1. Tangled (2010)
As a general rule, I hate and despise all things Disney. But
Tangled was amazing; I've seen it three times already--in theaters. It details the adventures of Rapunzel and thief/guide Flynn Rider on their way to see the lantern festival in the capital city. On the way, they are pursued by Flynn's enemies (both within the law and without) and Rapunzel's adopted mother, Gothel. It's a musical, I know, but it was so well-done that I really don't mind.
2. How to Train Your Dragon (2010)
How to Train Your Dragon is my new favorite movie of all time. I love it to the point of unreasonable-ness. Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III is a hopeless Viking teen; he can't lift a hammer, he can't swing an axe, and he can't kill dragons. But as he becomes the first Viking to ride one, he discovers a whole new side of dragons that Vikings have never seen before.
3. xxxHOLiC the Movie: A Midsummer Nights' Dream (2005)
I'm not gonna lie--my love for xxxHOLiC biases me slightly on this issue. But I love this movie; as in the series, the movie deals with human vices and their consequences. Kimihiro Watanuki works part-time at a wish-granting shop owned by the eccentric Yuuko Ichihara. As part of their work, they travel to the mansion of a collector.
4. Howl's Moving Castle (2004)
Based on the book by Diana Wynne Jones, Howl is about a plain young hat-maker named Sophie Hatter who is cursed to be an old woman. Leaving behind her home, she acts as the cleaning lady for the exotic wizard Howl in his moving castle.
5. The Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009)
A puppet-animated comedy about a fox who can't stand to be second-best. I've never read the book, but I love this movie. George Clooney acts as Mr. Fox with Meryl Streep as Mrs. Fox. Mr. Fox decides that he wants to pull off one last heist--against the three meanest farmers in the state.
6. Toy Story (1995)
I'm not a fan of the sequels, but the original
Toy Story is amazing. It's funny, it's dramatic, and it's just plain GOOD. You can't beat the original here. Woody and Buzz and toys of a kid named Andie; but Buzz is quickly replacing Woody as favorite, and Woody has a few things to say about it.
7. Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs (2009)
The sole fact that Mr. T is a main character in this movie settles the issue of greatness here. Flint Lockwood is an inventor in a town where nobody wants to deal with him. But when he invents a machine that turns food into water, it's a different story...
8. Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children
A group of whack-jobs is trying to resurrect the most dangerous lab rat in Midgar's history. Standing in their way is a group formerly known as AVALANCHE. The key player in AVALANCHE, Cloud Strife, is nowhere to be found as he works out his own issues on the side. While Cloud annoys me, Tifa is amazing. Tifa Lockhart, Cloud's childhood friend, is now the proprietor of Seventh Heaven, a bar and meeting place for AVALANCHE. She cares for two orphans named Denzel and Marlene and has an awesome fight scene (she's a martial arts expert). The music is great, the animation is superb, and the fight scenes rock.
9. Robin Hood (1973)
Come on...it's a classic. You know you love that fox.
10. Princess Mononoke (1997)
Outcast Ashitaka travels to a village of iron where the animals in the nearby forest are revolting. Caught in the middle of the two (humans and animals), Ashitaka must bring peace between the two before they destroy each other.
