Animated films deserve love, too, so we decided to round up our favorite animated movies in 2024. For our Top Animated Movies of 2024, we looked across IP, genre, studio, and release methods. We do have some stipulations for making our list, though we thought it best to celebrate all animated films regardless of style or country they originated from.
To make the top animated movies on the 2024 list, the film had to have been released in the United States in the calendar year of 2024 and was available to audiences in theaters or on streaming platforms. This means that films with theater-only runs and not currently available can still make the list. Additionally, there was no rating or age-group-specific requirement to be on the Top Animation Movies of 2024 list. Without further ado, here are our top animated movies of 2024.
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10. Lord of the Rings: War of the Rohirrim
Director: Kenji Kamiyama
Writer: Jeffrey Addiss, Will Matthews, Phoebe Gittins, Arty Papageorgiou
Studio: Sola
“The animation by Sola is breathtaking, using the groundwork of Jackson’s imagining of Middle Earth and adding their own textures to the land and its inhabitants. With gorgeous valleys, forests, mountains, caves, animals, and skies, this is a Middle Earth you would love to be lost in. The usage of previous landmarks like Helm’s Deep, Isengard, Edoras, Fangorn Forest, and Dunharrow is indeed tinged with nostalgia for older fans of Jackson’s films but used appropriately for the setting, not an over-usage by any means.
The action is also sweeping, with the battles fought by Helm, Hèra, and their close allies being brutal and beautiful. The action scenes for regular soldiers of the Rohirrim don’t quite reach those heights, but they are adequate enough to keep you engaged. Perhaps some more work on the action scenes would have improved the adventure on screen, but what we get with the legendary Helm and his family remains enthralling.
The War of the Rohirrim represents what can be achieved in Tolkien’s world when animators are given the storytelling reins. It adds more dimension to this beautiful world we mostly see in the live-action space. With beautiful animation, enthralling characters, a gripping story, great action overall, and a lovely score by Stephen Gallagher, it’s a testament to the power of animation as a whole for epic storytelling.” —Swara Salih
Lord of the Rings: War of the Rohirrim is in theaters now.
9. Ultraman Rising
Director: Shannon Tindle, co-directed by John Aoshima
Writer: Shannon Tindle and Marc Haimes
Studio: Tsuburaya Productions, Industrial Light & Magic
“With a perfect story, the animation rises to meet it. The mixture of animation styles and the bevy of references to anime, manga, and the tokusatsu tradition is clear. It’s an ambitious swing for the fences with a hyperstylization and smart use of 2D and 3D art that never feels forced. It’s the best animation that has come out of the United States since the Spider-verse series.
Ultimately, it shows how understanding the diversity of the medium can be used to create the best-animated film of the year. Industrial Light & Magic is known for its special effects work on large genre-defining franchises like Star Wars, but their animation work is untouchable.
Ultraman: Rising is easily the best-animated film of the year, and I don’t know if anything will surpass its emotional depth and artistic beauty. As a story, the film takes large swings at your heart. Animation pushes the boundaries, blending multiple art styles to expertly craft characters and places that feel uniquely and tangibly human despite their stylized proportions and designs. You’ll cry, you’ll cheer, and more importantly, you will feel something.” —Kate Sánchez
Ultraman Rising is streaming now exclusively on Netflix.
8. Mars Express
Director: Jérémie Périn
Writer: Laurent Sarfati, Jérémie Périn
Studio: Everybody on Deck
“Mars Express follows private detective Jun Chow and her android colleague Carlos Rivera as they get immersed in a deep conspiracy while trying to find a disappeared student accused of unlocking free will in a robot. If true, the consequences of this act can shake the foundations of society.
Jérémie Périn’s astonishing feature film debut is a neo-noir sci-fi thriller with an anime-inspired aesthetic that tackles complex ideas regarding artificial intelligence, exploitation, and the meaning of humanity with maturity and elegance. Périn doesn’t give easy answers. Instead, he forces you to pay attention to his masterful worldbuilding and the depth it holds.
Furthermore, the film boasts two fascinating main characters —a recovering alcoholic and a dead man reincarnated in the body of a guilt-ridden robot—exhilarating action sequences, beautiful environments, and breathtaking attention to detail (the likes I haven’t seen in sci-fi since playing Mass Effect). You will want to get lost in this layered futuristic world that will surely become a future sci-fi classic.”
Mars Express is available to rent on Prime Video.
7. Ghost Cat Anzu
Director: Yōko Kuno, Nobuhiro Yamashita
Writer: Shinji Imaoka
Studio: Shin-Ei Animation, Miyu Productions
“After her father leaves to find money to pay his debts, 11-year-old Karin is left behind at her grandfather’s temple. Here, Anzu, a seemingly immortal cat who walks and talks, will try to care for her.
Ghost Cat Anzu might be light on depth, but its simple storytelling is complemented by an array of wonderfully imaginative characters, a cheeky vibe, and gorgeous animation (rotoscope using live-action footage) that enriches the worldbuilding.
There’s a lot of joy to be had while spending time with Kari, Anzu, and a cast of humanoid mushrooms, giant frogs, and weird angry demos, particularly because of the naturality with which every element commutes. There’s some time for reflection too, a push to find beauty in the outrageous, to try to live in the magic of the moment, even when grief tries to pull you down to the bowels of a toilet underworld.”
6. The Imaginary
Director: Yoshiyuki Momose
Writer: Yoshiaki Nishimura
Studio: Studio Ponoc
“Animation Director Ken’ichi Konishi showcases hand-drawn animation and new light and shadow techniques that remind viewers of the power of 2D art and how lighting and shadow can embrace the three-dimensionality of characters. The Imaginary is a testament to the medium’s power…
Not without its third-act pacing faults, The Imaginary’s depth of emotional exploration is a must-watch for all ages. It speaks to young viewers, their parents, and even those who don’t have kids in similar but different ways. With one central message, the film never loses sight of the fact that it’s also universal.
Beautifully animated, The Imaginary delivers emotional gut punches, fantastical joy, and deep laughs. It balances these emotions against each other and, in doing so, crafts an emotional and intimate story that is easy to fall into but, more importantly, empathize with. At halfway through the year, I think it’s safe to say that between Ultraman Rising and The Imaginary, Netflix has two award contenders.” —Kate Sánchez
The Imaginary is available exclusively on Netflix.
5. Flow
Director: Gints Zilbalodis and Matiss Kaza
Writer: Gints Zilbalodis and Matiss Kaza
Studio: Dream Well Studio, Sacrebleu Productions, Take Five
“The most incredible visual moments come every time you least expect a major turning point in the movie. Flow has a keen sense of when to give just a little bit of human characteristic to the animals’ movements and personalities. For the most part, a cat is a cat, but every now and then, a cat will do something a little extraordinary to make them feel more relatable. While this sometimes contributes to the movie’s uncanniness on a textual level, it always delivers seamlessly in the visuals.
Flow is a simple, thrilling, and thought-inducing movie. Its strange cast of nearly silent characters may all be animals, but their traits will teach you how to be human. Every step in their journey begs you to ask how you would act in similar circumstances. And because the movie never over-explains those circumstances, you’re left with an eerie feeling that it may not be long before humanity has to confront these same questions of belonging, community, and survival ourselves.” —Jason Flatt
4. The Wild Robot
Director: Chris Sanders
Writer: Chris Sanders and Peter Brown
Studio: Dreamworks
“A true all-ages film, The Wild Robot sees even its youngest audiences as worthy of dramatic storytelling and dynamic emotions. It trusts them to understand the narrative without musical numbers or exposition. Instead, it immerses its audience, young and old, and makes you feel deeply for its characters. You can identify with Roz, Brightbill, and Fink. Or, you can even find yourself in the spaces in between. With a stunning cast of characters and performances that never felt phoned in or stunted for the star power, it reflected that my heart was bigger on the inside.
Family is what you make it, what it chooses it to be. The Wild Robot understands that nurture is stronger than nature and that our parents imprint on us as much as we do them. But more importantly, it doesn’t matter if we share our DNA. The Wild Robot solidifies the beauty and impact that Dreamworks has been delivering in animation. It’s the animation we need right now, and it feels like they know that.” —Kate Sánchez
The Wild Robot is available to rent on Prime Video and will be available on Peacock in 2025.
3. Robot Dreams
Director: Pablo Berger
Writer: Pablo Berger
Studio: Arcadia Motion Pictures
“The animation adopts a timeless quality, aided by the film’s 1980s setting. Berger, art director Jose Luis Ágreda, and storyboard artist Maca Gil create an expressionistic take on the city and the many dreams that Robot experiences throughout the film. With clean lines and an easy, soothing color palette, a sense of magical realism is baked into the film’s foundation. The effect is towering despite the delicacy of the story and the understated emotional leanings because it allows the animation to soar and the visuals to embody this world fully. We don’t question the logic and let it embrace us.
Robot Dreams excels due to its ability to marry magical realism with a grounded emotional core. The story of Dog and Robot is impossibly poignant as we yearn for the two to reunite, their happiness infectious. While it drags a bit in the second act, the film powers through, becoming a formidable tale about the power of companionship and the unmovable force that is the passage of time.” —Allyson Johnson
Robot Dreams is available on Hulu.
2. Look Back
Director: Kiyotaka Oshiyama
Writer: Kiyotaka Oshiyama, based on the manga by Tatsuki Fujimoto
Studio: Studio Durian
“At only 58 minutes, Look Back is an anime film that offers emotion over everything. In that small runtime, Studio Durian pulls in its audience, makes us care deeply for the lead girls turned women, and asks us to think like Fujino does. We are asked to think about the way one choice can shape a life.
How can it give meaning, or how can we force ourselves to believe it has taken it away? In under an hour, Studio Durian has given audiences a quintessential look at regret and what it looks like to move forward while still looking back.
Look Back tackles sentiments of inferiority, depression, and friendship. It also looks at grief and surviving after it in a nuanced way that punches beyond its 58-minute run time. We are looking into a small window of Fujino and Kyomoto’s lives, but through it, we’re experiencing the depth that one relationship can hold and the transformative power it can have on our lives.” —Kate Sánchez
Look Back is available on Prime Video.
1. Memoir of a Snail
Director: Adam Elliot
Writer: Adam Elliot
Studio: Arenamedia, Snails Pace Films
“Memoir of a Snail is a dark film, and there is no way around that. It makes you laugh with a morbid sense of humor that understands the need for levity throughout its runtime as it also lands gut punches. The pacing of the film feels like breathing. We experience Gracie’s trauma, and then we see her gain safety and love, then we see trauma, and then we see her try to recover again, and it cycles that way with each recovery harder and harder to pull off. This loop pays off with a finale that feels so extremely earned by an audience who has just been put through an emotional wringer. It’s a relief for Gracie and for us.
While the festival synopsis calls Memoir of a Snail heartwarming, I don’t know if that phrase adequately captures Gracie’s journey. Sure, she winds up on the other side of trauma, but the pathway there is difficult and long, a hot desert to walk through before ultimately finding a semblance of peace. Heartwarming isn’t what I would call it, but I would call Memoir of a Snail cathartic. Gracie’s traumatic experiences are hyperbolic and mostly humorous when looked at from our perspective.
Memoir of a Snail is the perfect balance between depressing and funny, highlighting the depth that animation can provide as a medium. There is more to animation than joyful, vibrant children’s films, and when we embrace it to tall, intimate stories, we let the medium expand. One of the best of the year, this stop-motion film is show-stoppingly weird and a must-watch.” —Kate Sánchez
Memoir of a Snail is available to rent on Prime Video.
With children’s films, adult animation, existing IP, and new original works, our top animated movies of the 2023 list are stacked with films across genres and styles. However, it was a stellar year for stop-motion animation.
With the beauty of animation in full swing, we did end up with a few honorable mentions, like The Colors Within. Did your favorite make it to the list of top animated movies of 2024? Let us know on social media: @butwhythopc.
