Best Japanese Anime Films to Watch

by Payton Walker incluvie

We have enlisted an article recently on Netflix’s Altered Carbon: Resleeved and it’s…not the best Japanese anime movie, so we want to present to you some best anime films of all time that are much more engaging.

Spirited Away (2001)

Directed by renowned filmmaker, Hayao Miyazaki, Spirited Away is about a girl named Chihiro (Rumi Hiiragi/Daveigh Chase) on a journey to rescue her parents who have been turned into pigs. Her family had mistakenly wandered into the spirit world, and it’s up to Chihiro to get them all out.

Princess Mononoke (1997)

Also directed by Miyazaki (but much more violent), Princess Mononoke is about a prince named Ashitaka (Yōji Matsuda, Billy Crudup) who has to find a cure after getting poisoned by a demonic boar. On his search, he finds himself tangled in the conflict between a mining colony and the wolf gods who rule a forest.

Your Name (2016)

Your Name was directed by Makoto Shinkai and is currently the highest-grossing anime film of all time. Amazingly, the film wasn’t even nominated at the Oscars in 2017. This is a shame since this is a great film and the Academy should pay more attention to other animated films besides Disney and Pixar. No disrespect to Disney or Pixar, but give other films a chance, y’know? Yes, they gave the award to Spirited Away, but that was back in 2003.

Akira (1988)

A landmark in Japanese anime, Akira was directed by Katsuhiro Otomo who also created the Akira manga series (Japanese graphic novel). The story’s set in a dystopian 2019 where a teen named Tetsuo Shima (Nozomu Sasaki, Jan Rabson) gains telekinetic powers after a motorcycle accident. His friend, Shōtarō Kaneda (Mitsuo Iwata, Cam Clarke) searches for a way to help Tetsuo before he loses control of his powers.

Ghost in the Shell (1995)

Also, a great influence in the animation genre, as well as a great inspiration to movies such as The Matrix, Ghost in the Shell was directed by Mamoru Oshii. The story takes place in the year 2029 where the human body can be replaced by cybernetic parts.

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