10 Movies That Prove 2009 Was the Best Year for Animation, Ranked

Animation has been one of the most widely celebrated and beloved mediums when it comes to feature filmmaking, with many different eras and styles coming to mind. While the majority of the highest quality titles find themselves spread apart from one another due to their time-consuming creation process, on rare occasions, many exceptional titles are released around the same time. In terms of individual years for the quality and history of animated films, no singular year comes close to the quality and variety of 2009.

From big-budget films from the largest animation studios to smaller indie projects that made massive waves across the world, 2009 had just about everything an animation fan would want. The medium was showing off the best of the best in nearly every style and type of film, from the now commonplace computer 3D to the last hurrah of 2D animation to even beautiful stop-motion films and animated films from other countries. It’s unlikely that there will ever be another year that has had as much of a lasting impact on animation as 2009, and these movies prove it.

10 ‘Summer Wars’ (2009)

Directed by Mamoru Hosoda

From Mamoru Hosoda, the legendary anime director of Wolf Children and Digimon: The Movie, Summer Wars follows teenage misfit Kenji, who spends most of his time on the massively popular online hub known as OZ. However, Kenji is suddenly taken away from the game when the girl of his dreams gets him wrapped up in a strange plot where he must pretend to be her fiancé at a family reunion. Simultaneously, a dangerous rogue AI is enacting its plan of using the virtual world of OZ as a catalyst for an apocalyptic armageddon in the real world.

While its two different plots and worlds feel like they would detract from one another, Summer Wars does an exceptional job of blending high-octane virtual action with soap opera-style family drama for magnificent results. Hosoda also excels at what he’s best at, with a variety of creative and unique virtual avatar designs in the world of OZ and some top-notch action sequences that make the most of the possibilities of animation.

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9 ‘Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs’ (2009)

Directed by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller

The first feature film by popular duo Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs follows amateur inventor Flint Lockwood as he attempts to make life better for his small island town of Swallow Falls. He finally gets his big break with the success of an invention that makes it rain different food items, slowly but surely transforming the island into the perfect tourist attraction. However, as Flint pushes the machine’s limits, he slowly begins to lose control, resulting in dangerous consequences.

Even in one of their earliest projects, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs is still filled with the same charm and wit present in most of Lord and Miller’s other ventures. Especially for 2009, the film has a highly creative and unique take on 3D animation, making it feel at times like a 2D-animated film with its exaggerated character movement and facial expressions. In fact, Cloudy can easily be seen as a precursor to the eventual wave of stylized animated films that would dominate animation in recent years.

8 ‘Redline’ (2009)

Directed by Takeshi Koike

An over-the-top and in-your-face-action anime rollercoaster that never lets up from the gas pedal, Redline follows daredevil driver JP as he competes in Redline, the most dangerous and exciting car race in the universe. Each competitor has decked-out vehicles that are as fast as they are dangerous, with Redline’s illegal status forcing them to speed past authorities and each other in a mad dash for the finish line.

Redline is the perfect example of the endless possibilities and flashiness that animation provides for action films, featuring numerous striking setpieces and beautiful action moments. Especially in an era that was slowly but assuredly moving further and further away from 2D animation, Redline is a striking and dominating argument for its continued support. It’s a cinematic shot of adrenaline that is largely overlooked compared to other anime films and deserves its time in the spotlight as the action masterpiece that it is.

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7 ‘A Town Called Panic’ (2009)

Directed by Stéphane Aubier and Vincent Patar

A delightfully absurd stop-motion animated film from France and Belgium, A Town Called Panic celebrates its chaotic world and characters to create a one-of-a-kind cinematic experience. The film follows the friendly duo Cowboy and Indian as they attempt to get a last-minute birthday gift for their friend, Mr. Horse, unintentionally putting into motion a series of events that sends the trio across the world. Soon, the entire town gets involved as the trio faces dangerous scientists, mysterious underwater creatures, and their hubris.

Animation invites chaos and unpredictability, and A Town Called Panic makes perfect use of the medium to tell its wild and nonsensical story. From talking animals doing human activities to ordering millions of bricks online, the film’s stop-motion animation style only further amplifies and compounds its tone. Wildly imaginative and unbelievably rewarding, A Town Called Panis is an effective and hilarious experience.

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6 ‘The Secret of Kells’ (2009)

Directed by Tomm Moore and Nora Twomey

The first feature film by legendary Irish animation studio Cartoon Saloon, The Secret of Kells takes after Keltic folklore and follows young Brendan on his quest of fighting Vikings and gods to complete the legendary Book of Kells. While on his journey, Brendan makes numerous discoveries about himself as he overcomes his greatest fears and travels across the world and through numerous mysterious and magical locations, encountering countless mythical creatures.

Much like Cartoon Saloon’s other works, The Secret of Kells features a beautifully stylistic 2D animation style that finds deep inspiration and legacy from the deep mythos and culture of Ireland. The studio would continue to expand and improve its capabilities in films like The Breadwinner and Wolfwalkers, with The Secret of Kells acting as the first installment in its acclaimed filmography. The signature style and DNA of its later films are a core aspect of what made The Secret of Kells such an emphatic and memorable film during its release.

5 ‘Mary and Max’ (2009)

Directed by Adam Elliot

A beautiful and heartwrenching story of an unlikely bond, Mary and Max follows the friendship of pen pals Mary, a lonely eight-year-old living in the suburbs of Melbourne, and Max, a severely obese forty-year-old living in New York. As the duo miraculously make contact when Mary scours the Manhattan phone book in search of friends, she unintentionally starts a 20-year friendship between the two, as they continue to write and speak.

Mary and Max weaves an emotionally gripping tearjerker of a story through its poignant, deeply relatable, and likable characters. It’s a story that one wouldn’t expect to be as emotionally moving as it is, yet the quaint stop-motion animation style further hammers down its story and undeniable impact on the audience. Despite its status as an animated film, Mary and Max is still widely regarded as one of the best movie tearjerkers of all time.

4 ‘The Princess and the Frog’ (2009)

Directed by Ron Clements and John Musker

Walt Disney Animation Studio’s glorious return to 2D animation and princess stories, The Princess and the Frog enchanted and delighted audiences worldwide. The film follows hard-working waitress Tiana as she dreams of having a restaurant of her own. Her plans suddenly come to a halt due to financial hardship before meeting a prince who has been transformed into a frog. Attempting to transform him back into a human by kissing him, Tiana instead accidentally turns into a frog herself, forcing the duo to travel searching for a way to restore their bodies.

Disney’s princess movies have continuously been some of its most iconic and beloved outings across the studio’s 100-year history. The Princess and the Frog feels like a brilliant culmination of all the princess films before it. Especially after nearly a decade of following the trend and releasing 3D animated films, The Princess and the Frog showed that Disney could still create masterfully crafted 2D works of art in the modern era of filmmaking.

3 ‘Coraline’ (2009)

Directed by Henry Selick

An instantly iconic tale of gothic proportions and dark underlying themes, Coraline is a beautifully crafted stop-motion work of art from a master of the medium, Henry Selick. The film follows a rebellious and neglected young girl, Coraline, who, after moving into a new house with her family, discovers a strange hidden door that leads to a parallel world where everything is seemingly perfect. However, as she spends more time in this vibrant world, its more sinister side shows itself, and Coraline realizes the truth of this dangerous realm.

Coraline left behind a massive impact and legacy well after its release, still widely being praised as one of the greatest examples of a children’s animated film with a darker side. Its gothic aesthetic and colorful stop-motion animation were widely beloved by critics and audiences alike, who fell in love with not just the mesmerizing stop-motion animation but the film’s deeply impacting characters and story.

2 ‘Fantastic Mr. Fox’ (2009)

Directed by Wes Anderson

The first animated film from quirky director Wes Anderson, Fantastic Mr. Fox follows the titular Mr. Fox as he deals with a mid-life crisis and reminiscing on his glory days of stealing and thievery. Mr. Fox puts his simple family life at risk when he plans a heist against a trio of local farmers who have attained infamous reputations for their ruthlessness. While the heists are successful at first, it doesn’t take long before the trio of farmers come looking for revenge against Mr. Fox.

Anderson’s quaint and diorama-esque style of filmmaking is well known, and the world of stop-motion animation allows him to adapt this Roald Dahl classic in his signature style. Even aside from its beautiful and distinct visual style, nearly every aspect of filmmaking, from the performances and music to the story and themes, come together to create a wholly distinct and heartwarming animated experience. Fantastic Mr. Fox is still largely lauded and considered a fan favorite among animation fans, not to mention one of the all-time greatest animated films.

1 ‘Up’ (2009)

Directed by Pete Docter

While nearly all of Pixar’s movies were critical and commercial success stories throughout the 2000s and beyond, Up stands out as arguably their greatest achievement. The film follows elderly Carl Fredricksen, who has given up on life following his beloved wife’s passing. With not much time left, he decides to put a plan into action to reach Paradise Falls, a place his wife dreamt of visiting, using a large collection of balloons to transport his home.

Up is still one of the most widely beloved and critically successful Pixar efforts and one of the few animated movies to earn a nomination for Best Picture at the Academy Awards. The way the film tackles themes of age and living life to the fullest easily struck a chord with audiences around the world, further compounded by its masterful opening sequence, widely considered by many to be the greatest opening minutes in film history, animation or otherwise. Heartbreaking but simultaneously life-affirming, Up is one of animation’s greatest triumphs.

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