Must-See-Anime
by Tor_Baklund | created - 18 Jul 2017 | updated - 19 Mar 2019 | Public- Instant Watch Options
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1. A Town Called Panic (2009)
TV-PG | 75 min | Animation, Adventure, Comedy
Cowboy and Indian's only wish was to come up with a brilliant idea for Mr Horse's birthday, but when their plan ends up in utter disaster, they'll need to travel the world and back to make things right again.
Directors: Stéphane Aubier, Vincent Patar | Stars: Stéphane Aubier, Jeanne Balibar, Nicolas Buysse, François De Brigode
Votes: 8,712 | Gross: $0.17M
2. Alice (1988)
Not Rated | 86 min | Animation, Adventure, Fantasy
A surrealistic revision of Alice in Wonderland.
Director: Jan Svankmajer | Stars: Kristýna Kohoutová, Camilla Power
Votes: 13,985
3. November Tenth (2015)
TV-14 | 99 min | Animation, Action, Adventure
Musa, a thirteen-year-old shoe shiner, with Yumna, undergoes destiny through their adventure of waging war during the war time. Will they manage to bring peace among the troops keeping on fighting for nothing?
Director: Aryanto Yuniawan | Stars: Reza Rahadian, Keagan Kang, Marlon Dance-Hooi, Maudy Ayunda
Votes: 3,136
4. The Boy and the World (2013)
PG | 80 min | Animation, Adventure, Family
A little boy goes on an adventurous quest in search of his father.
Director: Alê Abreu | Stars: Vinicius Garcia, Marco Aurélio Campos, Lu Horta, Felipe Zilse
Votes: 7,599 | Gross: $0.13M
5. Brave Story (2006)
112 min | Animation, Adventure, Fantasy
When eleven-year-old Wataru is told he can change his destiny by entering a magic gateway into another world, he jumps at the chance. But on his quest to find the Tower of Fortune and be granted any wish, he must conjure up all his bravery to battle a world of demons, his own friends and ultimately himself.
Directors: Makoto Bessho, Kôichi Chigira, Mahiro Maeda, Yukio Takahashi, Tomihiko Ôkubo | Stars: Takako Matsu, Eiji Wentz, Joe Cappelletti, Dorothy Elias-Fahn
Votes: 1,559
6. Colorful (2010)
TV-14 | 126 min | Animation, Drama, Fantasy
A sinful spirit is granted the opportunity to prove worthy for rebirth, inhabiting the body of a student who killed himself.
Director: Keiichi Hara | Stars: Kumiko Asô, Chris Ayres, Greg Ayres, Clint Bickham
Votes: 7,040
7. Hal (2013)
TV-14 | 60 min | Animation, Drama, Family
A humanoid robot is asked to replace Hal, who was killed in a terrible accident, in order help Hal's girlfriend move on in life, but struggles to understand the real Hal's past and the meaning of being alive.
Director: Ryôtarô Makihara | Stars: Yoshimasa Hosoya, Yôko Hikasa, Mamoru Miyano, Tamio Ôki
Votes: 2,009
8. King of Thorn (2009)
TV-MA | 120 min | Animation, Adventure, Horror
A virus begins to grip the Earth's population and a group of hopeful survivors are cryogenically frozen in attempt to find a cure. But when the group awakens they are flung into a horrifying situation.
Director: Kazuyoshi Katayama | Stars: Kana Hanazawa, Toshiyuki Morikawa, Eri Sendai, Sayaka Ôhara
Votes: 2,908
9. Like the Clouds, Like the Wind (1990)
79 min | Animation, Comedy, Drama
Country girl Ginga leaves her home in hope of becoming one of the Emperor's Wives.
Director: Hisayuki Toriumi | Stars: Ryoko Sano, Atsuko Takahata, Ikuko Tani, Yôsuke Akimoto
Votes: 427
10. Magic Tree House (2011)
105 min | Animation, Adventure, Family
Annie and Jack discover a magic tree house that contains books that take them to different places in time.
Director: Hiroshi Nishikiori | Stars: Mana Ashida, Chika Anzai, Katsuhisa Hôki, Keiko Kitagawa
Votes: 177
11. Peiru Kokun (2005)
23 min | Animation, Short, Drama
In the far future when the continuity of the history has been lost, humans live in an ever more deteriorating completely artificial and enclosed world. The sea and the sky have disappeared,... See full summary »
Director: Yasuhiro Yoshiura | Stars: Minako Kawashima, Nakao Michiosu, Hiroka Oyama, Yasuhiro Yoshiura
Votes: 1,154
12. Patema Inverted (2013)
Not Rated | 98 min | Animation, Adventure, Drama
A young girl, from a civilization that resides in deep underground tunnels, finds herself trapped in an inverted world and teams up with a resident to escape and return home.
Director: Yasuhiro Yoshiura | Stars: Yukiyo Fujii, Nobuhiko Okamoto, Shintarô Ôhata, Shin'ya Fukumatsu
Votes: 10,210
13. Seoul Station (2016)
92 min | Animation, Action, Horror
Several groups of people try to survive a zombie pandemic that unleashes itself in downtown Seoul.
Director: Yeon Sang-ho | Stars: Ryu Seung-ryong, Shim Eun-kyung, Lee Joon, Jang Hyuk-jin
Votes: 7,630
14. Your Name. (2016)
PG | 106 min | Animation, Drama, Fantasy
Two teenagers share a profound, magical connection upon discovering they are swapping bodies. Things manage to become even more complicated when the boy and girl decide to meet in person.
Director: Makoto Shinkai | Stars: Ryunosuke Kamiki, Mone Kamishiraishi, Ryo Narita, Aoi Yûki
Votes: 320,055 | Gross: $5.02M
15. Wrinkles (2011)
Not Rated | 89 min | Animation, Drama
An astonishing cocktail of friendship, resistance and life set among the unexpected landscape of an elderly care facility.
Director: Ignacio Ferreras | Stars: Tacho González, Álvaro Guevara, Mabel Rivera, Raúl Dans
Votes: 4,552
16. When Marnie Was There (2014)
PG | 103 min | Animation, Drama, Family
Anna, a shy 12-year-old girl, is sent to spend time with her aunt and uncle who live in the countryside, where she meets Marnie. The two become best friends. But Anna gradually discovers that Marnie is not quite who she appears to be.
Director: Hiromasa Yonebayashi | Stars: Sara Takatsuki, Kasumi Arimura, Nanako Matsushima, Susumu Terajima
Votes: 47,876 | Gross: $0.77M
17. Welcome to the Space Show (2010)
Not Rated | 136 min | Animation, Adventure, Drama
Five kids go on amazing adventures through the universe after they rescue an injured alien.
Directors: Kôji Masunari, Masaaki Yuasa | Stars: Tomoyo Kurosawa, Honoka Ikezuki, Takuto Yoshinaga, Tamaki Matsumoto
Votes: 1,079
18. To the Forest of Firefly Lights (2011)
45 min | Animation, Drama, Fantasy
Hotaru is rescued by a spirit when she gets lost in a forest as a child. The two become friends, despite the spirit revealing that he will disappear if he is ever touched by a human.
Director: Takahiro Ômori | Stars: Kôki Uchiyama, Ayane Sakura, Shinpachi Tsuji, Izumi Sawada
Votes: 21,667
19. Time of Eve (2010)
106 min | Animation, Drama, Romance
In a not too distant future, a young man's outlook on his home android begins to change after tracking the android's behavioral log to a mysterious cafe.
Director: Yasuhiro Yoshiura | Stars: Jun Fukuyama, Kenji Nojima, Rie Tanaka, Rina Satô
Votes: 4,073
20. Time Masters (1982)
78 min | Animation, Adventure, Sci-Fi
Piel, a 7 or 8 year old boy, is alone on the desert planet Perdide, only survivor of an attack by giant hornets. Calling for help, Piel's father's friend Jaffar keeps contact with the kid and hurries across space toward Perdide.
Director: René Laloux | Stars: Jean Valmont, Michel Elias, Frédéric Legros, Yves-Marie Maurin
Votes: 6,103
21. The Wind Rises (2013)
PG-13 | 126 min | Animation, Biography, Drama
Jiro Horikoshi studies assiduously to fulfill his aim of becoming an aeronautical engineer. As WWII begins, fighter aircraft designed by him end up getting used by the Japanese Empire against its foes.
Director: Hayao Miyazaki | Stars: Hideaki Anno, Hidetoshi Nishijima, Miori Takimoto, Masahiko Nishimura
Votes: 98,707 | Gross: $5.21M
22. The Tale of The Princess Kaguya (2013)
PG | 137 min | Animation, Drama, Family
Kaguya is a beautiful young woman coveted by five nobles. To try to avoid marrying a stranger she doesn't love, she sends her suitors on seemingly impossible tasks. But she will have to face her fate and punishment for her choices.
Director: Isao Takahata | Stars: Chloë Grace Moretz, James Caan, Mary Steenburgen, James Marsden
Votes: 53,973 | Gross: $1.51M
23. Kahlil Gibran's The Prophet (2014)
PG | 85 min | Animation, Drama
Exiled artist and poet Mustafa embarks on a journey home with his housekeeper and her daughter; together the trio must evade the authorities who fear that the truth in Mustafa's words will incite rebellion.
Directors: Roger Allers, Gaëtan Brizzi, Paul Brizzi, Joan C. Gratz, Mohammed Saeed Harib, Tomm Moore, Nina Paley, Bill Plympton, Joann Sfar, Michal Socha | Stars: Liam Neeson, Salma Hayek, Quvenzhané Wallis, John Krasinski
Votes: 5,042 | Gross: $0.34M
24. The Princess and the Pilot (2011)
Not Rated | 99 min | Animation, Action, Adventure
A pilot, despite being advised not to, bonds with a princess when he is tasked with escorting the royal subject overseas and across enemy territory to reunite her with her future husband.
Director: Jun Shishido | Stars: Ryunosuke Kamiki, Seika Taketomi, Katsumi Chô, Mitsuaki Hoshino
Votes: 1,257
25. Piano no mori (2007)
101 min | Animation, Drama, Family
The son of a prostitute and the son of a professional musician develop a bond of friendship through their love of playing the piano.
Director: Masayuki Kojima | Stars: Aya Ueto, Ryunosuke Kamiki, Hiroyuki Amano, Mayuko Fukuda
Votes: 1,749
26. The Little Prince (2015)
PG | 108 min | Animation, Adventure, Drama
A little girl lives in a very grown-up world with her mother, who tries to prepare her for it. Her neighbor, the Aviator, introduces the girl to an extraordinary world where anything is possible, the world of the Little Prince.
Director: Mark Osborne | Stars: Jeff Bridges, Mackenzie Foy, Rachel McAdams, Marion Cotillard
Votes: 66,509 | Gross: $1.34M
27. The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya (2010)
Not Rated | 162 min | Animation, Drama, Family
A week before Christmas, Kyon wakes up in a world where the SOS Brigade doesn't exist. Mikuru and Yuki don't recognize him, and Haruhi and Itsuki seem to have vanished.
Directors: Noriyuki Kitanohara, Kazuya Sakamoto, Noriko Takao, Yasuhiro Takemoto, Hiroko Utsumi, Naoko Yamada, Mitsuyoshi Yoneda, Tatsuya Ishihara | Stars: Aya Hirano, Tomokazu Sugita, Minori Chihara, Yûko Gotô
Votes: 8,009
28. The Boy and the Beast (2015)
PG-13 | 119 min | Animation, Action, Adventure
When a young orphaned boy living on the streets of Shibuya stumbles upon a fantastic world of beasts, he's taken in by a gruff warrior beast looking for an apprentice.
Director: Mamoru Hosoda | Stars: Koji Yakusho, Aoi Miyazaki, Shôta Sometani, Suzu Hirose
Votes: 26,916 | Gross: $0.45M
29. Tamako Love Story (2014)
TV-14 | 83 min | Animation, Comedy, Drama
Tamako's life changes when her best friend, Mochizou, suddenly confesses his love for her.
Director: Naoko Yamada | Stars: Aya Suzaki, Atsushi Tamaru, Yûki Kaneko, Juri Nagatsuma
Votes: 2,832
30. Sword of the Stranger (2007)
Not Rated | 103 min | Animation, Action, Adventure
A swordsman from a strange land is caught in a struggle between morality, righteousness, and devotion as he reluctantly agrees to take a raggedy boy and his dog to a remote, Buddhist temple.
Director: Masahiro Andô | Stars: Tomoya Nagase, Yuri Chinen, Kôichi Yamadera, Akio Ôtsuka
Votes: 18,290
31. Summer Days with Coo (2007)
138 min | Animation, Adventure, Comedy
A boy befriends an orphaned water spirit, or Kappa, he found dried up and buried in a riverbank. He and his family help the creature adjust to life in the modern world.
Director: Keiichi Hara | Stars: Kazato Tomizawa, Takahiro Yokokawa, Naoki Tanaka, Naomi Nishida
Votes: 2,156
32. Space Adventure Cobra (1982)
Not Rated | 99 min | Animation, Action, Fantasy
After two years in hiding, a famed space pirate with a "psychogun" for a left arm joins a bounty huntress on a quest to save her world, only to find himself battling an old enemy.
Director: Osamu Dezaki | Stars: Shigeru Matsuzaki, Akiko Nakamura, Toshiko Fujita, Yoshiko Sakakibara
Votes: 2,308
33. Song of the Sea (2014)
PG | 93 min | Animation, Adventure, Drama
Ben, a young Irish boy, and his little sister Saoirse, a girl who can turn into a seal, go on an adventure to free the fairies and save the spirit world.
Director: Tomm Moore | Stars: David Rawle, Brendan Gleeson, Lisa Hannigan, Fionnula Flanagan
Votes: 63,095 | Gross: $0.86M
34. Someone's Gaze (2013)
7 min | Animation, Short
A futuristic story about a newly independent female and her maturation into independence. The narrator details the effect her development is having on her relationship with her father.
Director: Makoto Shinkai | Stars: Fumi Hirano, Satomi Hanamura, Shinji Ogawa, Rina Endô
Votes: 1,969
35. Sita Sings the Blues (2008)
Not Rated | 82 min | Animation, Comedy, Fantasy
An animated version of the epic Indian tale of Ramayana set to the 1920s jazz vocals of Annette Hanshaw.
Director: Nina Paley | Stars: Annette Hanshaw, Aseem Chhabra, Bhavana Nagulapally, Manish Acharya
Votes: 4,955
36. The Garden of Words (2013)
TV-14 | 46 min | Animation, Drama, Romance
On a rainy morning in Tokyo, 15-year-old Takao, an aspiring shoemaker, decides to skip class to sketch designs in a beautiful garden. This is where he meets Yukari, a beautiful yet mysterious woman. They strike an unlikely friendship.
Director: Makoto Shinkai | Stars: Miyu Irino, Kana Hanazawa, Fumi Hirano, Gou Maeda
Votes: 52,528
37. The Anthem of the Heart (2015)
119 min | Animation, Drama, Family
A young girl had her voice magically taken away so that she would never hurt people with it, but her outlook changes when she encounters music and friendship.
Director: Tatsuyuki Nagai | Stars: Inori Minase, Kôki Uchiyama, Sora Amamiya, Yoshimasa Hosoya
Votes: 6,341
38. Big Fish & Begonia (2016)
PG-13 | 100 min | Animation, Adventure, Drama
A 16-year-old girl travels to the human world in the form of a dolphin and forms a connection with a human boy.
Directors: Xuan Liang, Chun Zhang | Stars: Guanlin Ji, Shangqing Su, Timmy Xu, Shulan Pan
Votes: 6,764
39. The Breadwinner (2017)
PG-13 | 94 min | Animation, Drama, Family
In 2001, Afghanistan is under the control of the Taliban. When her father is captured, a determined young girl disguises herself as a boy in order to provide for her family.
Director: Nora Twomey | Stars: Saara Chaudry, Soma Chhaya, Noorin Gulamgaus, Laara Sadiq
Votes: 28,219 | Gross: $0.31M
40. Isle of Dogs (2018)
PG-13 | 101 min | Animation, Adventure, Comedy
Set in Japan, Isle of Dogs follows a boy's odyssey in search of his lost dog.
Director: Wes Anderson | Stars: Bryan Cranston, Koyu Rankin, Edward Norton, Bob Balaban
Votes: 190,765 | Gross: $32.02M
41. Birdboy: The Forgotten Children (2015)
TV-14 | 76 min | Animation, Drama, Horror
Three children decide to leave their homes looking for a better life.
Directors: Pedro Rivero, Alberto Vázquez | Stars: Andrea Alzuri, Eba Ojanguren, Josu Cubero, Félix Arcarazo
Votes: 3,139 | Gross: $0.04M
42. My Life as a Zucchini (2016)
PG-13 | 70 min | Animation, Comedy, Drama
After losing his mother, a young boy is sent to an orphanage with other orphans his age where he begins to learn the meaning of trust and true love.
Director: Claude Barras | Stars: Gaspard Schlatter, Sixtine Murat, Paulin Jaccoud, Michel Vuillermoz
Votes: 29,124 | Gross: $0.29M
43. Loving Vincent (2017)
PG-13 | 94 min | Animation, Drama, Mystery
In a story depicted in oil painted animation, a young man comes to the last hometown of painter Vincent van Gogh to deliver the troubled artist's final letter and ends up investigating his final days there.
Directors: DK Welchman, Hugh Welchman | Stars: Douglas Booth, Jerome Flynn, Robert Gulaczyk, Helen McCrory
Votes: 63,639 | Gross: $6.74M
44. Mirai (2018)
PG | 98 min | Animation, Adventure, Drama
A young boy encounters a magical garden which enables him to travel through time and meet his relatives from different eras, with guidance by his younger sister from the future.
Director: Mamoru Hosoda | Stars: Rebecca Hall, Daniel Dae Kim, Koji Yakusho, John Cho
Votes: 18,086 | Gross: $0.81M
45. Nocturna (2007)
TV-PG | 80 min | Animation, Adventure, Family
An orphan boy named Tim is afraid of the dark. However, when the stars start going out in the sky, he finds himself exploring the world of the night, alongside his new friend, the Cat Shepherd.
Directors: Adrià García, Víctor Maldonado | Stars: Imanol Arias, Hervé Caradec, Roger Carel, Cathy Cerda
Votes: 2,553
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