The PG Cooper List Thread: Gamer Days

Doomsday sheds a tear each time I badmouth Geostorm.

Hey, leave Geostorm out of this. She never did anything to you.

16. Pom Poko (Ghibli)



I'm a big fan of Isao Takahata, but even I wasn't prepared for how much I'd enjoy his movie of talking tanuki. It's a delightful animated adventure, a salient critique of capitalism rooted in environmentalism, and a visual spectacle with a handful of wondrous sequences. I was also surprised that for such a seemingly light adventure I found the film's epilogue oddly affecting. A gem of Studio Ghibli's catalog.

14. Up (Pixar)



Too much focus is placed on Up's opening montage that people lose sight of how fun and rewarding the whole movie is. Honestly this still of cartoony adventure is not really to my taste, but the film is so well-made that it still wins me over. The jokes work and the set-pieces are quite good, but it's Carl's character growth through the story that really makes Up a winner. Ed Asner's performance is among the best in Pixar.

13. Beauty and the Beast (Disney)



The best version of the Disney Princess movie. Less a work of revisionism than a timely update which retains the magical charm of old, Beauty and the Beast is a very engaging story with well-defined characters (including some of the best leads in Disney history), some fantastic music, and awesome design work. For all the enchanting romance the film embraces a lot more of the Gothic trappings than you might expect.

Can't agree with you. It's a very good montage and the music goes a long way but I've never found it transcendently good.

...god damn it

11. Ratatouille (Pixar)



A movie about a cartoon rodent may not same wildly bold being produced by Disney of all companies, but Ratatouille is a surprisingly risky endeavor. How many other studios could get away with a $150 million dollar animated kids movie set in the world of high-class French restaurant culture with a title trailers literally had to tell people how to pronounce? But despite lacking the flourishes of superpowers or deep sea adventure Pixar had previously brought to the screen, Ratatouille is actually some of the most pure fun the studio has ever made. The sheer love Remy has for the craft of cooking is infectious and even for someone with no real interest in cooking, the film really does inspire you to pursue your passion in a way which is never condescending. Also, Anton Ego is maybe the coolest character in all of Pixar. God bless the genius who thought up Peter O'Toole for the voice.

You tryin to tell me something, partner?

Top ten time, baby.


10. The Tale of the Princess Kaguya (Ghibli)



The final film from Isao Takahata, in many ways marking a major transition for Ghibli (the future of which is still unknown) and in my opinion the best animated film of the decade. A beautifully told fable which is wondrous and ends with surprising emotional poignancy. Maybe that shouldn't be a surprise coming from Takahata but I was not prepared for how hard that final scene hit me. A fantastic swan song from a master of the form.

8. Toy Story 2 (Pixar)



The best story movie and one of the greatest sequels of all-time. A film that enriches the characters and themes of the series while also excelling as a fun micro-adventure film. Pixar's animation may have gotten more crisp and their set-pieces more intricate, but very few of their movies since I've hit the same balance of poignancy and excitement as Toy Story 2.