As I have mentioned in the first part of the series, I love watching animation movies. They are my go-to option when I do not know what to watch. For me, nobody can go wrong with selecting an animation movie. In the first part of the series, I have talked about four animation movies that I have watched recently at the time and would recommend you to watch. These animation movies were: The Boss Baby: Family Business, Turning Red, Luca, and The Mitchells vs. the Machines. If you have not read the first part, you should read it. These four movies are amazing choices. Depending on your mood and who you are watching with you can select the movie for the night. In this second part of the series, I want to talk about four other movies. But, from the first part of the series, I want to remind you that I get emotional watching animations. And these four movies did make me cry as well as the other four animation movies. If you get emotional watching animation movies like me, these movies will probably make you cry too.
As I mentioned in the first part, I am not a critic. And I don’t know enough about cinematography to become one. I have an interest in cinematography and took a few classes about it but being a critic requires much more. What I will say about the animation movies that I have watched are my pure taste and thoughts.
The Movies We Will Talk About:
Raya and the Last Dragon
Soul
Onward
Hotel Transylvania: Transformania
Raya and the Last Dragon (2021) — Family/Adventure
I watched Raya and the Last Dragon on a Saturday morning with my family (See “Raya and the Last Dragon”). The movie is inspired by Southeast Asian culture and beliefs. A fun fact: the voice actress of the Raya character is a Vietnamese American. Also, the screenplay is written by two Southeast Asian people. I do not want to spoil anything for you, so I will give very brief explanations. Raya is a princess warrior, Disney’s first princess from Southeast Asia! After a few unexpected events, she has to find Sisu, the last dragon. Sisu protects the world and Kumandra, where the movie takes place in. The movie mostly focuses on Raya’s journey to find Sisu and her relationship with Sisu. Also, the movie processes what family means in a very delightful way. As I mentioned, it is a Disney movie. If you are a Walt Disney fan, you would not want to miss this movie. From many comments that Southeast Asian people have written, Disney did a really good job with every detail about the culture, traditions, and so on.
I would say that the movie’s duration is on the long side. It is one hour and forty-seven minutes long. We did not realize how time passed by though. I can promise you that you will enjoy every second of it. Maybe, you will even put this movie’s songs on your playlists.
“Raya and the Last Dragon”
Soul (2020) — Family/Comedy
Soul is one of the most favorite movies of my sister(See Soul). And she does not even necessarily love animation movies. When she encounters somebody that has not watched the Soul yet, she offers them to watch it together. The movie is partially based on a true story and it is a Disney and Pixar collaboration. The quality is on point! It is a touching and inspiring movie. The movie’s main character is a jazz teacher/musician. His name is Joe Gardner. Joe gets a chance to play for a famous jazz singer. But on his way to the gig, he falls. He ends up in a coma. And while trying to find his soul, Joe rediscovers a few things. If I tell you what he discovers in his journey, I would spoil the moral of the movie. You have to find out yourself what he discovers.
The movie has a similar duration to the Raya and the Last Dragon. It lasts one hour and forty minutes.
Soul
Onward (2020) — Family/Adventure
Onward is a sentimental and very well-executed movie (See “Onward”). It is one of my favorite animation movies. As you can guess, it is a Pixar and Walt Disney collaboration. I am here for all Pixar and Disney collaborations! They do not disappoint! The movie’s main plot is focused on two brothers’ journey to see their father, who has passed away, back for a day again. It is focused on the family and the importance of relationships. It is, in fact, based on the true story of the director and co-writer Dan Scalon. Fun fact: The voice actors/actresses in the movie are awesome. We have Tom Holland, Octavia Spencer, and Chris Pratt.
Its duration is similar to the first two movies we have talked about. It is one hour and forty-two minutes long.
"Onward”
Hotel Transylvania: Transformania (2022) — Comedy/Adventure
If you do not know that this is the fourth and the last movie of the Hotel Transylvania series, I hate to be the doomsayer (See “Hotel Transylvania: Transformania”). I will miss the excitement and the curiosity that I had while waiting to watch another movie from the series. For me, it was one of the best animation movie series. I always had fun watching it. Drac made me laugh a lot.
From the title, they are giving a hint of what is going on in the movie. In the movie, Johnny and Drac change shape. Drac becomes a human, while Johnny becomes a monster. Before it is too late, Drac is determined to switch back to his normal self. That’s why they are jumping on an adventure.
This movie is the only Sony Pictures movie of these four. And it is the shortest movie. It lasts one hour and twenty-seven minutes. As well as the other ones, this movie has some great actors as its voice actors/actresses. Such as Selena Gomez, Andy Samberg, and Adam Sandler.
“Hotel Transylvania: Transformania”
These eight movies (four from the first part of the series) are what I watched in the past two months. I hope you enjoyed reading and found a suitable movie for your movie night. If you have any recommendations for me or you have watched any of these you can comment.
Works Cited
“Hotel Transylvania 4: Transformania.” IMDB, www.imdb.com/title/tt9848626/. Accessed 4 May 2022.
“Onward.” 2020. IMDB, www.imdb.com/title/tt7146812/. Accessed 4 May 2022.
“Raya and the Last Dragon.” 2021. IMDB, www.imdb.com/title/tt5109280/. Accessed 4 May 2022.
Soul. 2020. IMDB, www.imdb.com/title/tt2948372/. Accessed 4 May 2022.