Loveday Writing

Now that I’ve watched and written analysis pieces on the six animated feature films of the Golden Age: Toy Story, A Bug’s Life, Toy Story 2, Monsters, Inc., Finding Nemo, and The Incredibles, I’m going to rank them from my least favourite to my favourite.

6 – A Bug’s Life

Pixar’s second film, A Bug’s Life had a lot of pressure on its shoulders to match and even surpass the success of Toy Story.

While A Bug’s Life was based on The Ants and the Grasshopper from Aesop’s Fables and the animation had progressed in the years since Toy Story, I found the story and the film as a whole hard to engage with, and the animation noticeably dated.

5 – Monsters, Inc.

The halfway point of the Golden Age, Monsters, Inc. was a pioneer in terms of animating and rendering fur, which followed up Pixar’s pioneering of animating water.

This was Pixar’s first film that focused on monsters and explored the concept of “monsters in the closet” as an industry. I appreciated that it started off in a different way to the previous films, starting like a horror film at a slow pace. However the pace was too slow at times, and there were times I found the overall story hard to engage with.

4 – Toy Story

Pixar’s debut animated feature film and the first ever computer animated feature film, Toy Story pioneered and highlighted not only Pixar’s then-new technological style, but computer animation as a whole.

Toy Story focused on a simple yet relatable premise of toys coming to life when their kid leaves a room, with each toy given a personality of their own. I appreciated that the film had Buzz and Woody face realistic obstacles on their journey back to Andy, and the subtle adult jokes that were placed here and there throughout the film.

Toy Story was ultimately the right choice for Pixar’s debut animated feature film, however its now-dated pioneering animation was jarring when I watched it through 2023 eyes, which is why it’s lower in my ranking.

3 – Toy Story 2

Toy Story 2 was in the unique position of both marking the halfway point of the Golden Age and also being the sequel of Pixar’s debut animated feature film, and therefore being able to show exactly how far Pixar had come in the brief four years since its predecessor’s debut.

Pixar’s evolution over the four years enabled the character models to receive major upgrades and shaders going through revisions to bring about subtle improvements. These upgrades can be easily seen with the toys as they have a more refined 3D look and don’t look like plastic dolls anymore, and Andy’s mother looks more like a human being. The evolution also allowed for more complicated camera shots than were possible in its predecessor.

The story also evolved from the previous film focusing on a favourite toy’s insecurities and jealousy over a new toy, to posing the question of whether it was better to be loved and played with one child even though the relationship wouldn’t last forever, or if it was better to be loved and adored by generations of children at a museum, but not played with.

Toy Story 2’s now-dated animation and the fact that it’s a sequel brings it down in my ranking to third.

2 – The Incredibles

The last film of the era, The Incredibles displays how far Pixar and its Golden Age had come with its full focus on humans, superheros, and crisp animation.

The only film of the era to be written by one person, its director, Brad Bird, The Incredibles story was an idea Bird was sitting on for a decade and was unique in that it was set in a retro-futuristic era, incorporating both classic and modern looks. The film’s complex exploration of superheroes and superhero culture, and the metaphors that superheroes and their powers provided in the context of families and family dynamics, made it a superb superhero film. In fact, it’s regarded as one of the best superhero films ever made.

I felt that this was the best film to end the Golden Age due it showing how far Pixar had come, and its multiple Academy Award wins. For me its second place in my rankings due to it not being the first film to showcase Pixar’s monumental evolution and success to me, that film is the one I’ve ranked in first place.

1 – Finding Nemo

The second last film of the Golden Age and the first Pixar film to win an Academy Award, I feel that Finding Nemo is the best film of the Golden Age.

Finding Nemo’s underwater setting – both in the ocean and the fish tank – provided Pixar and its crew with more animation, artistic and storytelling opportunities. The vast variety of ocean and fish life also enabled a wide variety of characters to be introduced and loved by audiences.

The storytelling and attention to detail was pretty much perfect, with the two going hand-in-hand due to the intense research behind the scenes and foreshadowing throughout the film. It definitely deserved its critical acclaim and the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature.

What do you think of my rankings and how would you rank the six films of the Golden Age? Feel free to let me know by leaving a comment below.