As the last week of December approaches and viewers prepare for animation, with the release of sequels to many beloved franchises.

Every animated movie released in 2024 didn't make as big a stir in the box office or among critics as they were supposed to, but there have been some noteworthy surprise hits. While Kung Fu Panda, Inside Out, Moana, and Despicable Me got anticipated sequels, the Transformers franchise branched out into animation, and The Wild Robot got critical and commercial success beyond what anyone had imagined it would.

10 Inside Out (2024)

Directed by Kelsey Mann

Pixar's sequels have often proved in the past to be disappointing returns to beloved franchises, but Inside Out 2 is the highest-grossing movie of 2024. The highly awaited sequel that came out nearly a decade after the first Inside Out film exceeded viewers' expectations, providing an insightful look at the development of new feelings through Riley's growth as a person. The heartfelt exploration of how adolescent children outgrow but never forget their formative childhood experiences provides a strong emotional backdrop for the plot to develop.

While it isn't as groundbreaking as the first film, Inside Out 2 does a solid job of developing the world of Inside Out to explore the role of newer emotions, especially anxiety, which is a highly relatable premise for viewers of all ages. However, it's hard not to feel disappointed with the sequel because it seems to make the same point regarding the necessity of peaceful coexistence of conflicting emotions. The new characters introduce fresh drama, but the narrative beats are similar enough to Inside Out to justify calling the approach formulaic.

9 The Most Precious of Cargoes (2024)

Directed by Michel Hazanavicius

Over 15 years have ed since an animated film competed for the Palme d'Or award at the Cannes Film Festival. It last happened in 2008 with Waltz of Bashir. Finally, in 2024, another animated feature entered the competition. Michel Hazanavicius' movie on the Holocaust tackles the contentious subject with the utmost sincerity, using a soft style of animation to focus on the humanity of the well-intentioned people who made survival a possibility for the doomed populace of Nazi-occupied Poland.

Switching between the heartwarming story of an abandoned child being brought up by an empathetic family and the horrifying tale of the child's father who is taken to a concentration camp, The Most Precious of Cargoes ends with a tender message about the importance of learning from history. While it doesn't succumb to the temptations of sentimentality like many other films set in that era of history, the movie's emotional strength mostly lies in Alexandre Desplat's beautiful score, which gets overbearing at times, because the images, despite their honesty, often struggle to create dramatic tension.

8 Transformers One (2024)

Directed by Josh Cooley

The Transformers franchise seems to have finally found stable ground with one of the animated movies that turned out better than expected. Transformers One reminds viewers why the animated shows of the past remain the best content made on Hasbro's toys. With beautiful visuals and an emotionally compelling narrative, it tells the origin story of the two most famous Transformers characters — Optimus Prime and Megatron. With poignant characterization peppered with humorous moments from the main characters, it does a fantastic job of establishing the rivalry that defines the franchise.

While Transformers One is a prequel, it is ideal for newcomers to the franchise to start with Transformers (2007) and watch in the order the movies were released, because the characters' traits become Easter eggs and witty callbacks in Transfotmers One.

The development of the lore follows a straightforward emotional thread, allowing the creative visual design of the world to engross viewers who feel compelled by the attention to detail. The lack of complexity in the plot helps develop the depth of the characters, providing audiences with thrills from the infectiously energetic action sequences as well as powerful dialogue to understand the characters and their motivations. The themes of rebellion and transformation are reflected in the fluid animation, with the toy-like design of the characters and the vibrant, crisp design of the planet complementing each other.

7 Wallace and Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl

Directed by Nick Park and Merlin Crossingham

Aardman Studios' beloved characters seem to never run out of relevant adventures, as Wallace and Gromit return for a heartwarming and cheesy story about the dangers of automation. The meta joke of making a movie about the perils of artificial intelligence with handmade stop-motion adds a layer of mirth to the adorable adventure. The iconic character of Feathers McGraw is back as well, proving once again that he's one of the most formidable foes for the protagonists.

The return of the characters has been long awaited for the better part of two decades, and it lives up to all expectations with the devilishly funny British humor that made viewers fall in love with them from their first appearance. There's a comforting sense of familiarity about Wallace and Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl, as the characters are still their same breezy, clumsy, and charming selves. Gromit continues to be insufferable as ever, and Gromit the anti-establishment hero who protects Wallace from his own follies.

6 Flow (2024)

Directed by Gints Zilbalodis

While the nominations are yet to be announced, Flow is a strong contender for the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature 2025. The dialogue-less survival story of a cat trying to do its best in the face of an apocalyptic flood is an anxiety-riddled cautionary tale about the perils of ignoring climate change. The lack of exposition and dialogue does create a sense of confusion, but instead of being a drawback, that adds to the intensity of the adventure, and reviews are calling Flow the best animated movie of the year.

While it's not confirmed in the movie, Flow reads like a contextualization of a story from the Bible, using the theme of the Biblical flood to allude to the climate crisis.

The simplicity of the premise itself eases viewers into the atmosphere of the primal survival story where plot details, while important, aren't the focus of the narrative. The power of animation can be felt through the way the silent characters impact viewers by communicating their emotional states entirely through body language and expressions. The animals aren't humanized or universalized, and each species represents its own archetype. This creates a complex ensemble of characters who work together in the face of adversity to survive the consequences of presumably human actions.

5 DAN DA DAN: First Encounter

Directed by Fuga Yamashiro, Rushio Moriyama, and Daiki Yonemori

While viewers were skeptical of an anime adaptation of the beloved manga Dandadan because of its unique art style, the show Dan Da Dan is one of the best anime of 2024. It brings to energetic and vibrant life the heartfelt and hilarious moments of the manga that made fans fall in love with it. A theatrical release of the first 3 episodes was released as a feature-length film, DAN DA DAN: First Encounter, and it got viewers hyped for the release of the anime later in the year.

A cross between shōnen and romance, Dan Da Dan follows the two protagonists as they face off against ghosts and aliens and debate about their beliefs regarding spirits when they aren't fighting mysterious creatures. The color palette reflects the same chaotic and vibrant mix of colors that the manga uses to bring their adventures to life, and the care taken by the directors to create the anime shows how much they're fans of the source material as well.

4 Memoir of a Snail (2024)

Directed by Adam Elliot

Memoir of a Snail is one of the most underappreciated animated films of 2024. This R-rated movie tells the story of a snail's resilience who learns to embrace her differences from everyone who pushes her away, buoyed by Sarah Snook's beautiful voice acting as the main character. A painful study of the human experience rendered in bleak claymation by director Adam Elliot, it manages to spark hope and love in its lonely world of ostracism and loss.

Memoir of a Snail isn't a direct sequel to Adam Elliot's previous feature Mary and Max, but it's a spiritual successor, the second part in his third intended thematic trilogy of feature films.

Heartbreaking imagery accompanies the story to make viewers feel the full extent of Grace's depression, but it never pities her, even when she wallows. The abstract clay modeling renders the experience surreal, allowing the movie to tap into emotions on a visual level, where Grace's trauma becomes a canvas on which characters and their impacts on her turn into brushstrokes. Those brushstrokes are as whimsical as they're devastating, crafting a tragicomedy in Memoir of a Snail through a morbid sense of humor.

3 HAIKYU!! The Dumpster Battle (2024)

Directed by Susumu Mitsunaka

In 2022, Crunchyroll announced two final films to complete the story of their dearly beloved volleyball anime Haikyu!! The long-anticipated release of the first of them, Haikyu!! The Dumpster Battle was met with positive responses from fans all over the world, who are hailing it as one of the best animated movies of 2024. With a hooking premise that allows long-time rivals Karasuno and Nekoma to face-off in competition against each other in a high-stakes game, it rewards fans who have been waiting for closure since the anime ended in 2020.

Haikyu!! The Dumpster Battle is worth the wait, bringing back the adrenaline and rollercoaster of emotions that have ruled the hearts of anime fans for the past decade. Picking up from where the Season 4 finale ended, the movie doesn't spend time recapping the past, as it expects viewers to the important bits necessary to understand the events of the film. While many viewers had expressed skepticism, claiming a fifth season would be a better way to close the anime, it brings its A-game, with an assist from its beautiful animation to win over everyone.

2 The Wild Robot (2024)

Directed by Chris Sanders

It's no surprise that the man who directed Lilo and Stitch and How to Train Your Dragon has directed another movie about an unlikely familial bond between a robot and the residents of an island that she has crashed into. While the marketing for the film didn't do it justice, it has received resounding critical acclaim and commercial success, making it a serious contender for the Oscars. While the story isn't new and the characters, unlike what the first trailer seemed to suggest, do speak, it creates a compelling emotional narrative that keeps viewers engaged throughout.

The Wild Robot's use of humor is particularly commendable, as it complements the seriousness of the tragedy it depicts in its exploration of the circle of life and the inevitability of death. While the characters' silence might have added to the movie's levity, the dialogue adds to the emotional weight, buoyed by the beautiful voice acting of the cast. Lead actress Lupita Nyong'o stands out in her first animated film since The Jungle Book (2016).

1 Look Back (2024)

Directed by Kiyotaka Oshiyama

Chainsaw Man creator Tatsuki Fujimoto's one-shot manga Look Back was finally adapted into an anime movie, and it's exactly as good as the manga deserves. With a short runtime, it explores the bittersweet experience of being a creative person in a world where commitment to art seemingly creates isolation from those who are blissfully unaware of the painstaking journey necessary to create something of substance. The same artistic hunger that drives people to remove themselves from their surroundings when committing to the creative process also allows them to connect with people on a level they never thought possible.

In less than an hour, Look Back takes a haunting look at the loneliness of an artist who fails to connect with someone they share a creative space with, feeling jealous, and even renouncing artistry when they feel overtaken. When the bleak reality seems to have overtaken the character's artistic drive, they discover a saving grace - connection with the same artist they considered their competition and blamed for their loss of confidence. A world is born which no one else is privy to, a heartening collection of half-boiled ideas and beautifully rendered art which replenishes both its occupants.