'Long Way North' & 4 Other Best Adventure Animated Movies, Ranked by Rotten Tomatoes
Get ready for a journey from which you won't want to return.
The adventure animation genre is capable of delivering unforgettable emotions and transporting us to worlds filled with danger, discovery, and true friendship.
The best animated movies sweep us up in journeys we simply cannot tear ourselves away from, whether they take us to ancient treasure troves, distant planets, enchanted forests, or boundless oceans.
5. 'The Good Dinosaur', 2015
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 76%
In an alternate past, millions of years ago, a meteorite safely missed Earth. Consequently, the dinosaurs didn't go extinct, but instead evolved into intelligent beings. By the time Arlo, a young dinosaur, was born, they had already mastered agriculture and animal husbandry.
One day, Arlo and his father set out to find the little human who kept raiding their corn silo. During a heavy downpour, they were swept away by a swollen river and Arlo lost his father.
A year later, when Arlo encounters the human again, he chases him, falls into the river, and wakes up far from home. He knows that to return, he has to follow the river, but his other survival skills leave much to be desired.
4. 'Orion and the Dark', 2024
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 91%
Orion is afraid of many things: mosquito bites, being bullied by his classmates, and radio waves from phones. The dark is at the top of his pantheon of nightmares.
He cannot sleep with the door closed and begs his parents to read to him a little longer at bedtime. One day, Dark visits Orion's room and offers to help him overcome his fears.
Suddenly, Orion is racing across the starry sky with a gloomy yet benevolent creature and meeting the other inhabitants of the night world.
3. 'The Mitchells vs. the Machines', 2021
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 97%
Young Katie, the unrecognized genius of the Mitchell family, is preparing for college. She has been accepted to film school, where she will find friends who truly understand her creative soul.
Eagerly looking forward to it, she's disappointed when her dad, Rick, cancels her plane ticket and presents her with a new plan: the whole family is going on a cross-country road trip, with the college as their final destination.
The Mitchells hit the road while humanity stands on the brink of an AI revolution.
2. 'Up', 2009
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 98%
Ever since childhood, Carl has dreamed of great adventures, specifically in South America and Paradise Falls. His wife, Ellie, shared his longing for faraway lands. Yet life moved on, and they never managed to set off on those adventures.
Years later, now old and alone, Carl rejects the idea of quietly moving into a retirement home. Instead, he ties a multitude of balloons to his house and takes flight.
However, he soon discovers that he has brought along a young scout named Russell. Carl is just about to drop off his unexpected, very talkative passenger when a violent storm breaks out.
1. 'Long Way North', 2015
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 98%
St. Petersburg, late 19th century. Sasha is a young woman of noble birth who has no interest in balls or suitors. Her thoughts are consumed by the Arctic, where her explorer grandfather disappeared after setting sail on a large, sturdy ship.
After a long search, the government refuses to spend any more time or money on what it deems a hopeless cause. Therefore, Sasha decides to organize a new rescue expedition on her own.
She boards a train heading north, planning to secure passage on a ship bound for Franz Josef Land. Inexperienced in travel, the aristocrat must summon extraordinary courage to achieve her goal.
