7 European animated films that everyone should watch

"Long Way North" / "Tout en haut du monde" 

Adventure, drama | 4.36 out of 5 on MyShows | Denmark, France | 2015

1882, St. Petersburg. Young aristocrat Sasha worries about the fate of her adventurous grandfather. A renowned explorer, he designed a magnificent Arctic icebreaker but never returned from his last expedition to the North Pole. Sasha decides to go to the Great North herself and repeat the path of her grandfather in search of his famous ship.

The debut work of French animation director Rémi Chayé won several awards and impressed critics with its charm and minimalistic and thoughtful style. Chayé's next animated film, "Calamity, a Childhood of Martha Jane Cannary", is similarly done, It's a western about a girl who learns to be free.

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"Persepolis"

Drama | 4.15 out of 5 on MyShows | France | 2007

Screen adaptation of Marjane Satrapi's autobiographical comic book about her life in Iran during the Islamic Revolution. Late 1970s. Little Marji and her family are excited to see the fulfillment of a long-held dream: the fall of the Shah's regime in Iran. But after the revolution, Islamic fundamentalists come to power, and her parents send the determined and daring Marji to study in Vienna. Here the girl encounters a culture completely unfamiliar to her and tries to figure out where her place in the world is.

"Persepolis" was directed by Marjane Satrapi', author of the original graphic novel, and French comic book writer Vincent Paronnaud. The witty and profound picture won the love of critics, earned the Jury Prize at the 60th Cannes Film Festival, the Cesar Award and an Oscar nomination.

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"Ruben Brandt: A Gyűjtő" / "Ruben Brandt, Collector"  

Action, Thriller, Crime | 4 out of 5 on MyShows | Hungary | 2008

Psychotherapist Ruben Brandt is plagued by violent nightmares inspired by legendary works of art. Reuben is convinced that the only way to make the nightmares disappear is to steal the works. This is exactly what his four patients — experienced thieves — dare to do. They rob the world's most famous museums to help Brandt, and soon he becomes the most wanted criminal known as The Collector. Who can catch him and his gang?

A spicy adult crime detective filled with countless references to the great works of art of the 20th century. Hungarian director Milorad Krstic and his team had to negotiate and pay a lot of money to include many of them in the cartoon — the right to use each work was agreed with the owner. The result is a thrilling avant-garde thriller, every frame of which is a love letter to art.

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"The Red Turtle" / "La tortue rouge" 

Drama, Fantasy | 4.06 out of 5 on MyShows | France, Belgium, Japan | 2016

Michaël Dudok de Wit's animated film is about a shipwrecked man who wakes up on a deserted island. The island seems like paradise: the man finds fresh fruit and water, a swaying bamboo grove and a sandy beach fringed with palm trees, but he still wants to leave it. However, a big red turtle does everything in his power to prevent the man from doing so.

"The Red Turtle" is not only a European project, as the Japanese studio Ghibli participated in the production of the cartoon. According to one of the producers of the picture, Hayao Miyazaki personally asked him to finance the Dutchman Michaël Dudok de Wit — so much so that he was impressed by the short film "Father and Daughter", for which de Wit won an Oscar.

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"Wrinkles" / "Arrugas"

Drama, comedy | 4.17 out of 5 on MyShows | Spain | 2011

"Wrinkles" is about the friendship between Emilio and Miguel, two elderly gentlemen living in a nursing home. Emilio, a recent arrival, is diagnosed with early stage Alzheimer's disease and must be moved to the top floor of the home, where hopeless patients are sent. But Miguel won't let that happen.

A touching, funny and utterly disarming animated film based on Paco Roca's comic book of the same name. "Wrinkles" won two Goya Awards (that's the Spanish equivalent of the Oscars), including one for best feature-length animated film.

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"The Trio of Belleville" / "Les Triplettes de Belleville"

Comedy, drama | 4.08 out of 5 on MyShows | France, Belgium | 2003

Madame Souza raises her grandson Champion, a lonely and sad boy. In an effort to cheer him up, his grandmother gives him a tricycle. Champion really becomes more cheerful, and then Madame Souza undertakes to train him and prepare him for participation in the race Tour de France. But the cyclist's skill attracts the attention of the French mafia, and Champion is kidnapped. Grandma and her faithful dog Bruno go to Belleville in search of her grandson.

Sylvain Chaumet's full-length animated feature received nominations for an Oscar, a Cesar and a BAFTA award. Seven years later, in 2003, Chaumet would release another marvelous animated film, "The Illusionist", shot in a similar style. We recommend watching both of them.

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"Song of the Sea"

Fantasy, Drama | 4.5 out of 5 on MyShows | Ireland, Denmark | 2014

Ben and his younger sister Saoirse live with their father Conor on a small island with a lighthouse. Their mom disappeared shortly after Saoirse was born, and Conor has sunk into homesickness. So little Ben has to keep an eye on his annoying sister, who in her six years still can't speak. However, Saoirse has other abilities — and it's up to the boys to find out about them when they both run away from home.

Tomm Moore's fantasy animated film, which received an Oscar nomination. "Song of the Sea" is the second installment of Moore's Irish folk trilogy. It also includes "The Secret of Kells" (2009) and "Wolfwalkers" (2020), equally beautiful and impressive works.

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