Top 10 Pixar Feature Lengths

To celebrate Pixar's 14 years of feature length filmmaking and the upcoming DVD/Bluray release of the studio's most recent fan favorite, Up, on November 10, I've ranked them all from worst to best. My judgment was based almost entirely on personal preference, though I did consider general public opinion at least partially in making this the best possible list I thought it could be. I hope you enjoy it, and if not - even better! I'm excited to read any alternatives to this list, so whether it be in comments or on your own hub, please let me know about it.

Note: This is not designed as an endorsement, but is rather a fun and convenient list for a studio I respect.

10. Cars (2006)

In my not so humble opinion, this is the one blotch on Pixar's otherwise fantastic track record. Cars definitely has an audience, enough of one that there is a sequel in the works, but I'm fairly certain that that audience is virtually no where to be found in New England - we tend to turn away from anything involving car racing and Larry the Cable Guy as a general rule. This is also ignoring the fact that a world run entirely by cars - where there is not a single shred of evidence that humanity still exists - is kind of terrifying.

09. A Bug's Life (1998)

I really enjoyed this movie at the time it came out, when I was 12, but I can't help but deem it the most forgettable of Pixar's output. Its theatrical release was, quite unfortunately, sandwiched between Toy Story one and two, the films most responsible for the studio's highly lauded reputation. It also came out a month after Antz, which, although not nearly as successful in the box office, was arguably a better film in terms of content. While good in its own right, A Bug's Life has not endured quite as well as some of the better ranking films on the list.

08. Monsters, Inc. (2001)

Monsters, Inc. had a fantastic and imaginative concept, not to mention some memorable voice talents. John Goodman, Billy Crystal, and Steve Buscemi were appealing names to slap onto the bill, but it was newcomer, 3 year old Mary Gibbs, who really stole the show - adding a consistent string of barely containable "awwws" in her path of unrelenting cuteness.

07. Toy Story 2 (1999)

I may get some slack for placing this so low on the list, but hear me out. Yes, this was visually superior to the original, we saw more of the characters we did not realize we were missing (Slink, Potato Head, Rex), and its comedic wit was undeniable. But the sentimentality of the original is missing (though attempted, as in the little-too-much Sarah McLachlan accompanied montage of Jessie's past experience with a fickle and unkind toy owner). Toy Story 2 is great entertainment, but the original really had you sympathizing in the strangest ways with the inorganic - and for that, it excelled.

06. Finding Nemo (2003)

It was around the time of Finding Nemo that audiences seemed convinced that Pixar could do no wrong, and rightfully so. The film's reception was monumental - becoming the highest grossing G rated movie in the box office and the highest selling DVD of all time. Viewers were charmed by its sentimental father-son story and the dim-witted but lovable Dori, voiced by Ellen Degeneres, and it rejuvenated the studio's appeal for old and new generations alike.

05. WALL-E (2008)

If Brad Bird's directed features were not evidence enough that Pixar had its sights set on far more ambitious and provocative creative territory, WALL-E, an uncharacteristically dystopian future flick, certainly sealed the deal. The near wordless first 1/3 of the film was even too much for some viewers, who were accustomed to a more dialogue driven narrative. Then there were the brilliant visuals, whose detail set a new standard for the biggest animation studio in the country. In just about every way, WALL-E really nailed it, and, admirably, not on the safest terms.

04. The Incredibles (2004)

I really think Brad Bird is the MVP in Pixar's most recent years. His stories and themes are by far the most uncompromising and his scripts the most intelligent. More than any of his other contemporaries, he reimagines what content can appeal to adults and children alike, without ever talking down to either. The Incredibles, whose narrative is colored in unmistakable shades of Alan Moore's Watchmen, explores what it is to be truly extraordinary, and does so without the fear of leaving everybody else behind. Its about daring to be great, and isn't that the most base, and also most terrifying, of human desires?

03. Ratatouille (2007)

The great western story goes something like this - man starts with nothing and works his way up, against all odds, to unprecedented heights. Its a narrative of paramount historical significance that manifests itself in our entertainment; films like Lawrence of Arabia, Citizen Kane, Raging Bull, and There Will Be Blood, to name a few, fill this basic storyline. These stories provide maps for what we have socially deemed classic and timeless, and though dressed in a slightly different skin, Ratatouille is guided by such a map. It is, essentially, an unexpected and family friendly retelling of the great American story.

02. Up (2009)

I can't think of a more riveting segment in cinema this year than the first twenty minutes of Up. In that brief period, we witness first love in bloom, dreams anticipated and forgotten, and the most devastating loss of a lifetime. In short, we see the reality of aging, depicted with sweeping visual poeticism. Sentimentality is built upon with heart stopping action sequences and irresistible hilarity - making for an uncommonly complete movie-going experience. This, it seems, is the moment Pixar had been leading up to in its two long decades of filmmaking.

01. Toy Story (1995)

A few years down the line, Up may claim the number one spot on my list, but the original Toy Story has 14 years under its belt, making it by far the most enduring in the studio's history. No other Pixar effort came together quite as beautifully, between the fantastically imagined story, the lovable characters, and a heartbreaking collection of original songs by one of pop music's true shining talents Randy Newman. Pixar's shorts prior to their debut feature length consistently flirted with the concept of inorganic objects with a most unfortunate consciousness - see Red's Dream and Tin Toy - and these early experiments served well in a fully realized imagining of a world in which toys are alive. To claim any other film is more derserving of this spot - for the time being anyway - would be a travesty.