Every year without fail, Hollywood and other foreign markets bring unforgettable cinematic experiences to the masses, feeding our senses with creativity, imagination, and in rare instances, the impossible. In many cases, we’re spoiled when it comes to live-action offerings, but what about animation? Today, we’re looking back on 2012, the year E.L. James’ Fifty Shades of Grey introduced scores of readers to the “mommy noir” genre, Purity Ring blessed synth-pop fans with their spirit-lifting debut album “Shrines,” and GOTYE and Kimbra made music lovers swoon with the sultry earworm “Somebody That I Used to Know.”
Looking back, there are several wild pop culture milestones to mark the year Betty White and Sarah Michelle Gellar participated in a boa constrictor photoshoot. Still, today, we’re setting our sights on the greatest animated films of 2012, with a Top 5 list that’s sure to make you feel nostalgic and appreciative of the leaps we’ve made in the cinematic art form since then.
When Tim Burton presented his 1984 live-action homage to Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, no one expected the wild-haired filmmaker to reintroduce the concept and characters for a full-length stop-motion animated film. Three decades after bringing the original to life, Burton expanded the story of a young, science-obsessed boy named Victor Frankenstein, who, after losing his beloved Bull Terrier, Sparky, builds an elaborate machine to bring his fur-covered friend back to the land of the living.
Released in black-and-white, giving the film a vintage feel, Frankenweenie is Burton at his most indulgent, with nods to Universal movie monsters like the Invisible Man and Dracula peppered throughout the spooky monochrome fairy tale, influenced by German Expressionist lighting, classic horror filmmaking techniques, and filmmakers from Burton’s youth. The enigmatic film features memorable voice-acting performances from Catherine O’Hara, Martin Short, Winona Ryder, and Martin Landau, each helping to bring Burton’s decades-old vision to light with mesmerizing atmosphere, stop-motion that leaps off the screen, and sentimentality that transports you back to when pets you lost were nestled in your warm embrace.
One of 2012’s most underrated animated gems is the hand-drawn French-Belgian feature Ernest & Celestine, based on the beloved series of children’s novels by Belgian author and illustrator Gabrielle Vincent. While the film looks like a children’s storybook come to life, it tells a mature tale about societal divides, focusing on its two main characters: Ernest, a massive bear struggling in the entertainment industry, and Celestine, an orphaned mouse with dreams of becoming an artist. When Celestine goes above ground to harvest bear teeth and becomes trapped, she and Ernest form an unlikely bond that members of their respective groups cannot comprehend.
Together, Ernest and Celestine confront hatred and isolation from their peers, as both groups view their union as taboo. Choosing to ignore the rabble, Ernest and Celestine’s friendship rewrites the rules of the animal kingdom, defying norms while proving that shared interests and the best of intentions can pave the way toward understanding, meaningful companionship, and unbreakable trust. The film’s soft, watercolor animation lends the presentation a dreamlike quality against the rich pen-and-ink character designs, and the minimalist approach to the lush environments offers a cozy, fantastical feel that stays with you long after the credits roll. If you’re in the market for a feel-good animated movie that teaches valuable lessons about setting differences aside to discover something pure and everlasting, Ernest & Celestine is waiting to wrap you in a warm hug.
Pixar’s first female-led fairy tale film is also one of the studio’s most underrated gems. Set in the 10th-century Scottish Highlands, the film follows Princess Merida of Clan DunBroch, a fiery redhead and unparalleled archer who, after making a deal with a witch to “change her fate,” finds her mother transformed into a black bear when the spell backfires. In addition to becoming the first of Pixar’s films to use the Presto Animation Engine, Brave shares a powerful mother-daughter tale that continues to resonate with fans 14 years after its initial release in theaters.
Praise for Brave goes beyond the film’s ability to create equal ground for mothers and daughters by giving individuals with ginger hair a smart, sassy hero they can identify with. Yes, Ariel of The Little Mermaid is a redhead, but that movie was released in 1989. When Brave hit the bullseye in theaters, a lead female character with hair the color of a rising phoenix was long overdue. Beyond establishing an iconic character in Merida, Brave celebrates its Scottish roots by recreating native flora, mosses, ancient stone circles, and clan symbolism, bringing authenticity and a sense of pride to its source material. Pixar is a studio that, back in the day, liked to take risks, and Brave represents one of its earliest examples of breaking the mold and giving tradition the middle finger. We love that.
Before Sonic the Hedgehog and Super Mario started making millions at the box office, Walt Disney Animation Studios introduced audiences to its own homage to old-school gaming with Wreck-It Ralph. This animated comedy introduced new characters while also featuring beloved icons from a bygone era of gaming, with cameos from Pac-Man, Q*bert, Tapper, and more!
Set inside the arcade cabinets of Litwak’s Family Fun Center, the movie focuses on Wreck-It Ralph, a Donkey Kong-adjacent villain from the 8-bit arcade game Fix-It Felix Jr. When Wreck-It Ralph decides he’s going to reinvent himself as a hero, he embarks on an epic quest through various video game lands to prove bad guys can become good. Along his journey, he meets Vanellope von Schweetz, a misfit kart racer prone to glitching her way through a world that would rather forget her than give her a chance to shine on the track.
In addition to being a fun Easter egg hunt through a variety of familiar worlds for elder millennials, Wreck-It Ralph became a multi-generational hit thanks to its relatable characters, boundless sense of adventure, and heartfelt messaging about overcoming adversity in a world where you’re misunderstood. Sonic and Mario might be box office gold now, but before they were spin-dashing and butt-stomping all the way to the bank, Wreck-It Ralph stood tall as one of the best video game-related films of all time.
As a child of the ’80s, with no restrictions on what I could watch, some of my best friends while growing up were Freddy, Jason, Jack, and Michael. My dad was a special-effects enthusiast and taught me about the art of filmmaking, helping me distinguish between true horror and movie magic. So, when Laika Studios debuted ParaNorman, a stop-motion animated masterpiece centered around an 11-year-old horror-obsessed medium, I nearly leaped out of my skin with joy.
ParaNorman finds Norman Babcock tasked with continuing a centuries-old annual ritual to keep a 300-year-old witch’s curse from destroying the New England town of Blithe Hollow. While using everything he’s learned from horror movies and his gift of gab with the undead, Norman and his friends set out on the ultimate adventure to prove that even when life throws something scary your way, it’s up to you to shine brighter than the darkness.
Meticulously crafted by the artisans at Laika Studios, ParaNorman is a labor of love that keeps giving back to audiences, thanks to its basketful of Easter eggs, whip-smart character chemistry, inclusivity, representation, and stop-motion feats so arresting that my breath still catches when I rewatch it. It’s not only the best animated film of 2012, but it’s also one of my favorite animated films of all time. As someone who grew up “strange” and channeled his outsider energy into building a platform to share his love of animation, I see ParaNorman as one of the best examples of why I’m here.
There you have it, folks. What do you think about our Top 5 Animated Films of 2012 list? Are your favorite films represented here? Are there any grievous omissions? Leave us a comment and let us know what your Top 5 Animated Films of 2012 are! Until next time. Cheers!