Up: Settling into a story about a boy scout, a talking dog, and an old man's escape from suburbia, the opening few minutes of this film are among the most moving ever captured on film.
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Shrek: It's hard to remember the time before Shrek. Every line is perfection. Every childhood fairy story is subverted. Eddie Murphy is funny as the Donkey side-kick to Mike Meyers' ogre. Meyers completely re-recorded his dialogue in a thick Scottish brogue after he saw the film for the first time, knowing it would make the film much funnier.
Ice Age: The running gag throughout the film (and its later sequels) of a luckless prehistoric squirrel chasing an elusive acorn is Wile E Coyote for the Centennial generation.
Toy Story: Joss Whedon wrote a screenplay that gave lives to our childhood toys, warm with heart and wistfulness.It also earned its producers about a billion dollars.
Wall-E: A dystopian view of the future of the human race, as told by a robot it discarded along the way.
Finding Nemo: Who knew a film about mental illness and disability could be so fun and funny. Ellen DeGeneres will be forever beloved as Dory.
Aladdin: The animated version of course. Robin Williams' partially improvised dialogue makes for laughs throughout, and those songs are just so singable.
Frozen: One word ... Olaf! Winter's a good time to stay in and cuddle, but put me in Summer and I'll be a ... happy snowman!
Lego Movie: Probably the most consistent film, start to finish, when it comes to adult concepts and darkly clever dialogue in a chirpy, kid-friendly wrapper. Tegan and Sara sing the theme song. Lego Movie is not only a master class in children's film making, but with animation from Sydney's Animal Logic, it's patriotic to support it with your eyeballs.
Babe: Another Australian production, shot in the Southern Highlands, Babe is full of big names voicing its animal characters, Dick King-Smith's source-material book gives this charming film its heart.
Many might put The Lion King on a list like this, but when I saw it I spent most of the time fuming about what I saw was its appropriation of my favourite Japanese animation, Kimba. No hakuna matata.