This is the first article in our series examining the AFI Ten Top Tens. You can read the introduction here.
The universality of animation makes it one of the most beloved genres. It’s true that even a poor feature in this genre can still resonate with many viewers. Treasure Planet, for instance, is one of the last truly animated features, and, by all accounts, a bomb. With a production budget of nearly $100 million, it was a resounding failure. However, for those of us who saw it, nary a one didn’t love it. Or, at least, I have not found one who didn’t. Another good example is Titan A.E. Again, lackluster boxoffice, but high quality in writing, direction, and animation. There is something to be said of the care that is taken with animation that it not always paid to live-action.
Image credit: Rudolfo Clix
Some would say that the golden age of animation is long dead. This was probably true by the mid 90s. The last few animated features however, were quite successful, and even landed on the list. However, the change-over from traditional animation to computer animation was rather seamless. So to say that it died is inaccurate. I would rather say that it was transformed into a modern version of the genre. Animation 2.0.
AFI says that to belong to the genre the film’s “images are primarily created by computer or hand and the characters are voiced by actors.” This is a simple definition that I largely agree with. Although that means leaving Team America: World Police off the list, I would say that the definition is okay.
The list is as follows:
(list courtesy of Wikipedia)
Right away, you can see that the most obvious selections exist. It really is a great list and AFI did a great job in its selections. There really is no doubt of the cultural and historical significance. Let’s run down the list:
From the start, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, is popular in all its incantations. Then there’s Pinocchio, probably the Disney film with the most poignancy and depth and one that did not have the immediate appeal of its predecessor. However, over time, Pinocchio, I would argue, easily goes down as a wonderfully modern piece of American, or just as properly, Italian mythology. It certainly invokes the great classical writers as Ovid or Dante, among many others. It even borrows from them as well.
The Lion King and Beauty and the Beast were two of the most successful movies ever, both financially and critically. As for Fantasia, well, you just could never do Fantasia again. It is such a unique and mystical experience that simply cannot be duplicated.
The first really popular and hugely successful computer-animated feature. Toy Story truly broke the mold in a time when, after The Lion King, no one honsestly believed there was improvement to be made in the genre. What a remarkable experience to be had over and over again.
The rest of the list is not nearly as strong, but each has its proper place. Until we get to Finding Nemo. Wait. Just wait there. I know that everyone loves Nemo. I know that everyone just loves Ellen Degeneres. But listen. Yes. Nemo made gobs and gobs of money. And it won some awards and nominations. But how, how exactly is it historically significant to cinema? Chirp, chirp…chirp, chirp. That’s right, crickets.
The story was okay. It was mildly entertaining and a little funny. But it was too…cute. It was obviously intended for kids, but the way that it treats kids bothers me. Like kids are just mindless grubs. Pinocchio doesn’t do that. It doesn’t assume that kids have shallow feelings and a highly limited capacity of understanding. Kids are way more complex than that. Sure, they don’t have a lot of information to draw on and they make some stupid decisions because of it, but it doesn’t necessarily mean that they are the caricature of a child like today’s society makes them out to be. To Kill a Mockingbird doesn’t do that. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn doesn’t do that. And that is the standard that I’m holding these movies to.
The AFI must prove, unequivicably that the movies on this list meets or exceeds this standard in order for them to get a pass. Finding Nemo is the most obvious one to me that doesn’t fit. Bambi and Cinderella might also fall short, but I’m going to focus my wrath on Nemo. Nemo, to me, represents everything that’s wrong with the way people parent these days. The fact the movie sold 40 million DVDs just helps prove my point. The image that arises in my mind when I hear that figure is of an SUV with an LCD screen attached to the back of the front seat. And little Nemo is getting into trouble for the sake of the parent not doing his or her job.
Child time-occupation is not a new thing, and I don’t blame parents for doing it. It’s just the catered, pampered and un-loving way that it is employed really bothers me. Give the child all it wants and nothing it needs. Not all parents do it all the time, and I’m not naive enough to actually believe that parenting in the past was necessarily better on the whole. Likely, a small percentage of parents are and will always be excellent, and the majority just get by. It’s just that the backseat-SUV-Nemo-DVD neglect is so transparent, where most other neglect over the whole of human history is not. It can’t help but attract my ire.
If a parent must time-occupy a child, then at least they find a more substantive DVD in order to do so. My suggestion to them is The Incredibles. Likely, they already have the film because it also made a ridiculous amount of money at the boxoffice, in DVD sales, and in merchandising. It is proof that fluff does not necessarily rule the day. An excellent original superhero movie by Brad Bird in the age of endless superhero flicks, The Incredibles says something. It’s okay to be special, or to think of yourself as special. And yet it makes that statement in a funny, action-packed, and sometimes dramatic way. It won its fair share of awards. Its only drawback is that it is fairly new, and its tough to judge just how historical something is when we’re not sure how it fits. Yet, the same could be said of Nemo. I think, however, that The Incredibles will prevail and that Nemo will end up on a platter.
I’m sorry, but I’ve just never understood the wide appeal of The Incredibles. Yes, it was cute, and yes, it had a good message. But as a whole, I thought it was just OK.
Even though I prefer the Incredibles over Nemo, I suspect that latter has and will always have more universal appeal. The Incredibles is highly appreciated among a certain comic book buying, super hero loving demographic that is primarily male. See the above comment if you need further proof.
As for being historically significant, surely Beauty and the Beast should be dropped from the list. Little Mermaid preceded B&B by two years and was the first animated Disney film to make more than $100 million. I’m not saying I like it, I’m just saying it is as historically significant as Beauty and the Beast, if not more since it came earlier.
Jay,
I disagree about dropping B&B. It was the first animated feature to be nominated for a Best Picture Academy Award (which now no animated film is eligible for), and was also the first animated film to win a Golden Globe.
It’s also way, way better than the Little Mermaid.
Nemo certainly has a more universal appeal, but so do the Pirates of the Caribbean sequels, and think they are pretty awful. At the very least, they did nothing to enhance the art of filmmaking. I would argue they took it back a notch by ruining the original which was a wonderful, innovative adventure.
Ice Age and its sequel also had a wide appeal and is likely to be in the back of mini-vans for some time to come, but there is hardly anything significant about that.
Perhaps a better replacement could be Monster’s Inc. It won plenty of awards, had wide appeal, and still served a greater purpose than merely babysitting. But I don’t know. I’m still inclined to stick with Incredibles. It seems to better define a period of time (as in 2001-2009) than any other feature on the list. I’ll let you decide what exactly that is (hint: post-9/11 American vs. Global attitudes).
The original list screams Disneymania. What about Princess Mononoke? Brilliant imagery, and brings up environmental isues. Oh, wait. there’s blood. That wouldn’t be suitable for kids. But why are we looking at the list as something that has to pass acceptance for a five year old? If the point is to create imagery by hand (or computer) that cannot be done with people to make a lasting impression on the audience-to have “some cultural and historical signifigance”- then a large number of these selections miss the point (other than record box office tithings to Uncle Walt), or cover the same territory.
Most of these revolve around the theme “It doesn’t matter how wierd you are by societal standards. If you persevere someone will appreciate you for who you are”. It gets old.