction: 2nd

 

Gonna be an easy second place after Norm of the North. 

 

Spoiler

Won’t even achieve a pity vote.

 

Red Shoes and the Seven Dwarfs – Prediction: 0 points

 

This was Korea’s big foray into making a major worldwide animation success. It was a fat-shaming, problematic production that I don’t see scoring a point.

 

The Secret Life of Pets 2 – Prediction: 179th

 

Yet another sequel that will drop from the original (despite kind of being a lot better than the original.) I’m see the first SLOP just inching into the top 150, with this second on just a few spaces behind.

 

Spies in Disguise – Prediction: 254th

 

A film that came out, made some money, and then went away. It will be forever remembered as a film that maybe happened that one time.

 

Toy Story 4 – Prediction: 131st

 

Obviously the first three are slam dunks for the top 100, maybe even all top 20. Toy Story 4 however, was an average film in a beloved franchise. If a Shrek film was of similar quality, I think it would finish about 200^th, but this is Pixar so that’s probably a 75 film boost. 

[chasmmi]

Will post 2020/21 tomorrow.

[chasmmi]

As promised, here be 2020/2021

 

2020 (Alphabetical Order)

 

The Croods 2 – Prediction: 201st

 

Will being the only animated film in existence for about 6 months help this to rocket up the charts? No, no it won’t.

 

Earwig and the Witch – Prediction: 317th

 

Ghibli is back baby!!! With its worst reviewed film by some margin I believe. And one that maybe isn’t easy to get hold of yet. As such, this isn’t adding to the list’s Japanese representation.

 

Onward – Prediction: 107th

 

One of the Covid Pixar films and a film that was good, maybe even great in places. Recency bias may help get this film into the top 100, but I am predicting that it just misses out in favour of a different recent Pixar release.

 

Scoob! – Prediction: 343rd

 

Another Scooby Doo film, but this time it is animated! But not ya know, the original animated, or updated animated, this is new animated. Ooooohhh. Yeah, this isn’t affecting the countdown.

 

Soul – Prediction: 28th

 

Another that may challenge for the position of highest new entry. This felt like it was another great Disney/Pixar film from the 2010’s and as such it may challenge the top 25.

 

Spongebob Movie: Sponge on the Run – Prediction: 337th

 

No. Just No.

 

 

Trolls World Tour – Prediction: 208th

 

The original Trolls film had one of the worst trailers ever that cunningly disguised that it was actually a pretty sweet and enjoyable film. Sadly, I don’t think Trolls is going to make the top 100, and thus World Tour stands zero chance.

 

2021 (Alphabetical Order)

 

Raya and the Last Dragon – Prediction: 162^nd

 

Avatar: The final Dragon-bender was actually a pretty good time in my opinion. It had its issues, and it took a while for the dragon to grow on me, but by the end I thought this was a top 100 worthy film. Therefore I am confident it will finish about 80 places below that.

 

[Ethan Hunt]

I Lost My Body not included in the predictions

 

(which i would expect I Lost My Body to make the list)

Edited July 14, 2021 by Ethan Hunt

[Tower]

1 hour ago, Ethan Hunt said:

I Lost My Body not included in the predictions

 

(which i would expect I Lost My Body to make the list)

I think a different Chas snub is more likely to make it: Wolfwalkers.

[chasmmi]

There were maybe some international films that I did not know how big/small they would be before the votes came in.

 

Anyway, let's get writing this intro list  

[chasmmi]

There were maybe some international films that I did not know how big/small they would be before the votes came in.

 

Anyway, let's get writing this intro list  

 

So before we start, how about some stats? 

 

• Number of Lists: 40
• Number of different films voted for: 349
• Smallest number of Votes to make top 150: 4
• Smallest number of Votes to make top 100: 8
• largest number of Votes to miss top 150: 7
• largest number of Votes to miss top 100: 12
• Points Required to make top 150: 85
• Points Required to make top 100: 167

 

So what can we expect to see on this list? Obviously there are the major powerhouse studios and it is very possible that 80% of the films may come from 4 or 5 studios. But you never know. Both through legal and ..less legal means, it has never been easier to track down those more niche (or just more foreign) films that you have heard others laud over in thread like this. Maybe this will lead to a big surge in Aramaic Animation on this list. Or maybe the top 10 are all directed by Walt Disney himself. 

 

As for what we could potentially see. How about we quickly look at the major studios cinematic output (at least when it comes to quantity).

 

• Disney: 59
• Dreamworks: 39
• Pixar: 23
• Studio Ghibli: 22 (With 9 others with different levels of argument to be included)
• 20th Century Animation: 13
• Aardman: 8
• Sony Pictures Animation: 20
• Illumination: 10
• Warner Bros Animation: 13 (ish) 
• Laika:  5-9
• Cartoon Saloon  4

I am well aware that this is not everything, but in particularly with regards to the French and non-Ghibli Japanese stuff that may or may not get onto the list, I do not know if there is a studio responsible for a big swath of them, or if they are all pretty independent of each other. 

 

But by my math, that is about 218 potential films listed above with many many more that also have potential to make the list. 

 

That said. How about we see what came 150th?

 

....once I have eaten  

 

[chasmmi]

150^th – The Rescuers Down Under

85 points – 6 votes ( 0 top 10 )

2013 – Not in top 25

2014 – Not in top 100

2016 – 113^th

2018 – Not in top 100

My personal ranking – 83^rd

 

 

 

We begin this list with a Disney sequel, although one that is generally regarded to be an improvement on its predecessor, which is a trend that historically has not been followed with these forum countdowns as the Rescuers has always finished above Down Under.

That is until now where The Rescuers has failed to make the top 150 and finishes in 174^th on 67 points. This also makes The Rescuers one of only 2 films to miss the top 150 despite receiving 7 votes (the other being Good Dinosaur).

And fun fact: The absolute final points I added into Excel when tallying were the points that raised Down Under into 150^th at the expense of Good Dinosaur, Sausage Party and Book of Life which all finished on 84 points.

[chasmmi]

149^th – Pocahontas

86 points – 6 votes ( 0 top 10 )

2013 – Not in top 25

2014 – 63rd

2016 – 110^th

2018 – Not in top 100

My personal ranking – 74^th

 

 

 

So that is two reveals and two WDAS films. However, considering this is 149^th and 150^th whether that is a good sign or a bad sign for Disney is hard to tell at this point. For Pocahontas in particular, this does seem to continue Pocahontas’ downward trajectory in these lists. This was also another film that crept into the top 150 thanks to a couple of late votes.  

As a film, Pocahontas is a controversial choice. It obviously has a subject matter that some consider more than problematic. As a British person, the true history of Pocahontas is not as a big a part of my historical education compared to I assume a lot more North American members here.

Putting the controversy aside, Pocahontas is a film with some beautiful animation, some fantastic music and songs, and is overall a film that I believe would be a solid top 100 film on these lists if it was based on a pure myth or fairytale.

[chasmmi]

 148^th – Arthur Christmas

89 points – 6 votes ( 0 top 10 )

2013 – Not in top 25

2014 – Not in top 100

2016 – 132^nd

2018 – Not in top 100

My personal ranking – Never Seen it

 

 

 

Our first non- Disney film and it is from the wacky world of Aardman (or technically Sony Animation?). This is also the first film on this list that I have not seen so I cannot really comment on it as a film.

This is yet another film that previous lists suggest is a film that will creep into a top 150 list, but will not threaten a top 100. It does seem like the case of a film that probably has charm, but due to the Aardman/slightly more child-centric story means that it likely has not been watched/remembered by a good number of members as opposed to being actively omitted from folks’ lists.  

 

[chasmmi]

147^th – Ice Age

89 points – 6 votes ( 0 top 10 )

Tiebreak – Higher top rating

2013 – Not in top 25

2014 – 68th

2016 – 108^th

2018 –74th

My personal ranking – Not in top 100. – Maybe squeaks into my 150.

 

 

 

Now it is Fox’s (or is this now technically also Disney now) turn to squeak into the list. Ice Age is a franchise that churned out films until people tapped out and collectively screamed, “No More!” The First Ice Age Movie is a decent film that probably finds its way onto the mid/lower regions of many people’s lists until they watch enough films to finally push it off (This is what happened with me).

 

This is also the first big drop we have seen from anything that could be described as close to a top 100 regular. Maybe this is a foreshadowing of things to come and that a number of the spots that have been traditionally taken up by big studios’ entertaining but nothing special outputs, have been replaced with more esoteric, international, or smaller studio works.

 

As is tradition, no other Ice Age film came close to making the list as Ice Age 2 finished in 218^th, Ice Age 3 was 230^th, and then Ice Ages 4 and 5 are both among the 18 films in joint 332^nd with a single solitary point,

[chasmmi]

146^th – The The Breadwinner

90 points – 5 votes ( 0 top 10 )

2013 – Not Eligible

2014 – Not Eligible

2016 – Not Eligible

2018 – Not in top 100

My personal ranking – 20^th

 

 

 

And so we move onto the first film on the list where I strongly disagree with the finishing placement. For me, this film was fantastic and handled a difficult subject matter in a way that was both powerful, but also allowed for some level of entertainment as a film. It is my personal favorite of the output from Cartoon Saloon (whose films I had not seen until this month, and I have to say that I really liked 3 of the 4.).

This is not the highest rated Cartoon Saloon film on this list, so be patient and we can find out which (and how many) of the others placed higher.

[Jason]

The Breadwinner was on my watchlist (I've seen Wolfwalkers and Song of the Sea) but I didn't get around to it. Next time, I promise!

Also, I agree about Pocahontas - it's impossible to separate from its historical context but if it were somehow purely fictional I also think it would be remembered more fondly.

Edited July 15, 2021 by Jason

[TwoMisfits]

3 hours ago, chasmmi said:

149^th – Pocahontas

86 points – 6 votes ( 0 top 10 )

2013 – Not in top 25

2014 – 63rd

2016 – 110^th

2018 – Not in top 100

My personal ranking – 74^th

 

 

 

So that is two reveals and two WDAS films. However, considering this is 149^th and 150^th whether that is a good sign or a bad sign for Disney is hard to tell at this point. For Pocahontas in particular, this does seem to continue Pocahontas’ downward trajectory in these lists. This was also another film that crept into the top 150 thanks to a couple of late votes.  

As a film, Pocahontas is a controversial choice. It obviously has a subject matter that some consider more than problematic. As a British person, the true history of Pocahontas is not as a big a part of my historical education compared to I assume a lot more North American members here.

Putting the controversy aside, Pocahontas is a film with some beautiful animation, some fantastic music and songs, and is overall a film that I believe would be a solid top 100 film on these lists if it was based on a pure myth or fairytale.

 

So, I didn't vote and I didn't like the movie when it came out (so I doubt I'd elevate it in a rewatch)...but Colors of the Wind has to be one of the Top 10 best written and performed songs in a Disney animated movie.  The song lyrics aren't forced (but they are lyrical and intellectual), the melody builds, the animation fits and is beautiful, and the vocals are very good.  Regardless of all the controversies of the movie, that one scene sequence is beautiful and timeless...

[The Panda]

3 hours ago, chasmmi said:

149^th – Pocahontas

86 points – 6 votes ( 0 top 10 )

2013 – Not in top 25

2014 – 63rd

2016 – 110^th

2018 – Not in top 100

My personal ranking – 74^th

 

 

 

So that is two reveals and two WDAS films. However, considering this is 149^th and 150^th whether that is a good sign or a bad sign for Disney is hard to tell at this point. For Pocahontas in particular, this does seem to continue Pocahontas’ downward trajectory in these lists. This was also another film that crept into the top 150 thanks to a couple of late votes.  

As a film, Pocahontas is a controversial choice. It obviously has a subject matter that some consider more than problematic. As a British person, the true history of Pocahontas is not as a big a part of my historical education compared to I assume a lot more North American members here.

Putting the controversy aside, Pocahontas is a film with some beautiful animation, some fantastic music and songs, and is overall a film that I believe would be a solid top 100 film on these lists if it was based on a pure myth or fairytale.

After seeing this…

 

[TalismanRing]

I completely forgot about I Lost My Body, Klaus and Spiderverse all would have made my list

 

And everyone should watch Arthur Christmas - it's become a X-Mas staple for me.  Genuinely warm while very funny and clever.

Edited July 15, 2021 by TalismanRing

[chasmmi]

So in the upcoming next 5 films, we have 3 films I haven't seen, one that I haven't seen in so long I essentially do not remember it. And finally one I actually have seen.