Here are Cinephile Corner’s picks for the 12 best stop-motion animated movies of all time, ranked:
12. Memoir of a Snail (2024)
Family is inseparable. No matter how fractured and disjointed it can be at times, family is who you rely on to get you through the rough patches in life. Adam Elliot‘s 2024 animated movie Memoir of a Snail, in which a young girl Grace experiences nearly every form of trauma and loss imaginable, displays this in perhaps the clearest, most emotional gut punch you’ll see all year. It’s crafted with such a precise thumb on its own pulse in terms of tone and imagery that you’d be hard-pressed to find another director capable colliding this style with this material.
Read our full review of Memoir of a Snail
11. Shaun the Sheep Movie (2015)
10. Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio (2022)
Guillermo del Toro and Mark Gustafson’s Pinocchio is a beautiful and marvelous return for the ancient story after the dark places it went to in 2022. The stop-motion is clean and stoic, and the story breaths new life into the wooden child. Guillermo del Toro rarely misses, and this is another example of his gothic stories hitting just the right notes.
Read our full review of Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio
9. Marcel the Shell with Shoes On (2021)
8. Isle of Dogs (2018)
Viewed as a standalone animated feature, Isle of Dogs is a unique, thoughtful piece that few filmmakers besides Wes Anderson could have envisioned, let alone executed. But graded on the curve of Anderson’s own career, it feels minor. It lacks the emotional punch of The Royal Tenenbaums, the elegance of The Grand Budapest Hotel, and even the narrative focus of later entries like Asteroid City or The Phoenician Scheme.
Read our full review of Isle of Dogs
7. Mad God (2021)
6. Kubo and the Two Strings (2016)
5. Chicken Run (2000)
4. Anomalisa (2015)
3. Coraline (2009)
An absolutely beautiful stop-motion movie, Coraline supplies enough whimsical joy for kids, while still being thoughtful and profound. Henry Selick‘s best film is also Laika Entertainment’s best film.
Read our full review of Coraline
2. The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)
1. Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009)
Fantastic Mr. Fox is more than just one of the best Wes Anderson movies or one of the best animated movies—it’s one of the best movies, period. A singular work of creativity and charm that continues to inspire, entertain, and resonate.