Poll: The Best of Dreamworks Animation
Filed under: Animation, Dreamworks, Polls

The time when people thought that Dreamworks Animation might hold an artistic candle to Pixar is probably past. The hollow (if sometimes amusing) spectacle of this weekend's Monsters vs. Aliens will probably put that notion to rest for a while longer. Where Pixar always emphasized story, emotion and artistry, Dreamworks went a more straightforwardly commercial route, confusing movie stars with voice actors and generally going for broad parody instead of anything more complicated and difficult.
Which is not to say some of their movies haven't been clever. I thought the first Madagascar was funny and inventive, and all the Shreks had varying amounts of charm. I'm curious what the consensus Dreamworks Animation favorite is, so I created this poll. I've excluded their early traditional-animation flicks for space, and the Aardman co-production Flushed Away, 'cause I don't really think that one counts. Weigh in below!
I've cast the first vote. My pick? Absolutely no contest: it's Antz, Dreamworks' first foray into computer animation and by far their best. All of their other films are characterized by snark, sarcasm, and a total lack of dramatic ambition; they're sporadically funny larks. Antz is a movie -- funny, but also sad, exciting, and memorable. And that opening pan through the ant colony, set to Harry Gregson-Williams and John Powell's rousing score, is as spectacular as anything in Monsters vs. Aliens, eleven years earlier. I think it holds up against almost any Pixar release, except maybe Monsters, Inc.










Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
3-27-2009 @ 12:48PM
Brouhaha said...
I’m begging you to please stop it with the Pixar praise because if you ask kids (who are the main target audience for animated movies) what they think of movies like Ratatouille and Wall-E you’ll find out they think those movies are boring to them. In my house the early Pixar film are gold up to and including “The Incredibles” but after that one they’ve been going down hill and the next one about an old man looks to be on par with the last two entries.
I suggest when you go see an animated movie that you take a child with you and take their opinion into consideration when you review or rate movies.
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3-27-2009 @ 12:52PM
Eugene Novikov said...
Eh, my sister loved Ratatouille at 8, and Wall-E at 9. I think that a) it depends on the kids, and b) the Pixar films just aim older. They're more challenging and require more of an attention span. This is to their credit.
3-27-2009 @ 1:28PM
J.R. said...
My two-year-old LOVES Wall-e, but that's beside the point.
Animated movies are not all targeted towards children. Suggesting that someone take a child with them when reviewing an animated movie is incredibly short sighted.
A review of an animated movie is just like a review of any other movie-- an opinion of what the reviewer thought. It's up to parents to decide if the movie will work for their kid-- it's not the reviewer's job to make such a blanket statement.
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3-27-2009 @ 1:50PM
vegimorph said...
I like both Pixar and DreamWorks animation pretty equally although DreamWorks a little bit less but still. I agree with the part about the commercialism in some of DreamWorks movies like in Madagascar but that was all in fun. The only Dreamworks movie I've seen so far where the commercialsim was overdone a little bit was Shark Tale and Shrek 3 maybe. That being said, a lot of DreamWorks animation movies have focused more on story and heart than anything else. There's Shrek of course which balanced the heart and commercialism equally. A lot of the earlier ones provided heart too like Prince of Egypt and Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron. Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas, an underrated movie in my opinion, did have its big name stars like Brad Pitt and Catherine Zeta Jones but it was mostly well made except for the sketchy story a little bit but it still deserves credit. Then there's Kung Fu Panda which goes right back with Shrek as equally balancing the heart of the story and characters with the commercialism. Both Pixar and DreamWorks provides fun and great movies, and even though I picked Pixar for its deeper material if i ever go into animation, DreamWorks is always good as a back up and I appreciate both highly
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3-27-2009 @ 2:32PM
Jeff said...
Overall, the Dreamworks pics have far out-grossed the Pixar movies in box-office. Shrek 2 remains the most successful animated film of all time, and both Dreamworks animated films were in the top ten moneymakers of last year.
That goes to show that while they may not have been equal with critics, DW films have been more popular.
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3-28-2009 @ 12:35PM
Sy said...
Really?
Top 8 Pixar Movies - $1.97 billion
Top 8 Dreamworks Animations - $1.94 billion
So far, Pixar only made 8 movies.
3-27-2009 @ 2:24PM
Matt said...
"I’m begging you to please stop it with the Pixar praise because if you ask kids (who are the main target audience for animated movies)"
Stop right there, you've already made a fool of yourself. Pixar makes movies for everyone, and their last two films most of all have been made with adult sensibilities. Do you really think Spirited Away and Princess Mononoke are for kids? It's just taken longer for adult animated films to be made by state-side studios, that doesn't mean it doesn't happen. And what do kids think of WALL-E? Just go look up all the news and blogs about WALL-E themed birthdays, cakes, etc. It's not only a misconception, but a LIE to say that children don't like WALL-E as well, adults just happen to like it more because they understand it more. Perhaps that is your problem...you didn't understand. Maybe DreamWorks' kid-fests are more your speed? I'm sure being a 5 year old makes you feel that way.
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3-27-2009 @ 3:32PM
Jordan said...
Pretty excited to see Monsters Vs. Aliens. Can't wait to see the 3-D technology. In honor of this film I wrote this up: Top 15 Animated Films of The Last 10 Years: http://thefilmstage.com/2009/03/26/top-15-animated-films-of-the-last-10-years/
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3-27-2009 @ 5:30PM
aaron00 said...
u underestimate kung fu panda. that was really a well made movie. i actually didn't care for antz that much as evident by the fact that i can barely remember it now.
oh and you know you like the first shrek. haha
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3-31-2009 @ 2:14PM
Matt said...
Flushed Away should be on the list (directors from aardman - entire production done at DW). Cars/Wall-E - total failures. Ratatouille - well made but not up to the level of pre-cars Pixar. Up looks like a half-baked attempt at making a Miyazaki-esque movie without creating an incredibly elaborate and compelling universe. Toy, Monsters, Nemo, Incredibles - amazing. Kung Fu Panda - absolutely on par with those movies.
Ants?? U gotta be kidding me??
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3-27-2009 @ 10:19PM
Tor said...
As far as I'm concerned, Dreamworks' best animated feature, no contest, is "The Road to El Dorado".
Lush (2-D) animation, fine voice work, a sharp and funny Ted Elliot/Terry Rossio script and the excellent score by Hans Zimmer and John Powell.
If you haven't yet seen it, you're depriving yourself of a treat.
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