Good Animated films/Anime?

[Hollow]

I recently "discovered" anime if you will. I've seen the biggies (ghost in the shell & Akira), and began by watching Elfen Lied, which was brilliant. Recently watched both Clannad Series and am finishing Air.
Are there any others to recommend?

Basically, I'm partaking in a side project of my own to come up with an animated short and wanted some cool reference work from.

I'm not interested in any of the over the top action/cutesy/fantasy ones, they were the main reasons for why I stayed away till now...I would like to watch some interesting drama/slice of life/horror/thriller types. I guess this isn't really restricted to anime (stuff like Waltz with Bashir was mind blowing). But just a cool animation with some emotional weight to it, or a good storyline!

[Megadude]

Pom Poko
Grave of the Fireflies
The Little Norse Prince

All good anime and the first two have good meanings to them.

[cpl. punishment]

Movies: Princess Mononoke, Nausicaa: Valley of the Wind, or anything by Hayao Miyazaki, Dead Leaves.

As for anime series, try Cowboy Bebop, FLCL, Trigun, Neon Genesis Evangelion, Rurouni Kenshin, and One Piece. Depending on which of those you like, I'm sure I can recommend others.

Edit: How the hell could I have forgotten Grave of the Fireflies?

[Hollow]

Cool. I'll go check them out. I prefer anime with depth to them. I'm not fond of Naruto or DBZ or typical "shounen" ones.
the website Anime Season seems to have everything but it's just daunting to browse through...

ahh i did like cowboy bebop actually

I heard Death Note was really good

[nub]

My personal favorites, in respective order, are the following:

Berserk

Pretty old anime, and they never went past the first season, but it's a fantastic show. It's my all-time favorite. It started way back in the late 80s if I recall, and they're still doing manga chapters on it. It's an action-horror anime, although the tv series isn't exactly verbatim to the manga (which is freaking brutal as hell). Most of the horror in the series isn't even covered in the show, as it's just after the first season.


Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann (Or just Gurren Lagann)

Probably the most epic anime ever made. Great memorable characters and an awesome story. It's a mecha anime, but it's nothing like the Gundam series (which I hate). It's very action-packed and dramatic (sometimes over the top, but that's what makes it epic). I would recommend watching it in Japanese with subs since the English voice cast was disappointing.


Full Metal Alchemist

Some people think it's overrated but I certainly think it's a very good show. Great english voice cast, great story line.


Full Metal Panic

It's nothing special, another mecha anime, but it's pretty well-done (the english dubbing is tolerable). There's a comedic spin off called "Fumoffu" (which isn't dubbed) that's really funny.



Ghost in the Shell is also a very good show, one of my favorites. I also liked Elfen Lied since it was brutal as hell.

As for Death Note, it's not a bad show, but it wasn't anything I could get in to. It just seemed a bit too slow.

[YokaI]

*ahem*

Lupin III : Castle of Cagliostro (Miyazaki's first movie, about a group of thieves that are modernly considred anime classics and are inspirations for many works) For 1978, this is some very clean animation and very awesome work all around. Really hard to believe the time it was made.

Ghost in the Shell Stand Alone Complex: Anime based off the films / graphic novel, pretty great.

Neon Genesis Evangelion: Classic action anime that has a lot of psychological, specifically Freudian, undertones toward the end.

Aim for the Top!Gunbuster : Oldschool 1980s anime, made by a company that was just starting out, because of this art quality is a mixed bag but it plays with a unique mix of realistic space travel concepts with action, and also mixes the very emotional elements of Shoujo (girls comics) with the action elements of a Shounen (Boys comics.) There's both a movie version and a 6 episode series.

Aim for the Top 2! Diebuster: Sequel to the above. There's both a movie version and a 6 episode series. When hand drawn it looks amazing, when 3d is incorporated (which is rare but not rare enough) it looks odd and out of place, but if you can ignore it for the story it's great. Click here to see "making of" animation key frames. I <3 Gainax.

Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood: Still airing in japan, you can catch the episodes here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iMw9OdKv-uY Based on the manga, about two boys presuing the arts of "alchemy" and trying to find a way to restore their original bodies they lost because they broke a forbidden rule. Lot's of twists and emotional turns, very good show animation, except for one part to date where they used 3d and it looked god awful. Otherwise, great show. To be honest, 100x better than the previous version of the show, better story.

(TENGEN TOPPA) Gurren Lagann: I know you said you didn't like the action shows, but this one really is the grand-daddy and really represents modern anime. It's very comedic and is a prime example of some of the greatest animation to day in japanese anime. Every scene is hand drawn and there's no shortcuts evident in the series, done in a very traditional anime manner with some digital touch ups. Click here to watch with subs (best link I could find). Click here to watch keyframe uploads via Gainax.co.jp It's in japanese, but on that page if you click on the pictures a flash window will come up with the the hand drawn frames from scenes of the anime. 27 Episodes, and 2 movie adaptations that retell the story in 1:30 minute format. I would watch the series instead of the movie, but the movie has some interesting new scenes that look great. There's also a lot of religious / scientific / sociological undertones in this show, and many political ones are aparent in the second half of the show.

Cowboy Bebop: Definitely a recommend, Watanabe is a genius.

Samurai Champloo: Definitely a recommend, Watanabe is a genius.

Paranoia Agent: Probably the greatest psychological anime to date. No action, pure dialogue and thriller events.

Detective Conan: It's fun due to it's murder mystery elements. I can't recommend it necessarily for it's story seeing as even after 15 years it's still going, but it's really some general fun in the form of murder mysteries, and it can be very clever at times. It's the only show I could ever reccomend that is over 50 episodes.

Eureka 7: The drama makes me cringe sometimes, but other times it brings tears to my eyes. Especially the ending. English voices are trash, don't bother.

FLCL: Another gainax show, ofcourse it's a recommend!

[Hollow]

haha. I think I'm allergic to English dubs...really can't get along with them, feels like it loses the charm some have.
I've heard of Full Metal Panic/Alchemist, will possibly check it out.

Yeah, Elfen Lied was pretty vicious, apparently the manga is far worse, it just goes completely nuts further on. They were unable to broadcast it in the UK but I really liked it as it had a lot of deep themes running through and some actually funny bits here and there (not goofy though)

I've also heard some good things about Mushi-Shi, so I'm meaning to watch that.

[YokaI]

I've also heard some good things about Mushi-Shi, so I'm meaning to watch that.

I wasn't a fan, but maybe you'll like it more than I.

[nub]

I almost forgot, Desert Punk is a ridiculously funny anime, although the comedy is strange as hell. It's a post-apocalyptic setting that takes place in a desert wasteland, and is basically about a mercenary called Desert Punk. It's just...full of shenanigans, you should get a laugh out of it. Ah fuck it, just look at this:

PS: I can't believe I forgot about FLCL. Only 6 episodes but it was great.


And about the manga for Elfen Lied, it was definitely way more gruesome than the show, but not NEARLY as insane as the manga for Berserk. I haven't seen anything more graphic in my life.

[Phott]

I hate anime and I liked Gurren Lagann dammit.

[Hollow]

everytime i go to write something, my comment becomes null. you guys respond faaassst.

What the hell is with desert punk?!! that clip was odd...made me giggle though

[YokaI]

Wow this thread is moving fast,

but if you want something kind of comedic / slice of life, Lucky Star may be your thing.... It may also not be your thing. It's about the life of a Japanese "Otaku" and her friends, in a pretty much all girl environment. Some great laughs to have, and some vague broadening of Japanese culture.

Video Game related scene:

[Hollow]

I've heard that in Japan, people who refer themselves as Otaku's are really frowned upon haha. Whereas, it's not so bad over here in the western world. It reminds me of Otacon from MGS every time though I hear the word

[Hollow]

hahaha, Lucky Star seems pretty funny. Looks like a good observation of MMO and the culture
Does it all take place 'in game' though?

[YokaI]

I've heard that in Japan, people who refer themselves as Otaku's are really frowned upon haha. Whereas, it's not so bad over here in the western world. It reminds me of Otacon from MGS every time though I hear the word

Otaku in japan literally means the word house, but applying it to a hobby means they are obsessive over it. For example, Video Game Otaku means obviously that they are die hard video game fans, and is usually used as an insult. It can really be used for anything, and is just really a way of saying someone is obsessive. In japanese though, it's acceptable to use it with people in your "in" group, because it's considered more joking in context.

Obviously due to the internet the word was brought to english and has changed it's meaning quite a bit, and much more represents someone who is a fan of japanese works / culture, even if it isn't quite at the obsessive level.

No, lucky star doesn't take place all in a game, just that scene in particular. It mostly takes place at schools / homes.