‘Epic’ has hit the big screens last week, a magical tale about a girl who is transported to an enchanted universe to lead a battle against good and evil. From the creators of much-loved animated films, ‘Ice Age’ and ‘Rio’, we have high hopes for ‘Epic’. With the voices of Amanda Seyfried, Beyoncé Knowles and Josh Hutcherson, we’re sure to be in for a treat. Catch it now in cinemas!
Beauty and the Beast is in our top 10 favourite animated films
And ‘Epic’ is not the only animated film that we get to look forward to this year, with ‘bound to be hits’ such as ‘Monsters University’ and ‘Despicable Me 2’ coming to a cinema near you very soon. Here at FemaleFirst we travelled back in time and came up with our top 10 favourite animated films of our times.
01 – Toy Story 3
We were brought the third instalment to the Toy Story series in 2010 and it became the highest-grossing animated film of our time. ‘Toy Story 3’is known to make grown men cry and all ages, from young to old, will love this film. What is perfect about this film is that adults grew up with the story of Woody, Buzz, Rex and the rest of the gang, whereas younger children can explore the magic of the film.
‘Toy Story 3’ sees Andy all grown up and heading off to college, he feels like he is too old for his toys now and packs them up to put them in the attic. However, the box gets muddled up and is instead sent to a day-care centre where here we have many laughs as the toys try to escape the day centre. And we are introduced to some new and exciting characters to make us for in love with the trilogy even more (as if we even thought that was possible!)
02 – The Lion King
‘The Lion King’ was first released in 1994 and was the highest grossing animated film ever until ‘Toy Story 3’ knocked it out of its place 3 years ago. And with the phenomenal success of the stage production, ‘The Lion King: The Musical’, it’s really is no surprise that this is on our list of favourite animated movies.
Here we follow the story of innocent and scared cub Simba, on his quest to discover who he really is. Simba flees his soon-to-be kingdom after he is tricked into thinking he has killed his father but his evil uncle, Scar. Once escaped, Simba meets beloved characters, Timon and Pumbaa, who brings the lion up as one of them. The film is full of laughs and tears and will stay in your hearts long after the credits have finished running.
The Lion King
03 – Finding Nemo
‘Finding Nemo’ follows the story of timid father, Marlin, on his quest to find his son, Nemo, who has been abducted by boat and sent to live in a tank in a dentist office. On his adventure, Marlin meets a blue tang fish, Dory, who is suffering from memory loss.
And with Disney Pixar recently announcing the release of follow-up film, Finding Dory, we couldn’t be more excited! Although we may have to wait a while to get our fix of the loveable Dory, as the film is set to be released in 2015.
Finding Nemo
04 – Monsters, Inc.
Meet Sulley and Mike Wazoski, who work for the city’s (which is only populated by monsters) power company, called Monsters, Inc. Their job is to scare children in order for their world to run on power; however the monsters are petrified that they will become contaminated by the children. Two-year-old Boo sneaks in to the monsters world and it is Sulley’s and Mike’s job to discreetly get her back to her own world without anyone knowing she’s in the monsters world.
And we are once again rewarded with our favourite monsters in July, with the release of Monsters University. We sure will be rushing to the cinema to see that one!
Monster, Inc.
05 – Despicable Me
‘Despicable Me’ is a hilarious animated film that sees evil neighbour, Gru on his mission to steal the moon. Gru encounters three little orphan girls who see the wicked Gru as a potential dad. Here we watch the funny tale as the villain of the neighbourhood try to use the girls in his favour to capture the moon.
‘Despicable Me 2’ will be coming to our cinema next month and we are so excited to see our little minions and enjoy more side-splitting laughter.
Despicable Me
06 – Brave
Here at FemaleFirst we love ‘Brave’ as Pixar has finally used a woman as the main leading role. She does not need a man to fight her battles as Scottish lass, Merida is independent, head-strong and as the title of the movie suggests, brave. Finally Pixar has given young girls a role model that goes against tradition and suggests women can be tough and don’t need to be so obsessed with looks.
‘Brave’ follows Princess Merida, who makes a reckless choice and has to live with the consequences. She seeks out a witch who gives her one ill-fated wish, which sees Merida harness all her skills and resources to undo a beastly curse.
Brave
07 – Beauty and the Beast
This truly is a magical tale and one of my favourite animated films of all time. We meet Belle, who is held captive by the beast, after she offers herself up in place of her father. We discover the beast was once a prince but had a curse put upon him because he could not love. And if the prince reaches his 21st birthday without loving, and earning love in return, the prince will stay a beast forever. Time is running out for the beast but can he fall in love after all? This film delivers a beautiful message to us all, explaining to us that beauty is found deep within us and to never judge a book by its cover.
Beauty and the Beast
08 – Tangled
We all love our fairy tales and this tale of Rapunzel is truly beautiful! Rapunzel has been trapped in a castle all her life but when she is discovered by a runaway thief, she’s revealed to a life outside the castle and for Rapunzel, there is no going back for her.
Tangled
09 – Shrek 2
Fiona’s parents invite the newlyweds up to their palace to celebrate the marriage of the newlyweds, however someone forgot to tell them that they are both ogres. This is the second instalment to the ‘Shrek’ series where we join Shrek, Donkey and Fiona on a hilarious journey to Far, Far Away.
Shrek 2
10 – Cars
‘Cars’ is an exciting tale about race-car, Lightning McQueen. On his journey to California for his most exciting and final race for the Piston Cup, Lighting McQueen accidentally wheels out of the service van taking him to his next big race. Here he comes across run-down town, Radiator Springs where he discovers the true meaning of friendship. And you are to expect many laughs with the hilarious Matter.
Cars
What are your favourite animated films? Comment below or tweet us at @FemaleFirst
By Claire Lancaster