Anime Boredom - Mark's Top 10 Anime Features of All Time anime/manga article

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Mark's Top 10 Anime Features of All Time

10. Castle of Cagliostro: Although it is a film based on the Lupin the Third franchise, Castle of Cagliostro is a great example of Hayao Miyazaki's talent as a director. The film is you're standard action-adventure plot, but with a touch of innocence and love. The film was made in just over a year, from concept to theaters, and actually made some animators in America question the possibilities of Japanese animation.

9. Memories: Combining the talents of three great anime directors, Memories serves as an entertaining piece of not one, but three creatively concieved stories. These shorts are beautiful, entertaining and brilliant. My favorite segment being Otomo Katsuhiro's, Cannon Fodder, in which we witness the dreams of a little boy growing up in a war crazy society.

8. AKIRA: Katushiro Otomo's legendary classic AKIRA is more than just motorcycles and crazy psychic powers. This is a film about a kid who has just been pushed too far and wants to lash out at the world around him. This is also some of the best animation in any anime as well as one being one of the few anime features to have lip-sync with the Japanese voice actors.

7. Millenium Actress: Satoshi Kon's direction is in full force with Millenium Actress. Kon guides us on a journey through the long life of an actress constantly switching back and forth between the films she starred in and her actual life. There are some moments in the film where we aren't quite sure whether she is living her life or acting in a film. She may or may not be acting or maybe doing both. The story is interesting enough to hold an audience on it's own, but Kon's direction is what makes this film shine.

6. Metropolis: Osamu Tezuka's classic manga comes to live in this vibrant, detailed film called Metropolis. Much like Blade Runner with a sunnier attitude, Metropolis has Kenichi discover an android by the name Tima. Tima has no concept of who she is, where she is or even how to speak and spell and Kenichi makes it his duty to teach her. Metropolis took five years to make and the effort was well-worth it with large and detailed backgrounds that make this anime a visual masterpiece.

5. Barefoot Gen: Much like Grave of the Fireflies, Barefoot Gen is set right in the middle of Japan during World War 2, except this film puts the perspective on the dropping of the atomic bomb. The first third of the film is spent on Gen, an cheerful child, and his family leading a regular life of peace with the exception of food rationing and the occasional hiding in shelter when planes come by. Everything seems happy until Gen makes his way to school and the bomb drops. Not only do we get to see in graphic detail what affects the bomb had on people and the surrounding buildings, but we also get to see the terrifying aftermath of the different diseases that spread around and how people begin dropping like flies. It is truly a horrific sight when we see an unhappy baby still suckling at the teet of his mother's corpse.

4. Ghost in the Shell: Although a technical marvel of its time, Ghost in the Shell has much more to offer than stellar animation. Ghost in the Shell is a complex story set in the not too distant future about an entity born from the net seeking asylum. The film has very heavy concepts of life, death, what it means to be an individual and the value of memories. After all, if you're entire body was reconstructed, wouldn't you question your own existence?

3. Princess Mononoke: One of the most violent animated features to come out of Ghibli since Nausicaa, Princess Mononoke is an instant classic filled with everything that makes a film great. It has complex and deep characters, beautiful animation, a classic story of man versus god and a clear, but not painfully driven home, message about man's relationship to nature. It is a deep film at heart, but can also pass as pure epic entertainment.

2. Grave of the Fireflies: One of the biggest tear-jerkers of all anime, Grave of the Fireflies is one of the few animated films to hit you at an emotional level. On my first viewing, I found myself being choked up at the montage of the little girl after she had just died. The second time around, I found myself more heartbroken by all the events leading up to the climax in which the little girl has to deal with the death of her mother and coping with the shortage of food. It is an excellent film that is worth watching more than once and should be shared with all.

1. Wings of Honneamise: The first feature film from Studio Gainax, Wings of Honneamise is so visually stunning, creatively concieved and well-written that it makes the top of my list. The film is about Shiro, who serves as a "soldier" of the lazy Royal Space Force. All attempts at space travel have been met with disaster, but Shiro becomes inspired to volunteer as the next pilot by the inspiration of a woman who has beliefs similar to that of a Christian. She is very poor, hands out flyers for a living and has to raises a child. It is amazing how much this woman believes in Shiro, even if he doesn't share her views. There is one scene in which Shiro tries to rape the girl, but she knocks him out and the next morning she feels more guilty for hurting Shiro. This woman believes that Shiro is a good man and does not judge him and that is what inspires Shiro to reach for the stars. Coupled with likable characters, the right amount of comedy, an original and creative alternative universe and some impressive scenes of a shuttle taking off during an ariel dogfight, Wings of Honneamise succeeds on every level.