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2011 Animated Feature Oscar Analysis

From 2011 onward, every year there will be five nominees in the animated feature category by the Academy. This year was particularly interesting as the Oscars entirely disregarded both Disney and Pixar. What we got left were two DreamWorks movies (impressive), one out of the box US western and two foreign films that came out of nowhere and landed here. It’s an eclectic mix that fascinates me to this day.

My Ranking of the Nominees:

5. A Cat in Paris

By far the worst nominee of 2011 was this cute, but highly forgettable and slight French crime flick. This is one of the two movies on this list that were simply way too concerned with honoring their genre and its past without adding enough fresh new things to the proceedings. The animation is quite stylized and the movie is pleasantly old-fashioned, but the plot is so incredibly thin as is the characterization that it just goes by quickly and you’ll never think twice about it afterward due to its overly short runtime.

4. Kung Fu Panda 2

Kung Fu Panda 2 is definitely inferior to the original film due to less interesting action sequences and not as inspired animation, but the plot is solid with nice flashbacks and backstories. The voice cast did a fine job and some scenes are phenomenal with the conclusion being intriguing. It’s a solid sequel, but it remains the weakest of the trilogy in my opinion. It was quite odd seeing two DreamWorks flicks getting nominated in one year and no Pixar or Disney to be found anywhere. Thus, this slate was truly one of a kind.

3. Rango

Rango is by far the strangest Oscar winner in the animated feature category since its inception. This is a wildly original flick by Gore Verbinski that is impeccably designed and quite humorous at times. The main character and the villain were particularly memorable, though others are vastly inferior. Overall, I am glad that this movie won because it’s different and unique, but it wasn’t the best choice from this slate with two better movies in my opinion. Rango is fun and cool, but overly concerned with classic western references and action set pieces.

2. Puss in Boots

While it has its problems and it’s lacking thematically speaking and in terms of ambition, Puss in Boots is still such a damn good DreamWorks flick that ranks among their best and most underrated efforts. The animation is terrific, the story is fun and the soundtrack is quite wonderful. The main highlight here is the adventure of it all as the film is spirited and quite imaginative. The characterization is also fantastic and the movie serves as a fine origin story for its titular furry creation. It’s a spin-off of‘Shrek’ that outdid the entirety of that franchise.

1. Chico & Rita

And the best nominee this year was clearly this Spanish period piece that came out of nowhere and surprised everybody for landing here as the first nominee from this country. This film just screams Latin in its every pore – the incredible bolero soundtrack, the artistic imagery and the romance full of charm, emotion and energy. Chico and Rita truly has it all with the ending being particularly moving and memorable. For all of these reasons, it clearly should have won an Oscar, but the Academy almost never honors foreign movies in this category unfortunately.

Films That Should Have Been Nominated:

Wrinkles – The true best animated film of the year was another Spanish masterpiece that genuinely made me cry the first time I watched it. It is one of the greatest films about old age ever made as it is not only sad, but also genuinely fun and funny at times. It is versatile in tone and superbly realized in its colorful characters.

Leafie, A Hen into the Wild – The fact that Leafie continues to fly under the radar of most people will always frustrate me, but this is another absolute animated masterpiece of 2011 that came from Korea and blew me away with its naturalistic animation, an incredible message and one of the saddest and most powerful endings in the history of the medium.

Children Who Chase Lost Voices – The last honorable mention is another foreign movie, this one being an anime that is also annoyingly underrated. This is one of the greatest Makoto Shinkai movies that is full of great, imaginative ideas in world building and story, but also genuinely interesting themes as well. It is such an epic fantasy.