Many of the biggest anime hits can accrue hundreds of television episodes. However, the anime film industry also consistently turns out impressive content that caters to different audiences than the standard anime series.
It's easy for these cinematic anime outings to receive lots of critical praise and awards consideration, but there are also plenty of projects that amount to style over substance or are surprisingly empty. These are the anime movies that, while far from perfect, are still satisfying experiences that bring forward something worthwhile.
10 Dragon Ball Super: Broly Is A Chaotic Clash Of Power, But Not Much More
It should come as no surprise that Akira Toriyama's Dragon Ball franchise has been able to find significant success in movie theaters. There are more than a dozen Dragon Ball Z movies, and the franchise's successor series, Dragon Ball Super, has kept this tradition alive with its own feature film installments.
Dragon Ball Super: Broly is the first of these epic efforts, and this movie is significant for properly bringing fan favorite character, Broly the Legendary Super Saiyan, into the canon. Broly is a movie that looks gorgeous and doesn't disappoint when it comes to the action franchise's trademark battles, but it's also hardly top-tier cinema that redefines the medium.
9 Pompo: The Cinéphile Celebrates The Highs And Lows Of The Creative Process
Pompo: The Cinéphile is a 2021 standalone anime movie from Takayuki Hirao that beautifully deconstructs the movie-making process. Pompo, a precocious movie producer, strives to ascend from B-movie savant to the person behind mainstream blockbuster successes. Pompo has such respect for the creative process and how every single element of a movie contributes to the end product.
Pompo features impressive visuals and a touching story, but it occasionally stumbles with the film's tone as well as some mixed messages about nepotism. Pompo should create true wonder in any cinema fan, but it's important to understand that it's still a flawed endeavor.
8 Demon Slayer: Kimetsu No Yaiba: The Movie: Mugen Train Is Empty Popcorn Fun
A common trajectory for breakout shonen anime series is to extend this success into larger-than-life cinematic adventures. Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba is one of the top series of the past few years, but its first feature film, Mugen Train, literally set new box office records in Japan.
Mugen Train is an undeniably beautiful piece of animation, but it suffers from its tight connection to the anime series. It's hard to just enjoy Mugen Train on its own, and the movie has since become less essential after the Demon Slayer anime has adapted the movie into multiple episodes of the season. Mugen Train is a fun, albeit forgettable, ride.
7 Lu Over The Wall Is A Moving Story That's Sometimes Too Cute For Its Own Good
Masaaki Yuasa loves to reinvent visuals, defy rigid designs, and engage in unbelievable spectacles that make blinking feel like a crime. Lu Over the Wall is one of Yuasa's simpler stories, which makes it perfect for younger audiences, but may leave some older crowds less impressed. The movie looks at a disenfranchised teenager, Kai, who learns to embrace himself after encountering an odd mermaid vampire with a passion for singing.
Lu Over the Wall lacks the greater emotional impact of Yuasa's other cinematic efforts, but the visuals here are without compromise. Lu's unpredictable movements and the tidal wave that fuels the film's final act will turn audiences into lifelong Yuasa fans.
6 Lupin III: The First Triumphs With Its Visual Makeover And Is The Perfect Lupin Primer
There are hundreds of Lupin III episodes across its various series, as well as a wealth of feature films that even helped anime auteurs like Hayao Miyazaki get their start. Lupin III: The First is a recent 2019 cinematic outing for the legendary gentleman thief that's significant for how it gives the character his first CG makeover.
CG anime still receive a lot of derision, but Lupin III: The First is such a gorgeous movie that proves how effective this medium can be. Lupin III: The First isn't the best Lupin movie, but it's an excellent introduction to the series and hopefully not the last CG Lupin effort.
5 Belle Riffs On Mamoru Hosoda's Greatest Hits And Struggles To Tell A New Story
Mamoru Hosoda is one of the most prolific names in the anime industry. Hosoda's films, like Summer Wars, The Boy and the Beast, and Mirai, are all consumed with comparable subject matter that involve questions over identity, the public versus the private, and the power of fantastical worlds.
Belle, Hosoda's most recent work, is without a doubt the filmmaker's most gorgeous creation. However, the visually stunning Beauty and the Beast allegory remixes Hosoda's regular themes in a way that's frequently reductive. Belle works better if it's the only Hosoda film that someone has seen, but even then, it's hard to feel that the writing is on par with the visual aesthetics.
4 Jujutsu Kaisen 0: The Movie Is An Emotional Prequel That Feels Unessential
Jujutsu Kaisen is currently one of the decade's top shonen series. It's tapped into heightened storytelling that embraces both action and horror elements. Yuji Itadori is the lead of Jujutsu Kaisen, but the anime's first movie decides to turn the clock backward for a prequel story.
Yuta Okkotsu's connection to Rika and her growing understanding of cursed spirits is able to effectively stand on its own, but it also draws clear parallels to Yuji's lot in life. Jujutsu Kaisen 0 benefits from its fairly accessible prequel status. However, the high praise for Jujutsu Kaisen 0 is likely inflated and has to do with recency bias.
3 5 Centimeters Per Second Celebrates The Importance Of Human Connection
Some filmmakers tackle completely different stories in their films, while others will consistently revise the same idea until they've perfected it. Makoto Shinkai has an incredible filmography, but he's absolutely an example of the former, and all of his movies dip into gutting melodrama with a fantastical undercurrent. Shinkai's emotional storytelling structure is at its best in Your Name and Weathering With You. Likewise, 5 Centimeters per Second feels like a rough draft for Shinkai's later cinematic accomplishments.
5 Centimeters per Second focuses on a series of meetings between two lost souls, which are effective, but lack greater substance. Nevertheless, the intense attention to background details and environments means that 5 Centimeters per Second is consistently a visual delight.
2 Redline Is A Fast-Paced Space Race Full Of Visual Excitement
Takeshi Koike and Madhouse deliver a high-octane race through the galaxy that never slows down over the course of its nearly two-hour runtime. Many anime series and movies feature exaggerated competitions, and Redline narrows in on a deadly race held every five years and promises unbelievable rewards, but at a dangerous price.
Redline is impressive for how it's able to make one long race consistently entertaining, as well as showcase eclectic competition that fleshes out its unique universe. Some may dismiss Redline as style over substance, but it's hard not to get drawn in by its energy and enjoy the ride.
1 My Hero Academia: Two Heroes Is Heightened Heroic Mayhem That Lacks Substance
My Hero Academia is a modern anime that feels deeply emblematic of current trends with how it mixes shonen staples with superhero archetypes. My Hero Academia has produced more than 100 episodes with still no end in sight, but the action-heavy anime also has three cinematic installments that tell grandiose stories.
The first of these films, Two Heroes, feels the most disposable of the lot. The movie's disgruntled villain and his rash plan to forever change society exist in a nebulous place within the grander canon. My Hero Academia: Two Heroes feels like a stepping-stone in the anime's journey, with the subsequent movies learning from its lesson.