5v5: Rank your Top 5 Pixar films against your Top 5 Ghibli and Top 3/5 Disney films.

@penguindust said:

It's exactly what it says on the tin. Take your favorite five Pixar films. Now take your favorite five or up to five Studio Ghibli films (Google is your friend if you can't remember what's Ghibli and what's not) and your three favorite Disney flicks. Top thirteen!

(EDIT: Thread suggested to bump the Disney allotment to five, for a round 15. You may do so.)

There are only two rules for this list other than the obvious:

• Nausicaa of the Wind is considered Ghibli for the purposes of the list. It's billed as Ghibli on the boxes.
• Ni No Kuni may be used for a Ghibli slot only if you don't have five Ghibli films.

Original List

13. Grave of the Fireflies (Ghibli): Damn it. Damn it Damn it Damn it. I had to watch this for Japanese class in high school. It's definitely an effective film and you'll cry tears when you see it. It makes that list because it got that visceral reaction. But against such strong competition in my mind it loses out. Especially since....

12. My Neighbor Totoro (Ghibli): I HAD TO WATCH THIS IMMEDIATELY AFTER. No fucking joke, the teacher made us watch this the next day. I know this is how it went down in real life but holy shit that's some emotional whiplash. Totoro sinks this far on the list because it had to make up for the funk Fireflies put me in. But it stays on this list because it succeeded so wildly.

11. Monsters Inc. (Pixar): Picking 5 Ghibli films is easy for me, I've only seen five. But I've seen almost every Pixar movie and that's a harder thing to cull. Monsters Inc is a cool inversion of 'there's monsters in my closet'. Yes there are, no they won't eat you, and they're just as scared of you. It wasn't the first Pixar movie I saw in theaters but it's one that made a more lasting impact than the first (Toy Story 2, which only just misses the list).

10. The Emperor's New Groove (Disney): Fuck all the haters. Fuck all y'all. People say Disney went to shit after Tarzan. I say things didn't get bad until after Lilo & Stitch. Disney was still putting out pretty good traditional films when everyone was obsessing over Shrek and its ilk. This fourth-wall breaking film is easily the best thing David Spade has ever been attached to, and everyone in the cast is on their A-game.

9. Hunchback of Notre Dame (Disney): Fuck all y'all again! This is the closest Disney could've gotten away with for how dark this got - the off-Broadway version might be closer and this film suffers some serious tone issues but it's still good when it's hitting its beats. Some of Disney's finest work, if marred by the restrictions and expectations of the Disney Renaissance.

8. The Incredibles (Pixar) I wanted this higher on the list. But once again strong competition holds it back. One of the most subversive animated films to ever be released, and Brad Bird deserves having a huge career between this and Iron Giant - which would've bumped off Grave of the Fireflies if this wasn't a purely Disney/Pixar/Ghibli affair. It's creative, it's fun, and it's old Pixar finding its rhythm.

7. Nausicaa of the Winds (Ghibli): This can honestly be tied with Incredibles as far as ranking is concerned. The film that started Ghibli's incredible run, and Miyazaki's legend. It may be heresy that I can list six films I think higher of than this. Allow me some of your time.

6. The Wind Rises (Ghibli): HERETIC! This is the only Miyazaki film I got to see in theaters. I admit that this may inflate my opinion of the film, and it's a downer like Graveyard was. Why it isn't tied with Graveyard is that I was much more able to appreciate Wind Rises as a history buff and as a more mature person. If this is the last Miyazaki film I get, it's one hell of a send-off. An artist may only get ten years of creativity but it feels like he had so much more left.

5. Up (Pixar): Goddamn this is hard. If this was a 'strongest opening' list Up wins hands down. Even when it settles into a more traditional plot it maintains the emotional connection it made between you and the main character. But we're in the top five now and while Up deserves to reach the top tier it's all downhill from the start. A strong film that started with a showstopper.

4. Toy Story 3 (Pixar): This rivals Toy Story 2's scene with Jessie with the biggest emotional impact the franchise has had. The whole franchise is a series of films about avoiding irrelevance. 1 had Woody doing anything he could, 2 had Jessie and the Roundup Gang nearly settling for a half-life to do so, but 3 really shows how the whole Toy Story cast has evolved. It's not worth avoiding obsolescence if there's too high a price, and the gang was ready to accept it in one emotional beat after another.

3. Wreck-It Ralph (Disney): Frozen was good. But it's not my top three. Wreck-It Ralph is the best Disney film to come out in decades. It's a subversion on bad guys having to be bad, and it hits the video game nostalgia button with such force, fervor, and conviction that I cannot deny it. It is not a perfect film - the final twist is telegraphed - but it knows that its bread and butter is in it being fun.

2. Princess Mononoke (Ghibli): The best Ghibli film in my eyes. If you have one film to show people to prove that animated films are capable of mature themes - and you don't want to show off Akira - this is your ticket. It is arguably the most complete film Miyazaki has made and it's his strongest.

1. Wall-E (Pixar): I mentioned Up has the strongest opening on the list. Wall-E has the strongest first act. The whole film is a damning indictment of the American consumerist culture, of big box stores and corporate power, of lethargy and ignorance. The kids will love the robots running around, but this is almost as subversive as the Incredibles.

Edited List:

15. Grave of the Fireflies (Ghibli): See above.

14. Aladdin (Disney): This barely makes the top 15, purely on the strength of Robin Williams in his iconic role. It's not the best of the Disney Renaissance but it's one of the most iconic.

13. Atlantis: The Lost Empire (Disney): One of the most developed ensemble casts Disney's ever put together with gorgeous visuals in the days before World War I. Is it a weaker Disney film? Absolutely. But this is my list damn it and Atlantis is a highly underrated film.

Rest of list continues as original.

1. Princess Mononoke (Ghibli) - My all time favorite animated film. Monumental scale, yet still very personal. Backed by extraordinarily strong characters both human and animal alike. It also has a wonderfully adventurous feel to all of it that just makes me love it so much. Which I sadly can't seem to put my finger on.

2. Howl's Moving Castle (Ghibli) - No affinity whatsoever for the source material but it the movie is not far behind Mononoke to me in terms of quality. Its quirkier, but again has just fantastic characters and a wonderful world that you just love to explore with the main character. My love for Calcifer is endless.

3. The Lion King (Disney) - Probably the animated movie I have seen the most time in my life. That VHS saw so much action. It is just a fantastic story that really has it all, heartbreak, love and laughter.

4. Spirited Away (Ghibli) - The very first Ghibli movie I ever saw. My dad took me to see it in the cinema and I had never seen anything like it. Probably the strongest world building in any Ghibli movie that is just intense yet fantastical in the most pleasurable way.

5. Toy Story (Pixar) - Still Pixars finest to me. Probably because I was at the most receptive age when it came out. Also seen a ridiculous amount of times. It just resonated so well with me, but going but its still a very good story.

6. My Neighbor Totoro (Ghibli) - Whenever you are sad, Totoro will ALWAYS cheer you up. At least that is how I feel. It might just be the most joyful movie ever made. I agree with Matt Rorie, if you show a date this movie and she doesn't like it. It won't work out.

7. Finding Nemo (Pixar) - I credit much of my love for Finding Nemo to the fact that I just adore water as a setting. I love anything set in water. Not sure why, but thats how it is. Which is why I like it so much.

8. Ponyo (Ghibli) - Much of the same reason as to why I like Finding Nemo so much. Ponyo is kind of in the same ballpark. Though it might not be as grandiose as many other Ghibli movies, its just an incredibly sweet story that looks amazing visually.

9. Wall-E (Pixar) - Adorable movie, that I kinda think really solidified what CG movies can be.

10. The Jungle Book (Disney) - A classic, they show parts of it every Christmas over here so certain scenes I know word for word.

11. Monsters Inc. (Pixar) - Very funny and clever.

12. Ratatouille (Pixar) - Introduced me to an excellent dish! Is also a great movie, one which I never thought would work beforehand. A rat chef? Sure.

13. Fantasia (Disney) - Definitely the odd man out, but damn if it isn't a treat to watch.

Ghibli kind of takes it handily for me.

Why only three Disney films when they have the largest catalogue of the three?

1. The Lion King

2. Up

3. Princess Mononoke

4. Wall-E

5. The Secret World Of Arrietty

6. Inside Out

7. The Incredibles

8. Toy Story 3

9. Spirited Away

10. Kiki's Delivery Service

11. Big Hero 6

12. Wreck It Ralph

13. Only Yesterday

don't think i'm qualified to make a list but just came in to say Emperor's New Groove is the best disney film and fucking rules.

(e: obviously i'm not a huge fan of disney overall)

Pulp Fiction is technically a Disney film does that count?

I've removed a Pixar film and replaced it with a Disney film as otherwise I'd be forced to add a Pixar film I've seen but don't especially like to fill the numbers (i.e. Cars or A Bugs Life). 1:Most - 13:Least favourite

The First four I think are masterpieces.

1. Princess Mononoke (Ghibli)
2. Spirited Away (Ghibli)
3. The Little Mermaid (Disney)
4. The Lion King (Disney)
   From here we get into films I don't think are just good, and each has a problem that stops me actively watching it again.
5. Finding Nemo (Pixar)
6. Wall-E (Pixar)
7. Ponyo (Ghibli)
8. Toy Story (Pixar)
9. Lilo & Stitch (Disney)
10. Ratatouille (Pixar)
    These last three are films I saw a long time ago with faint memories of, but I remember loving them so I'd need to go back and watch them and maybe they could be significantly higher on my list.
11. Howl’s Moving Castle (Ghibli)
12. My Neighbour Totoro (Ghibli)
13. Hercules (Disney)

Yeah, I concur with you - I could instantly name 5 Disney films, but I had to look up five Pixar and Ghibli films. It does seem strange.

1. Princess Mononoke: Mononoke and Nausicaa are flipsides of the same story, one in the far future, one in the far past, nausicaa is as much the story of Nausicaa/San as mononoke is the story of Ashitaka/Yupa, and Yupa has always been the most fascinating character of nausicaa to me, so that gives the edge to mononoke.

2. Nausicaa: Ohmu

3. Totoro: this movie makes me happy, some times it makes so happy that it hurts and i have to stop watching for a bit to catch my breath

4. Porco Rosso: Porco is the coolest protagonist ever, indina jones, han solo, airforce gator, none of them have nothing on Porco

5. The wind Rises: the wind rises was so bittersweet to see, this may be the last miyazaki film and that is a lost to the world but it also felt like the culmination of something, a master who dominates his craft so thoroughly making the simplest of statements. Elegant, succint and powerfull.

(5.1. Ponyo

5.2 Howl's moving castle)

6. Wall-e: a wonderfull movie that conveys many emotions almost with no dialogue... and makes you love a cockroach

7. The sword in the stone: pure fun, endlessly rewatchable , also a non canon chapter of Doctor Who.

8. Up: the first ten minutes are the best pixar has ever been, it never gets quite so high again, but is great the whole time.

9. The lion King: the first movie I ever watched twice on theater, i made my father stay for a second run and i tried to bargain for a third but 8 year old me didn't have much to bargain with.

10. Toy Story: Toy story deserves a spot if only for what it did for the industry, its a cornerstone no doubt, its also a great movie.

11. Fantasia: Ambicious. There is a certain special admiration that i feel for things that are ambicious and grandiose, maybe even arrogant, and still manage to not come short, to pull it off

12. Finding Nemo: so endearing, a wonderfull cast of lovable characters.

13. The incredibles: one of the best action adventure movies of the 2000s

P.S: The thing is, to me, the best pixar/disney barely competes with the worst Miyazaki (when you go to the full ghibli catalogue is more of a fight) so i have to put Ponyo and Howl up there and, although i love the incredibles, i rather have bambi, the jungle book or dumbo in the 13th spot.

The original post I took the topic for named 5 for Ghibli and Pixar - they have a similar size of catalogue (20/21 Ghibli, 15 released for Pixar). Disney has the larger catalog, but I figured it'd be easier to list 13 movies instead of 15.

The original post has been edited; if you WANT to do 15 you can.

It just seemed weird to me. It's only a difference of two and there's a lot more to choose from with Disney.

I'll probably make a list later.

1. The Castle of Cagliostro

2. The Castle of Cagliostro

3. The Castle of Cagliostro

4. On Your Mark

5. The Castle of Cagliostro

Princess Mononoke is #1 on peoples' lists? Monsters

1. Tales from Earthsea
2. Tales from Earthsea
3. Tales from Earthsea
4. Tales from Earthsea
5. Tales from Earthsea

The List (with a few random comments added for random reasons):

1. Kiki's Delivery Service
2. Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind
3. Inside Out I really connected with the ending to that movie. :(
4. Princess Mononoke
5. The Incredibles
6. WALL-E
7. The Wind Rises
8. Wreck-It Ralph
9. Mulan: IT'S FUCKING MULAN!!!!!!!
10. Howl's Moving Castle
11. Toy Story 3: I wouldn't say Toy Story 3 is necessarily a great movie. It is a good movie, with a great, emotional, you'll cry like a baby next to somebody you don't know in a theater, but it's ok because she's crying too and--uh, nevermind.
12. Up
13. Big Hero 6
14. Hercules: Sort of the same disclaimer as #15, but I've seen it more recently. (Like...9 years ago?)
15. The Little Mermaid: It's been a long time since I've actually seen this movie. As in like 15+ years. I think it was my favorite Disney movie from that time frame.

1. Princess Mononoke (Ghibli)
2. Wall-E (Pixar)
3. Porco Rosso (Ghibli)
4. Toy Story 3 (Pixar)
5. My Neighbor Totoro (Ghibli)
6. The Lion King (Disney)
7. Grave of The Fireflies (Ghibli)
8. Pinocchio (Disney)
9. Monsters Inc. (Pixar)
10. The Secret World of Arrietty (Ghibli)
11. Toy Story (Pixar)
12. Hercules (Disney)
13. Alladin (Disney)
14. Tin Toy (Pixar)
15. The Little Mermaid (Disney)

That was pretty hard. In general Ghibli movies is way better than Disney movies and most Pixar movies though, so it wasn't really a fair fight.

This is way too complicated. Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind is my favorite film ever. Period. A lot of it's a nostalgia thing though. I saw the terrible early North American adaptation when I was a kid and despite the incredibly awful localization knew it was something special. When I saw it again in my 20s when downloaded movies and fansubs became a thing, it affected me like no other piece of media I'd ever witnessed. I finally got around to reading the manga a couple years ago and it's completely different, but also awesome. Pixar movies are alright. Disney, meh.

1. Princess Mononoke

2. The Castle of Cagliostro: This is pretty much tied with Mononoke

3. Kiki's Delivery Service

4. My Neighbor Totoro: Also basically tied with Kiki's

5. Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind

6. The Little Mermaid

7. The Incredibles

8. Alladin

9. Beauty and the Beast

10. Toy Story

11. Finding Nemo

12. Wall-E

13. Atlantis: The Lost Empire: I liked it's technology designs and I like the romance a lot

14. Frozen: I really like Frozen, but mostly just because it brought me make to the Disney musical era

15. A Bug's Life: I don't know why I like this movie so much, but I do.

I like most of Pixar's films, but I don't usually love a lot of them. I feel like The Incredibles and Toy Story are the only ones I really need on the list. I could eaisly replace the other ones with Disney or Ghibli films.

1. The Incredibles- Brad Bird's best Pixar movie

2. Toy Story 3- The end made me cry

3. Wall-E: This is how you do an environmental message in any movie

4. Monsters Inc- John Goodman is amazing as Sully

5. Up-Puppies!

5. Nausicca-Strong Female Protagonist

6. Grave of the Fireflies- Tear Jerker definition

7. Lion King- Best opening to a Disney movie ever

8. Porco Rosso- Michael Keaton that's all

9. Sleeping Beauty-Maleficent is my favorite Disney villain(Forget about that live action travesty)

10. Hunchback of Notre Dame- Frollo was a twisted villain

11. Snow White-Its one this list because of the animation

12. Princess Monoke- A Darker version of Nausicca

13. Ponyo- Its a cute movie but to cute which is why its low on the list

14. Emperors new Grove- The last good thing David Spade has been in

15. Atlantis- The art style was cool?

@reverendk:4 of those are not Ghibli, Pixar, or Disney! though it is a great movie...

So I can't just pick 13 Ghibli movies right...? I haven't seen that many Disney movies...

1. Laputa
2. Kiki
3. Spirited Away
4. My Neighbors the Yamadas
5. Porco Rosso
6. Aladdin
7. The Lion King
8. Toy Story
9. Ratatouille
10. WALL-E
11. Up
12. Hercules
13. Finding Nemo

@eladren: Your description of Porco is the reason why I love that film so much. Porco's practically Han Solo meets Indiana Jones meets Solid Snake or some other combination of awesome dudes.

Ponyo - Inside Out - Princess Mononoke - Robin Hood - Spirited Away - Wall-E - Nausicaa - Monsters Inc - The Wind Rises - Rescuers Down Under - Toy Story 2 - The Incredibles - The Jungle Book

If we could pick "other" The Iron Giant, W&G: Curse Of The Were-Rabbit and Land Before Time would be on here too.

1. Whisper of the Heart - delicious melancholy
2. The Emperor's New Groove - I own many Disney movies for my kids, but this movie is for me
3. Princess Mononoke - Gillian Anderson is a giant wolf spirit
4. Robin Hood - oo-de-lally oo-de-lally golly what a day
5. Inside Out - I'm a dad I saw this movie without my kids it made me hella sad
6. Frozen - probably seen this 30+ times and heard the soundtrack 1000+ times, Stockholm syndrome?
7. Beauty & The Beast - Belle is my Disney waifu
8. Spirited Away - is it weird that I can remember how much I like this movie without actually remembering the movie?
9. Big Hero 6 - Honey Lemon is my Disney mistressu
10. Kiki's Delivery Service - I haven't seen very many Ghibli movies
11. The Incredibles - dunno, kinda ho-hum about every else Pixar
12. My Neighbor Totoro - catbus
13. Monsters Inc - Pixar
14. Toy Story - is
15. Finding Nemo - alright