I Love Animation

And now, into the realm of animation. But first, an introduction. I love animation. Probably always have, but as I reached adult age, I just got more and more fascinated with animation and animated films. Seattle is a great city for film addicts, and for the 3 months I was there, I saw at least 3 animated films, including a collection that included Wallace and Gromit's Grand Day Out. (Which I'll probably talk about more later.)

So now that I have kids, I have a great excuse to collect animated films. But there's a different angle here. You've certainly noticed in my reviews so far, I mention things from a moral aspect as well. I don't watch R-rated movies, as they're rated that for excessively immoral content (i.e. sex, violence and harsh language). PG and PG-13 movies are treading these days where only R-rated films went in years past (and, in fact, as I blogged earlier, some R-rated films are being rereleased on DVD as PG). So "kids movies" are increasingly becoming a venue for quality entertainment without the immoral distractions.

Nifty thing here. I don't remember the exact details, or which year this was about (probably 2000), but for one year recently, 9 of the top 10 grossing movies of the year were PG(13) or G, (i.e. not R); I, too, am voting with my feet, and diving head first into the good stuff. And the latest G movies are good stuff. Reviews will be forthcoming, but The Emperor's New Groove and Shrek were both hilarious, and Toy Story and Toy Story II had very solid, enjoyable plots. This ain't your father's dinky little cartoon sillyness.

Oh yeah, cartoons. Did I mention SpongeBob SquarePants? Justice League? Batman: The Animated Series? Johnny Bravo? CatDog? Pinky and the Brain? Veggie Tales? Wallace and Gromit? These are enjoyable to kids, but terrific for adults as well. And these are just my favorites; there are probably others out there just as entertaining, (i.e. Aunt Lola just loves Dexter's Lab, and Gilly and Red are Animaniac fans; I'm not too familiar with either one... yet).

Bottom line here? Searching for something a little less morally challenged, but still well done and entertaining? Look into today's "kid-oriented" (i.e. family oriented) animation. Moreso than any other genre, it's sure to fit the bill.