Akira – Many of us have scoffed at the puerility of cartoons over cigars and aperitifs, but this, gentlemen, is a transcendent piece of art. It isn’t often we get to see animated breasts, blood, and mutation flail about with the graphic aptitude this movie subscribes itself to. An anime film that drew recognition to the craft, Akira complements your dynamite roll like a glass of tepid sake.

Director: Katsuhiro Otomo
Release date: 16 July 1988
Cast: Mitsuo Iwata, Nozomu Sasaki, Mami Koyama

Appleseed – Based on Shinji Aramaki’s manga of the same name, Appleseed is an eye-catching animated affair. Giant shiny buildings and complicated mecha-suits are the order of the day as soldier, Denaun Knute and her comrade-in-arms, the cyborg Briareos, contend with the military and the Council of Elders whose motives and actions remain shrouded in mystery. CGI renders the characters almost completely life-like and the heart-pounding action sequences also merit serious attention.

Director: Shinji Aramaki
Release date: 17 April 2004
Cast: Ai Kobayashi, Jurota Kosugi, Mami Koyama

Cowboy Bebop: Knocking On Heaven’s Door – Based on the series of the same name, this anime movie is damn cool. Someone put a virus on the planet Mars and the government put a bounty for the one who concocted it. In comes the bounty hunters set to an acid-jazz soundtrack and the rest is history. Great action, dope visuals and interesting storyline. What more could you ask for?

Director: Shinichiro Watanabe
Release date: 11 August 2002 (US release)
Cast: Koichi Yamadera, Megumi Hayashibara, Unsho Ishizuka, Aoi Tada

The Nightmare Before Christmas –The stop-motion animation utilized for this film makes it an unchallenged candidate for the best film of its time. Garnering a cult following and spooking the piss out of kids worldwide, this is a must see. This movie will inspire you to don a costume at Christmas, hide behind the evergreen, and scare the kiddies senseless.
Director: Henry Selick
Release date: 29 October 1993
Cast: Danny Elfman, Chris Sarandon, Catherine O’Hara, Paul Reubens

Ninja Scroll – Ninjas and anime, need we say more? The action in this movie will get your blood pumping and make you feel like picking up your Hattori Hanzo sword and disposing of that kid who gave you attitude at Dairy Queen. Or at least scare the chocolate sundae out of him.

Director: Yoshiaki Kawajiri, Kevin Seymour
Release date: 5 June 1993
Cast: Koichi Yamadera, Emi Shinohara

Paprika – Surreal does not even begin to describe this anime exploration of dreams. Heavy on the symbolism, Paprika is based on the novel by Yasutaka Tsutsui, and features a therapist who is able to travel into her patient’s subconscious. What she discovers is more than enough giant robots, creepy dolls and psychological intrigue to keep the viewer glued to the screen.

Director: Satoshi Kon
Released: 25 November 2006
Cast: Megumi Hayashibara, Tôru Furuya, Kôichi Yamadera, Katsunosuke Hori

Princess Mononoke – One of Japan’s most successful movies, Princess Mononoke takes place in feudal Japan when samurai were abundant and Tom Cruise was nowhere to be seen. The main character, Ashitaka, tries to make peace between his town and the creatures that live in the forest surrounding it. With its ridiculously good animation, exciting battles and imaginary creatures, this movie goes hard.

Director: Hayao Miyazaki
Release date: 12 July 1997
Cast: Yoji Matsuda, Yuriko Ishida, Yuko Tanaka

Toy Story – The movie that changed the game and made computer animation what it is today. You ever wonder why such a high majority of animated features getting churned out by studios are all CGI? Blame Toy Story – the first to do it. Although the animation feels a little bit dated compared to the magic that’s woven nowadays, it’s still a genre-defining classic.

Director: John Lasseter
Release date: 22 November 1995
Cast: Tom Hanks, Tim Allen, Don Rickles

WALL-E – WALL-E looks into human dependency on technology and how we treat our environment and shows us a very plausible future outcome. The first half of the movie is without dialogue but still carries across the story well, a tremendous feat to behold. Even if a story that includes robots falling in love isn’t up your alley, the astounding visuals will keep your eyes from wandering far. With Pixar’s untouchable track record, this movie does not disappoint.

Director: Andrew Stanton
Release date: 27 June 2008
Cast: Ben Butt, Elissa Knight

Waltz with Bashir – An animated documentary from Isreal. That says it all. It draws it’s name from a character dancing with an automatic weapon while under fire. Not too often you’ll find something of this nature and not likely you’ll find one as great as this. Almost like a comic book come to life but covering the harsh realities of the Lebanon war.

Director: Ari Folman
Release date: 5 June 2008
Cast: Ari Folman, Serge Lalou, Gerhard Meixner