Forget Disney, Here're 5 Lesser-Known but Brilliant Animated Movies, Ranked by IMDb
These projects prove that animation is an art form that can touch you and make you think as much as any "big" film.
Beyond Disney's dazzling world and Pixar's hit works, there's a universe of animated movies full of unexpected masterpieces.
Often born in other countries or by independent studios, these movies offer unique visual styles, bold narrative solutions, and profound topics that are often far from childish.
5. 'Deep Sea', 2023
IMDb Score: 6.8/10
After her parents divorced, little Shenxiu withdrew from everyone around her because she deeply missed her mother. While on a cruise with her father and his new wife, she heard a familiar melody her mother used to hum to her.
Following the enchanting music, she fell overboard. A wondrous underwater world opens before Shenxiu – a kaleidoscope of wonders and paintings.
The ocean teems with anthropomorphic fish and other fantastical creatures who will help Shenxiu find her mother and grow up along the way.
4. 'Brother Bear', 2003
IMDb Score: 6.9/10
A powerful Native American chief dies fighting a bear and his enraged sons decide to avenge his death by killing the beast.
Driven by revenge, the younger brother decides to act alone. However, the powers of the forest transform him into a bear. Seeing the world through the eyes of an animal, he learns a lot about the world and how everything is connected.
Suddenly, however, he learns that his older brother and the tribe's best hunters are planning to exterminate all the bears in the area – including him.
3. 'The Triplets of Belleville', 2003
IMDb Score: 7.7/10
Champion is a boy who dreams of becoming a professional cyclist. When he grows up, he participates in the world-famous Tour de France.
Madame Souza and her loyal friend Bruno set out to support Champion, but he is suddenly kidnapped by men in business suits.
Like Sherlock and Watson, Madame Souza and Bruno search the metropolis of Belleville for Champion.
2. 'Ernest & Celestine', 2012
IMDb Score: 7.8/10
Ernest, a large bear and musician, took little Celestine into his home. She was an orphan who had escaped from the underground world of her fellow bears.
The two loners felt very comfortable together and helped each other, thereby disrupting the established order. In the bear world friendship with mice is frowned upon. Similarly, in the mouse world, bears are considered monsters.
The French animation is based on a series of children's books by Belgian illustrator Gabrielle Vincent. In her work, Vincent uses delicate colors to poetically recreate the fragile world of childhood.
1. 'Wolfwalkers', 2020
IMDb Score: 8.0/10
The movie follows the daughter of a professional hunter. She travels with him to Ireland to help exterminate the last wolf pack.
However, everything changes when she meets a mysterious girl from a tribe that, according to legend, transforms into wolves at night.
Three-time Oscar nominee Tomm Moore was inspired by Irish folklore to create his distinctive style. His characters, fairies, werewolves, selkies, and giants, seem to have stepped straight from the pages of Celtic manuscripts.
