Best Anime
by LiljaSunshine | created - 13 Feb 2020 | updated - 30 Jan 2021 | Public- Instant Watch Options
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1. Grave of the Fireflies (1988)
Not Rated | 89 min | Animation, Drama, War
A young boy and his little sister struggle to survive in Japan during World War II.
Director: Isao Takahata | Stars: Tsutomu Tatsumi, Ayano Shiraishi, Akemi Yamaguchi, Yoshiko Shinohara
Votes: 310,690
2. Princess Mononoke (1997)
PG-13 | 134 min | Animation, Action, Adventure
On a journey to find the cure for a Tatarigami's curse, Ashitaka finds himself in the middle of a war between the forest gods and Tatara, a mining colony. In this quest he also meets San, the Mononoke Hime.
Director: Hayao Miyazaki | Stars: Yôji Matsuda, Yuriko Ishida, Yûko Tanaka, Billy Crudup
Votes: 434,012 | Gross: $2.38M
3. My Neighbor Totoro (1988)
G | 86 min | Animation, Comedy, Family
When two girls move to the country to be near their ailing mother, they have adventures with the wondrous forest spirits who live nearby.
Director: Hayao Miyazaki | Stars: Hitoshi Takagi, Noriko Hidaka, Chika Sakamoto, Shigesato Itoi
Votes: 380,573 | Gross: $1.11M
4. Howl's Moving Castle (2004)
PG | 119 min | Animation, Adventure, Family
When an unconfident young woman is cursed with an old body by a spiteful witch, her only chance of breaking the spell lies with a self-indulgent yet insecure young wizard and his companions in his legged, walking castle.
Director: Hayao Miyazaki | Stars: Chieko Baishô, Takuya Kimura, Tatsuya Gashûin, Akihiro Miwa
Votes: 449,804 | Gross: $4.71M
5. To the Forest of Firefly Lights (2011)
45 min | Animation, Drama, Fantasy
Hotaru is rescued by a spirit when she gets lost in a forest as a child. The two become friends, despite the spirit revealing that he will disappear if he is ever touched by a human.
Director: Takahiro Ômori | Stars: Kôki Uchiyama, Ayane Sakura, Shinpachi Tsuji, Izumi Sawada
Votes: 21,718
6. Your Name. (2016)
PG | 106 min | Animation, Drama, Fantasy
Two teenagers share a profound, magical connection upon discovering they are swapping bodies. Things manage to become even more complicated when the boy and girl decide to meet in person.
Director: Makoto Shinkai | Stars: Ryunosuke Kamiki, Mone Kamishiraishi, Ryo Narita, Aoi Yûki
Votes: 320,746 | Gross: $5.02M
7. The Tale of The Princess Kaguya (2013)
PG | 137 min | Animation, Drama, Family
Kaguya is a beautiful young woman coveted by five nobles. To try to avoid marrying a stranger she doesn't love, she sends her suitors on seemingly impossible tasks. But she will have to face her fate and punishment for her choices.
Director: Isao Takahata | Stars: Chloë Grace Moretz, James Caan, Mary Steenburgen, James Marsden
Votes: 54,055 | Gross: $1.51M
8. The Girl Who Leapt Through Time (2006)
TV-PG | 98 min | Animation, Adventure, Comedy
A high-school girl named Makoto acquires the power to travel back in time, and decides to use it for her own personal benefits. Little does she know that she is affecting the lives of others just as much as she is her own.
Director: Mamoru Hosoda | Stars: Riisa Naka, Takuya Ishida, Mitsutaka Itakura, Ayami Kakiuchi
Votes: 70,901
9. The Anthem of the Heart (2015)
119 min | Animation, Drama, Family
A young girl had her voice magically taken away so that she would never hurt people with it, but her outlook changes when she encounters music and friendship.
Director: Tatsuyuki Nagai | Stars: Inori Minase, Kôki Uchiyama, Sora Amamiya, Yoshimasa Hosoya
Votes: 6,347
10. Ponyo (2008)
G | 101 min | Animation, Adventure, Comedy
A five-year-old boy develops a relationship with Ponyo, a young goldfish princess who longs to become a human after falling in love with him.
Director: Hayao Miyazaki | Stars: Cate Blanchett, Matt Damon, Liam Neeson, Tomoko Yamaguchi
Votes: 163,646 | Gross: $15.09M
11. Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (1984)
PG | 117 min | Animation, Adventure, Sci-Fi
Warrior and pacifist Princess Nausicaä desperately struggles to prevent two warring nations from destroying themselves and their dying planet.
Director: Hayao Miyazaki | Stars: Sumi Shimamoto, Mahito Tsujimura, Hisako Kyôda, Gorô Naya
Votes: 182,636 | Gross: $0.50M
12. A Silent Voice: The Movie (2016)
Not Rated | 130 min | Animation, Drama
A young man is ostracized by his classmates after he bullies a deaf girl to the point where she moves away. Years later, he sets off on a path for redemption.
Directors: Taichi Ishidate, Naoko Yamada | Stars: Miyu Irino, Saori Hayami, Aoi Yûki, Kenshô Ono
Votes: 101,426
13. The Garden of Words (2013)
TV-14 | 46 min | Animation, Drama, Romance
On a rainy morning in Tokyo, 15-year-old Takao, an aspiring shoemaker, decides to skip class to sketch designs in a beautiful garden. This is where he meets Yukari, a beautiful yet mysterious woman. They strike an unlikely friendship.
Director: Makoto Shinkai | Stars: Miyu Irino, Kana Hanazawa, Fumi Hirano, Gou Maeda
Votes: 52,634
14. From Up on Poppy Hill (2011)
PG | 91 min | Animation, Comedy, Drama
A group of Yokohama teens look to save their school's clubhouse from the wrecking ball in preparations for the 1964 Tokyo Olympics.
Director: Gorô Miyazaki | Stars: Sarah Bolger, Chris Noth, Anton Yelchin, Christina Hendricks
Votes: 52,071 | Gross: $1.00M
15. The Secret World of Arrietty (2010)
G | 94 min | Animation, Adventure, Drama
The Clock family are four-inch-tall people who live anonymously in another family's residence, borrowing simple items to make their home. Life changes for the Clocks when their teenage daughter Arrietty is discovered.
Director: Hiromasa Yonebayashi | Stars: Bridgit Mendler, Amy Poehler, Will Arnett, Mirai Shida
Votes: 104,471 | Gross: $19.20M
16. The Cat Returns (2002)
G | 75 min | Animation, Adventure, Comedy
After helping a cat, a seventeen-year-old girl finds herself involuntarily engaged to a cat Prince in a magical world where her only hope of freedom lies with a dapper cat statuette come to life.
Director: Hiroyuki Morita | Stars: Chizuru Ikewaki, Yoshihiko Hakamada, Aki Maeda, Takayuki Yamada
Votes: 64,564
17. When Marnie Was There (2014)
PG | 103 min | Animation, Drama, Family
Anna, a shy 12-year-old girl, is sent to spend time with her aunt and uncle who live in the countryside, where she meets Marnie. The two become best friends. But Anna gradually discovers that Marnie is not quite who she appears to be.
Director: Hiromasa Yonebayashi | Stars: Sara Takatsuki, Kasumi Arimura, Nanako Matsushima, Susumu Terajima
Votes: 47,971 | Gross: $0.77M
18. Kiki's Delivery Service (1989)
G | 103 min | Animation, Family, Fantasy
A young witch, on her mandatory year of independent life, finds fitting into a new community difficult while she supports herself by running an air courier service.
Director: Hayao Miyazaki | Stars: Kirsten Dunst, Minami Takayama, Rei Sakuma, Kappei Yamaguchi
Votes: 165,676
19. Castle in the Sky (1986)
PG | 125 min | Animation, Adventure, Family
A young boy and a girl with a magic crystal must race against pirates and foreign agents in a search for a legendary floating castle.
Director: Hayao Miyazaki | Stars: Mayumi Tanaka, Keiko Yokozawa, Kotoe Hatsui, Minori Terada
Votes: 182,464
20. Wolf Children (2012)
PG | 117 min | Animation, Drama, Family
After her werewolf lover unexpectedly dies in an accident while hunting for food for their children, a young woman must find ways to raise the werewolf son and daughter that she had with him while keeping their trait hidden from society.
Director: Mamoru Hosoda | Stars: Aoi Miyazaki, Takao Osawa, Haru Kuroki, Yukito Nishii
Votes: 49,520
21. Spirited Away (2001)
PG | 125 min | Animation, Adventure, Family
During her family's move to the suburbs, a sullen 10-year-old girl wanders into a world ruled by gods, witches and spirits, and where humans are changed into beasts.
Director: Hayao Miyazaki | Stars: Daveigh Chase, Suzanne Pleshette, Miyu Irino, Rumi Hiiragi
Votes: 850,100 | Gross: $10.06M
22. The Wind Rises (2013)
PG-13 | 126 min | Animation, Biography, Drama
Jiro Horikoshi studies assiduously to fulfill his aim of becoming an aeronautical engineer. As WWII begins, fighter aircraft designed by him end up getting used by the Japanese Empire against its foes.
Director: Hayao Miyazaki | Stars: Hideaki Anno, Hidetoshi Nishijima, Miori Takimoto, Masahiko Nishimura
Votes: 98,871 | Gross: $5.21M
23. Whisper of the Heart (1995)
G | 111 min | Animation, Drama, Family
A love story between a girl who loves reading books, and a boy who has previously checked out all of the library books she chooses.
Director: Yoshifumi Kondô | Stars: Yoko Honna, Issei Takahashi, Takashi Tachibana, Shigeru Muroi
Votes: 72,703
24. Piano no mori (2007)
101 min | Animation, Drama, Family
The son of a prostitute and the son of a professional musician develop a bond of friendship through their love of playing the piano.
Director: Masayuki Kojima | Stars: Aya Ueto, Ryunosuke Kamiki, Hiroyuki Amano, Mayuko Fukuda
Votes: 1,749
25. In This Corner (and Other Corners) of the World (2016)
PG-13 | 129 min | Animation, Drama, Family
A spirited 18-year-old woman is married off to a man she barely knows as she combats the daily struggles of living in Hiroshima during World War II.
Director: Sunao Katabuchi | Stars: Non, Ava Pickard, Kenna Pickard, Karen Strassman
Votes: 12,459 | Gross: $0.17M
26. Clannad: After Story (2008–2009)
TV-MA | 24 min | Animation, Comedy, Drama
A sequel to the anime based on the recently concluded Key Clannad franchise. After Story is a new path that opens in the original visual novel after all other options have been traversed.
Stars: Yûichi Nakamura, David Matranga, Luci Christian, Mai Nakahara
Votes: 12,356
27. Clannad (2007–2008)
TV-PG | 30 min | Animation, Comedy, Drama
A high school student who cares little about school or others meets a lonely girl who had to repeat a year while all her friends finished high school. He decides to hang out with her and soon meets more friendly students.
Stars: Yûichi Nakamura, David Matranga, Mai Nakahara, Luci Christian
Votes: 10,365
28. Sailor Moon (1995–2000)
TV-Y | 24 min | Animation, Action, Adventure
The magical action-adventures of a teenage girl who learns of her destiny as the legendary warrior Sailor Moon and must band together with the other Sailor Scouts to defend the Earth and Galaxy.
Stars: Susan Roman, Jill Frappier, Katie Griffin, Ron Rubin
Votes: 13,181
29. Violet Evergarden (2018)
TV-14 | 24 min | Animation, Drama, Family
In the aftermath of a great war, Violet Evergarden, a young female ex-soldier, gets a job at a writers' agency and goes on assignments to create letters that can connect people.
Stars: Yui Ishikawa, Erika Harlacher, Raissa Bueno, Aya Endô
Votes: 29,642
30. A Little Princess Sara (1985)
24 min | Animation, Drama, Family
Anime adaption of 1905's children's novel 'A Little Princess'. Sara Crewe arrives in London with her wealthy father to enter Miss Minchin's boarding school for young ladies. Despite an ... See full summary »
Stars: Sumi Shimamoto, Taeko Nakanishi, Yukiko Nashiwa, Eiko Yamada
Votes: 1,575
31. Sailor Moon Crystal (2014–2021)
TV-14 | 24 min | Animation, Action, Adventure
Usagi Tsukino is chosen to be a guardian of justice and is sent on a quest to locate a Silver Crystal before the Dark Kingdom invades the Earth.
Stars: Kotono Mitsuishi, Ryô Hirohashi, Kenji Nojima, Stephanie Sheh
Votes: 2,485
32. Barakamon (2014)
TV-PG | 24 min | Animation, Comedy, Drama
A proud young calligrapher is punished for punching a critic by being sent to a faraway island in the east coast of Japan. But as he meets and lives with the island's friendly people, his attitude begins to improve.
Stars: Daisuke Ono, Suzuko Hara, Nozomi Furuki, Rina Endô
Votes: 4,193
33. Big Fish & Begonia (2016)
PG-13 | 100 min | Animation, Adventure, Drama
A 16-year-old girl travels to the human world in the form of a dolphin and forms a connection with a human boy.
Directors: Xuan Liang, Chun Zhang | Stars: Guanlin Ji, Shangqing Su, Timmy Xu, Shulan Pan
Votes: 6,773
34. Inuyasha (2000–2004)
TV-14 | 22 min | Animation, Action, Adventure
A teenage girl periodically travels back in time to feudal Japan to help a young half-demon recover the shards of a jewel of great power.
Stars: Kappei Yamaguchi, Richard Ian Cox, Sarah Hauser, Darren Pleavin
Votes: 17,921
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