Every year there are hundreds of new anime that join the versatile medium of animation, but some of these most exciting contributions are the projects that are made for the cinema rather than episodic television series. Anime series may generate incredibly passionate audiences, but the feats accomplished through anime feature films can often contain more weight and even make waves at the Academy Awards.
There are some exceptional stories being told across anime movies, and even though many of these are appropriate for children, or even specifically geared towards them, there are also plenty of features that will wash over younger audiences.
10 The Wind Rises Maturely Deconstructs Adult Ideas Of Which Kids Have No Reference Point
Hayao Miyazaki does an incredible job with his ability to tell magical stories that can inspire children as well as make adults feel youthful again. Miyazaki has continually demonstrated an affinity for aviation, but The Wind Rises puts this obsession front and center. The modest movie examines an optimistic engineer's complicated feelings over the planes that he helps create getting used as weapons of destruction during World War II. The Wind Rises' look into culpability, the corruption of beauty, and a mature love story are all incredible, but themes that are too mature for most children to fully appreciate.
9 Millennium Actress Is A Staggering Look Into Fame And Legacy
Satoshi Kon was one of anime’s most prolific minds, and films like Perfect Blue and Paprika explore especially dark subject matter. Millennium Actress is a more subdued narrative that might seem appropriate for kids, but it's still a dense story about fame that's likely to not connect with most youth. The movie adopts the structure of a documentary that's being made about famed actress, Chiyoko Fujiwara, who's become a recluse during the later years of her life. This probing into Fujiwara's career earnestly peels back the layers to her busy life, telling a story that spans multiple time periods.
8 Grave Of The Fireflies Unpacks The Cost Of War In A Devastating Manner
1993’s Grave of the Fireflies is considered one of the decade’s most tragic movies. Children may initially be drawn to it because of how it centers on a brother and sister duo who want nothing more than to survive after being separated from their parents.
Grave of the Fireflies is set during World War II, and the movie doesn't shy away from the tragedy's heavy casualties. Grave of the Fireflies features touching sibling bonds, but it's a story that leaves most adults in tears, let alone children who have built up even fewer defenses for a story of this magnitude.
7 I Want To Eat Your Pancreas Is A Touching Story About Life And Loss
Children shouldn’t be sheltered from sad stories, and there are some tragic anime movies like A Silent Voice and Your Name that skew older but still contain powerful lessons that young kids can learn from. I Want to Eat Your Pancreas treads down similar territory, but its sorrowful elements are much more central than the film’s moments of levity. Stories about bullying and unfair circumstances can be crucial for children, but I Want to Eat Your Pancreas begins in a grim place and only turns up the sadness. Children may not be able to connect with its central conflict.
6 The Garden Of Words Is An Earnest Look Into Loneliness And Isolation
Makoto Shinkai has become one of the most revered names working in the anime industry, and while his movies often tread upon comparable territory, they all shine a light on deeply human characters that carry heavy emotional resonance. The Garden of Words is a succinct feature that's under an hour in length and mainly focuses on honest exchanges between a loner teenager and an older woman, both of whom feel disconnected from society. The restrained, patient nature of these natural doubts that eat away at people may not be presented in an engaging enough manner to connect with kids.
5 Rebuild Of Evangelion Begins In An Unassuming Place That Radically Reinvents Itself
Neon Genesis Evangelion is an anime that’s absolutely not for children, on any level. It deals with violence, sexuality, and crippling themes of depression that will completely eclipse impressionable audiences. That being said, Evangelion attempted to “reboot” itself through a series of Rebuild of Evangelion feature films.
The first movie is so subtle in its nature that some may view it as a story that’s acceptable for children to help bring them into the mecha genre. Evangelion: 1.0 You Are (Not) Alone gets lost in the politics and bureaucracy of its dystopian world and will leave kids confused.
4 The Tale Of The Princess Kaguya Recreates Touching Folklore With Subtle Style
Studio Ghibli’s The Tale of the Princess Kaguya seems like it'd be perfect for children, but it's still a little too artistic. The movie adapts an ancient piece of Japanese folklore about a magical nymph who requests that a series of difficult tasks get completed by her various suitors. The Tale of the Princess Kaguya is a story that's appropriate for kids, but the movie's striking water color aesthetic may not be engaging enough. Additionally, the movie is by no means short and it's possible that kids won't have the patience or endurance to make it through this stylized story.
3 5 Centimeters Per Second Examines Humanity’s Growth Through An Expansive Timeline
Makoto Shinkai is able to shine a light on the vulnerable nature of humanity better than anyone else. Many of Shinkai's movies incorporate subtle fantasy elements to exaggerate its romances in extravagant ways. 5 Centimeters Per Second ditches these heightened flourishes and instead tells a touching story about Takaki Tono and the different female relationships in his life. The movie is broken up into three segments, each of which span decades throughout Takaki's life. This artistic approach to empathy and character growth is stunning, but done in a way that's likely to excite adults, not children.
2 Blood: The Last Vampire Loses Itself In Death And Despair
Many anime movies are heightened exercises in violence. Vampires and demons are plentiful in anime, but Blood: The Last Vampire applies a unique angle to the horror genre. Set back in the 1960s, Saya is a young vampire who goes undercover at a military school for the purpose of exposing and disposing of the demons that lurk in the shadows. Blood: The Last Vampire isn't just heavily stylized with its violence, but its focus on the past and mature themes will only further alienate young audiences. Not all anime vampire movies are inherently inappropriate for kids, but Blood attempts too much.
1 Ghost In The Shell Is The Definitive Anime Cyberpunk Story
Ghost in the Shell has become one of anime's most celebrated cyberpunk series and it remains a challenging hybrid of crime, action, science fiction, and questions over identity. Ghost in the Shell has been expanded upon to various degrees of success, but Mamoru Oshii's original movie is a powerful story about cyber hackers, unstable cyborgs, and lingering questions of the nature of humanity. The kinetic action sequences may catch the attention of children, but the high-minded psychological themes it unpacks will lose them. They don’t have the necessary foundation to understand the film’s ideas.