Has there ever been a franchise that has consistently produced A+ film after A+ film after A + film like the Toy Story franchise? Toy Story 1 & 2 both have a 100% score on Rotten Tomatoes and Toy Story 3 has a 98%. There are alot of ways to measure a film franchise and Rotten Tomatoes isn’t the best but it is the fastest to look at and the one we all know of the most. Those scores don’t lie and the love of them doesn’t die either. In honor of Toy Story 4 coming out we have assembled the best movies with inanimate objects coming to life in them below.
After little Johnny get’s a stuffed teddy bear for Christmas, he make’s a wish for it to be his REAL best friend. Overnight his dream comes true and fast forward 30 years later, and Johnny (Mark Wahlberg) has grown up with Ted (Seth McFarlane). But after Johnny’s girlfriend (Mila Kunis) worries
that Ted keeps dragging their relationship down, Johnny has to help Ted adapt to a normal life and move into his own place. The thing that make’s this movie work for me is that the chemistry between a grown man and his childhood teddy bear is believable. I think (McFarlane, and Wahlberg) are great together in this raunchy comedy. The movie moves fast for what it is, and almost every joke lands. This is definitely a great comedy, if you’re looking for something original. (Alex Henderson)
When inanimate objects come alive, we can assume that there are going to be some hijinks that ensue. With Night at the Museum, hijinks and good hearted fun definitely shine through. The objects within the museum not only come alive but are true to who they believe they were and see no issue with continuing in that manner. The characters around the museum not only help our main character grow as a person, but also gives us a history lesson in the process. The movie is fun and a constant source of adventure and action with all of it fits neatly together so there is no lag in the storyline, everything is there to help move the story along. There is no part too little or too big that our inanimate characters don’t add some hilarity or lesson to the story. (Megan Brown)
Monster House is PG, animated, and SCARY. That combination of words seems so unlikely to ever be put together in a sentence but I promise you that it’s true. When it came out, I was terrified by Monster House – the story of a house that is alive, breathing, and terrorizing the neighborhood kids. Here we are, over a decade later, and the movie still works. It is the perfect combination of funny and creepy, which allows it to be enjoyed by people of all ages. A lot of “scary” movies for kids end up being full of cheap scares with twists that can be predicted before the opening credits have even ended. Monster House, on the other hand, treats its target audience with respect. It features genuinely frightening imagery, laugh out loud moments, and has a story that is mature for a movie of its kind. It takes a common premise – “the scary house at the end of the street” – and packages it for general audiences. Monster House is the perfect family movie to watch on a crisp Autumn night. And if you think a house in your neighborhood is alive, for the love of god, stay off of its lawn! (Logan Van Winkle)
“Nick Nitro’s battery has run out, but his memory lives on.” If you want to talk about a movie that is amazing if you can watch it through the eyes of a child, look no further than Small Soldiers. We all really wished our toys would come to life, especially our army guys, and it is so much better when Tommy Lee Jones is the voice of your army man. Taking this simple concept
and making it so that you actually don’t want your toys to come alive anymore because they might kill you in your sleep somehow still works. I never thought I could be scared and turned on at the same time by Barbie’s but whatever, puberty is a weird time. It is horrifying for little kids, fun as heck for teenagers, and a great trip down nostalgia lane if you grew up with it. I’m not sure how it would hold up to a totally new viewer, especially if you weren’t born in the 90s, but you should still give it a shot especially if you appreciate 90s cheese. (Aaron Schweitzer)
If you ever felt like you wanted a good cry and a night of emotional devastation, well I have the film for you! Grief is such a powerful emotion and the loss of a loved one is a tough burden to bear. When a child loses their parent, it can be a hard situation to process. A Monster Calls is about exactly that. How will a young man process the eventual death of his mother? What are the buried feelings that he bears? Now you are probably wondering what this has to do with inanimate objects coming to life, right? Well this young boy just happens to have a tree that does just that (comes to life) and tells him tales to process that grief that he is experiencing. And J.A. Bayona is able to make this all come off as serious and satisfying despite the potential for a silly outcome. Bayona is also able to create such a beautiful film that hits very hard emotionally. The real standouts are the tales which are strikingly animated for top-notch effect. I forgot to mention that none other than Liam Neeson voices this tree! It will break you but the magical realism with the use of a walking, talking tree is done to perfection. Make sure to give it a watch! (Shane Conto)
The talented folks at Studio Ghibli took a relatively unknown book and created a visual masterpiece for the ages. Hayao Miyazaki directs this animated film magnificently and treats Western Audiences to marvelous world building, dynamic characters, creative design work and terrific emotional beats. The story revolves around the personal journey’s of the cursed Sofi and the egotistical wizard Howl and how they help each other realize one another’s full potential. Sofi prior to meeting Howl is mousy, bland in appearance and overall is very unsure of herself. Howl on the other hand comes off as confident, majestic and handsome. When Sofi re-enters Howl’s life after their initial chance encounter, he no longer recognizes her due to the aging curse placed upon her. As she enters his home and life alike, she notices that it is a complete mess and in need of some desperate cleaning. Behind his facade of confidence and courage, he is really just a shallow, immature and coward of a man. This amazing animated feature has a sublime inanimate object that not only comes to life, but breathes life into the intriguing cast of characters that inhabit it. (Joseph Vargas)
The Harry Potter series as a whole has so many enchanted objects that there could really be a top 10 all it’s own. That said I want to focus on one SET of objects from Sorcerer’s Stone because I would love it so much for my self. I’m talking about the Wizard Chess set. How exhilarating would it be to be able to command your little army to do battle, and move on their own. The icing on the cake is that they have a personality of their own and will try to tell the player what to do if they aren’t confident in the player’s abilities. This gives these objects more than mere pawns and I want some for myself (Evan Lucken)
Walt Disney’s Pinocchio is one of the most magical movies ever made, not because it is a cartoon about a wooden puppet which comes to life, but because it is the embodiment of the belief that dreams can come true. Coming off the back of the release of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs two years earlier, Disney had pioneered an entirely new format for feature filmmaking; no longer was animation the 2-minute kids short you played before the feature presentation at the cinema—now it was the feature presentation. Pinocchio, released 2 years later, affirmed Disney’s dominance of the genre, and continued to innovate new technology in the process. Before Pinocchio, never had a cartoon—never had a film—filled the borders of the screen with such detail, teeming to the point that the audience could assume life was always thriving just outside of frame. Yet outside of this innovation, was a heartwarming, timeless parable about coming of age and fulfilling your dreams, and, especially, about being yourself. The morals of Pinocchio still pervade popular culture to this day, with the imagery of Pinocchio’s nose growing as he tells lies and boys on pleasure island transforming into “jackasses” ingrained into the minds of children and adults alike. The signature, oft-quoted song of Pinocchio, “When You Wish Upon A Star,” is so synonymous with not only the Disney brand but with cinema itself, there is little need for explanation. Pinocchio represents the best animation Disney has ever produced; an ageless, relatable moral, with instantly recognizable characters, memorable songs, spectacular animation, humor for all ages, and an invitation to dream big. (Devan Meyer)
Before IT, the massive Stephen King book turned movie turned major hit was The Shining. Fun fact, Stephen King was at an actual haunted hotel and claims to have had a ghostly encounter and that inspired the novel. The visuals and effects are so reminiscent of Alfred Hitchcock’s Vertigo and the lines from the movie have become iconic. Here is hoping the sequel can deliver the same scare factor. (Blake Hodges)
It doesn’t get mentioned enough, but the Toy Story trilogy should be considered one of—if not—the greatest of all time. The rotten tomatoes score for all 3 films range from 100%, 100%, and a very measly 98%. Toy Story 3 even gained a Best Picture nomination at the Academy Awards! None of this would have been possible if it weren’t for the excellence that is the original film. A tale of two completely different people, Woody and Buzz, coming together for their common love of one boy, Andy. It’s on that basis of that love that they grow together and form an unbreakable bond of friendship that the audience has grown to love over the many years of its existence. Pixar is the master of making films for adults with many layers and meanings that are also children friendly. (Ben Davis)
Honorable Mentions
Bedknobs and Broomsticks
Treguna Mekiodes Trecorum Satis Dee…say it aloud and see what happens! If you don’t have a room full of inanimate objects dancing around, something probably went wrong. These are the five fateful words that spark the march of inanimate war accessories that fuel the fun and thrilling climax of this Disney musical classic. Angela Lansbury and David Tomlinson led their impressive talents to Disney’s Bedknobs and Broomsticks. A film filled with catchy songs including “Substitutiary Locomtion” and colorful locales, this one is a childhood favorite of mine. The classic mix of animation and live action help spark this tale to life. An island of humanoid animals, a street musical number filled with many of diverse backgrounds, and a full fledge march of inanimate military garb fighting Nazis make this one to remember. And let’s be real here, Angela Lansbury is a treasure and her singing elevated every number she is in. But you must remember the immortal of Emelius Browne…this film will do it all “with a flair”! (Shane Conto)
Sausage Party
What do you get when the writing stylings of Seth Rogan, Evan Goldberg, and Jonah Hill are mixed with a shopping list? You get Sausage Party. What works partly as an adult Toy Story with food, the movie delights in the absurd while also finding its unique way to dance into the profound and explore ideas of race, rivaling religion beliefs, and existence and purpose. Yes, with a hotdog main character. It’s really something that needs to be experienced as explaining just doesn’t do it justice. Sausage Party will constantly keep you surprised and laughing. (Evan Lucken)
Luxo Jr
The lighting and animation are impressive, especially for the time but the magic of this 2 minute short captures the life of a lamp and his son perfectly. Luxo the big lamp just minding his own business until a ball rolls into him and Luxo Jr hoping into view and pushing and bouncing the ball around until he goes overboard and pops it only to be sad and find a larger ball. The playfulness and character put into these two lamps are wonderfully presented and you can see the light humored frustration as Luxo shakes his head, peace no more. Luxo Jr, Pixar’s first short really shows what a bright future Pixar had to look forward to. (Evan Lucken)
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
With a film franchise full of magic, who wouldn’t expect a tree to be the object to move. It’s a plant. Plants aren’t supposed to move, but if you end up in the branches of a Whomping Willow, it will attack you regardless of who you are. Its limbs function like arms and any damage to them must be treated in the same way. We find out first hand what kind of damage it does when Harry and Ron ended up stuck in the branches when Ron’s family car crashes into it. So it’s probably wise to stay far away from the Whomping Willow Tree. (Chantal Ashford)
Also See:
Aladdin, Cars, The Brave Little Toaster, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, Coraline, Doctor Strange, Fantasia, Herbie The Love Bug, The Indian in the Cupboard, Jumanji, Labyrinth, Zathura