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Ranking Pixar Films

Pixar is one of the most consistently strong animation studios in the world. Even though they have stumbled a bit recently, they still made only one mediocre film with all of the rest being either good or excellent. I appreciate their originality the most as their stories are very diverse in characters, settings and themes. Their high emotional intensity is their selling factor whereas their biggest detractor is the tendency to focus on sequels recently. So without further ado, here is my ranking of all Pixar films released so far.

22. Cars 2

Cars 2 isn’t terrible as it has a couple of moving sequences, it’s so well animated and it actually has a good idea as the premise is great, but the execution is so bad as the film relies almost entirely on Mater who’s supposed to be a sidekick character and not a protagonist. He became way too annoying here while that spy storyline was pretty uninspired for the most part with the action being overwhelming. Yes, it’s easily Pixar’s worst and only mediocre movie.

21. Toy Story 4

Toy Story 4 is by far the worst film in this franchise and the second worst Pixar film so far despite what the glowing reviews might be saying. It looks good and it has its moments, but everything in terms of story and themes is rehashed from previous movies which led to such a lazy, unnecessary installment. The adventure elements are also boring and the characters did not get enough moments to shine.

20. Finding Dory

Finding Dory is probably the most unnecessary movie on this entire list which says a lot judging by Pixar’s tendency to rely on sequels so much. The animation is gorgeous, Dory is reliably funny and charismatic and the film has its moments, but it unfortunately has way too much forgettable action, some overly cartoony and silly sequences and the overall story is simply the original film told all over again with just its characters being reversed. Very lazy writing.

19. Cars 3

Cars 3 is the most unfortunate movie here as it could have been great. Its themes are so strikingly relevant and thoughtful as the film states how you need to reinvent yourself constantly to stay relevant in the business and that was very sophisticated to witness in a family racing flick. However, the second act is particularly bland and boring plus the new additions to the character roster are very weak with Cruz Ramirez being such an obvious Mary Sue.

18. Incredibles 2

Coming in at number seventeen might be too harsh, but it’s most definitely deserved for Incredibles 2 which is a solid, but highly overrated movie that transitions smoothly from its predecessor, it has some excellent action scenes and it’s technically polished, but many of its characters are underused here as are its themes plus the movie is never particularly engaging as the pacing is so bad. It’s an undercooked sequel in almost every department.

17. The Good Dinosaur

While simply brilliantly animated and so realistic in its visual palette, The Good Dinosaur is surprisingly lazy and uninspired when it comes to its storytelling as its themes are familiar as are the character interactions. The world building is great and the two protagonists are endearing, but the rest of the characters are very forgettable. It’s a fun flick for kids, but lacking in sophistication to satisfy the adult Pixar fans.

16. Toy Story 2

This is the first movie on this list which many would consider to be among Pixar’s best, but to me it only gets the 15th spot. Yes, it has some moving scenes and solid character development, but Toy Story 2 is so weaker in comparison to the original and the third film that it bothers me how most people don’t realize that. It’s an overrated movie that is just pretty unimportant in the bigger scope of things as it suffers from the uneventful second part of a trilogy syndrome.

15. A Bug’s Life

A Bug’s Life is a pretty solid bug flick which is at its best when dealing with suspenseful situations, so well executed action scenes and a spirited adventure. It’s a well made, entertaining and overall successful movie, but it’s undone by its forgettable nature and especially its supporting characters as not only do those bugs from the circus sound forced in their humor, but they also significantly slowed the pace down.

14. Cars

The original and best Cars film is a very underappreciated flick which does have its problems such as a familiar story, but it has a couple of indisputably moving, sweet scenes nonetheless. It also features that terrific ending where for once a racer protagonist/sports player lost the game which was quite refreshing to witness. It’s not a great film for sure, but it’s still the first pretty good film on this list and thus highly underrated.

13. Coco

By far the most disappointing Pixar movie so far is Coco, at least it was for me as I looked forward to it a lot and it ended up being just good. Yes, the animation and world building are stunning. Yes, the film is emotional and its tackling of death is surprisingly complex and truthful. However, the characters could have been better developed, the twist is a rip-off of the twist from Up plus for a film about music, Coco surely does have an annoyingly weak soundtrack.

12. Toy Story

The first Toy Story has everything that is great and that is annoying about this whole franchise. Woody and Buzz are great, but the rest of the characters are forgettable. The story is terrific, but the action is overwhelming. It’s a very influential, important film being the first computer animated movie ever, but it’s also very flawed and certainly not one of Pixar’s best. It’s another overrated movie on the list.

11. Monsters University

Now we come to the underrated movie which is this surprisingly strong Monsters, Inc. sequel. It’s nowhere near as great as the original was plus the supporting characters are obviously weak, but the story is still quite strong and the ending is amazing in its honesty and realism. It’s such a charming, wonderful prequel that shows us how Sully and Mike met and I admired the emphasis on Mike and his conflict this time around.

10. Brave

This Disney Princess film is also underrated. Yes, it’s pretty much a Disney instead of a Pixar film, but having in mind that I adore Disney and their princesses, I really liked Brave as well despite its overly comedic nature. Merida is a terrific heroine, the mother-daughter relationship here is touching and so well explored, the mythology is terrific and it’s just a great feminist flick for little girls to see.

9. Finding Nemo

Parental anxiety and short-term memory loss, two very mature themes, are so well explored in Finding Nemo, a film which is nonetheless offset by some very silly, cartoony and childish sequences. Still, the characters are mostly great and very memorable, it is an emotional story and the adventure is quite spirited here. Obviously the movie looks great too thanks to stunning underwater animation which was way ahead of its time.

8. The Incredibles

The animation did not age as well as it did in the above entry plus it can be overly serious for its own sake, but nonetheless this superhero saga is a sophisticated, family friendly, dynamic and pretty entertaining flick which benefits from all of its family members being well realized and likable. The action’s exciting as well. So The Incredibles may not be great as many would say, but it’s still a pretty strong superhero film in its own right.

7. Onward

Onward is by far one of the most underappreciated Pixar movies, which is a shame as the movie deserved so much more love given how wonderful it is. It signaled a return to form for Pixar owing to its intricate world building, good storytelling and a particularly deep tackling of a tragic loss and how important it is to cope with it properly. The humor is also the best ever from the company while the central two characters are superb. It’s such a terrific fantasy flick.

6. Toy Story 3

It still has its franchise’s detractors, but Toy Story 3 is without any doubt the pinnacle of this trilogy which is better animated, better written, funnier and simply better crafted than its predecessors in any way. Ken is hilarious, Lotso is a powerful villain and of course its ending is indescribably heartbreaking, touching and just the perfect way to end this series which unfortunately did not stay a trilogy in the end.

5. Inside Out

Although obviously convoluted in its nature and not for kids, Inside Out still was a giant return to form for Pixar in 2015 and it’s the second great film on this list. Joy and Sadness feature a terrific, powerful dynamic and the story is the studio’s most incredibly creative and authentic. The animation is colorful and even artistic and its handling of the importance of sadness in our lives is admirable and quite important. Such an inventive, beautiful film.

4. Up

Up is by far the most sentimental Pixar film of all time and although to some it may be excessive, to me it was beautiful and quite heartwarming/heartbreaking. The protagonist is awesome as is his relationship with the kid, the adventure is great, those dogs are hilarious and the handling of the loss of a loved one and grumpiness is unprecedented for a major animated film. It truly is one of the most serious, mature Pixar efforts.

3. Monsters, Inc.

The animation is groundbreaking and so good, the emotion is evidently felt and the originality of its plot and world is obvious in Monsters, Inc. This is one of the more fun, childlike films and that’s great as it’s a terrific palate cleanser compared to other more serious films here. I just love Mike and Sully so much, their friendship is wonderful, Randall is also a terrific villain and of course Boo is such an endearing cartoon kid whom you can’t help but adore.

2. WALL-E

Stunning in its visuals, endearing in its characters and fueled by a great ecological message, WALL-E is an atypical movie for Pixar which is a science fiction tale inspired by ‘2001’ and 70s films of the genre. You can also see the 20s silent movie touches as the first half is inspired in its silent approach and quite magical. It will prove to be the most timeless of all Pixar films and a SF classic in its own right.

1. Ratatouille

This is it. Not only the best, but also possibly the most underappreciated of all the movies on this list. Ratatouille is a phenomenal, unbelievable tale of a rat who wants to become a cook and thus it could only be told in the animation medium. It looks and sounds great, it’s reliably moving and it’s populated by great characters. But the reason why it’s so great lies in its exploration of art, artists and the critics of art as it portrays the art world so truthfully. It’s the most sophisticated and thus the best that Pixar has ever done.