This month is a celebration of all things Pixar. We here at DCN, much as the rest of the world, love Pixar. In celebration of the openings of Incredibles 2 in theaters, Toy Story Land in Walt Disney World, and Pixar Pier in Disneyland we present an elite 8 segment this week themed all around Pixar films.
The Incredibles 2 is the 20th film created by the geniuses at Pixar. Twenty films and honestly, they are all pretty good. There isn’t a “bad” film in the bunch so picking a top 8 was very hard, but the DCN team was up to the challenge. And now we present our “Elite 8” of Pixar Movies. Here we go.
Number 8. Brave
The first Pixar princess is Merida and what a princess she turned out to be! Merida is a strong central character with clear motivations and a robust character arc. The story is self-contained and intimate and the animation is striking, especially the flowing red locks of the majority of characters. This movie is severely underrated.
Number 7. Finding Nemo
The Finding Nemo team chose every child’s favorite actor Albert Brooks to play Marlin, the nervous dad who will stop at nothing to find his son. I’m kidding, what kid knows Albert Brooks before seeing this movie? Actually, casting Albert Brooks was brilliant in that it provided a natural and grounded tone for the character. This set the stage for real characters and real emotion against the exquisitely realized underwater world.
Number 6. Toy Story 2
How do you pick one Toy Story above the others? They all work harmoniously together to tell a complete story, although we shall see how Toy Story 4 affects that next year. However, if we have to pick one Toy Story movie to include on this list, it has to be Toy Story 2. It is the rare sequel that improves upon its predecessor in every discernable way. It has inventive storytelling, gorgeous animation, and a perfect cast to create a rich and fulfilling experience.
Number 5. Monster’s Inc.
Yes, we cried in it. So what? That’s the beauty of Monster’s Inc. It took the basic concept of monsters in your closet and turned the idea on its head. It’s a lovely story about friendship, responsibility, and parenthood, told against the backdrop of a perfectly realized monster world. The jazzy score and combo of Billy Crystal and John Goodman only elevate this further into elite animation status.
Number 4. Up
Is Russell annoying? Yeah, kinda. There are certain members of the Disney Crew who despise Russell very much yet even so … still love this movie. There’s a magic and wonder to the adventure found in Up, with two very unlikely heroes in a senior citizen and an aggravating little boy. At its core Up is an exhilarating and poignant adventure with an impeccable script that has wit and a surprising amount of depth and gravitas, to go along with pitch perfect animation as usual from Pixar.
Number 3. The Incredibles
The Incredibles is Incredible! Yeah, too easy. Is it the greatest superhero movie of all time? There’s a real argument to be made for it. However, the magnificence of The Incredibles isn’t in the animation or fully realized action sequences but it’s in the family dynamic and character insights. The Incredibles is a fantastic story about family and what motivates each member of the family to contribute to the whole. There’s real emotion at play here and stakes that extend beyond just life and death.
Number 2. Wall-E
The first 20 or so minutes of Wall-E could be the most perfect 20 minutes of any movie anywhere. It is a near silent movie in those first 20 minutes but in that silence we meet our titular character and are charmed by him, we understand him, we sympathize with him, and we love him. That’s the amazing part of Wall-E, the ingenious storytelling. The movie changes venues early on and dives into other areas of what it means to be a human, what it means to be alive, and what it means to love. Its brilliant animation layered with thought provoking subtext.
And the number 1 Pixar movie is … Ratatouille!
Ratatouille is everything you want in a movie. It has magnificent characters, interesting concept, perfect cast, superb story, humor, depth, emotion, and excitement. It is the perfect movie. Everything Pixar had learned up until this point lead to this moment. It is a true feast for the eyes and ears. There is so much to enjoy and celebrate about this movie that it is hard to consolidate it down to one paragraph. The most important thing to know about Ratatouille is it is a triumph, not just in filmmaking but as a tribute to the wonders of discovery, embracing who you are, and realizing we as people all want the same things, no matter whom we are or where we come from. We all want purpose, stimulation, and happiness. This movie lives in that place and leaves you feeling warm and hungry for more.
And that’s our “Elite 8” of Pixar Movies.