Anime Movies With The Best Visuals

Key Takeaways

• Anime movies like “A Whisker Away” and “Flavors of Youth” showcase breathtaking visuals that elevate storytelling.
• Films like “Demon Slayer: Mugen Train” and “Jujutsu Kaisen 0” demonstrate incredible animation techniques that push boundaries.
• Classics like “Spirited Away” and “Akira” set high animation standards and provide unique storytelling experiences.

People can be pretty picky about what movies they watch. This can range from genre or general preference to the length of the movies. However, there is another specific thing based on which people decide to watch a movie — visuals. This is especially true when it comes to anime. Truthfully, anime movies are the ones that experiment the most with their styles and visual depictions. Sometimes they end up with something decent, but at times, they can be one of the best representations of breathtaking visuals.

Anime artists and studios continue to push the envelope for just how beautiful the medium can be. More often than not, people fall in love with certain anime movies because of how incredible the animation is, with studios pouring a ton of money to ensure that every frame of animation is as perfect as it can get. This has resulted in the development and release of many anime movies that constantly push the boundaries of this medium to new heights and wow audiences time and time again.

Updated November 5, 2024 by Andrew McLarney: Breathtaking visuals are not the only thing that makes an anime movie great—storytelling, art style, and good characters are the core of the experience—but it sure does help. Many older anime movies, ones that don’t have the best visual storytelling, are still classics and have their value, but would they be better if they were more crisp and clear? Of course! Luckily, with modern technology, the two things are not mutually exclusive.

31 A Whisker Away

Beautiful, Charming Animation That Accompanies A Lighthearted Romance

There are times when romance movies use a ludicrous premise to keep fans engaged, and that’s precisely the case with A Whisker Away. The show focuses on a high school teenager who tries to get closer to her crush, eventually finding a porcelain mask that turns her into a cat and lets her spend some time with the love of her life, who is unaware of the fact that both the cat and the girl are the same person.

After spending some time together, the heroine tries to establish that both individuals are the same person, leading to moments of pure and utter hilarity. A Whisker Away doesn’t shy away from tackling more dramatic scenes, but the levity and charming animation is what sell this experience to most viewers.

30 Whisper Of The Heart

A Ghibli Masterpiece With The Animation To Match

Studio Ghibli is a master of its craft known for animating some beautiful films, and Whisper of the Heart is no exception here. Featuring a screenplay from the legendary Hayao Miyazaki, it’s easy to see why any fans of this studio’s work will love what Whisper of the Heart has to offer.

The ending may not strike a tone with many fans, but that’s a small price to pay for what is otherwise an unputdownable experience. The stellar animation breathes life into every scene and elevates this movie’s enjoyment factor to new heights.

29 Flavors Of Youth

A Japanese-Chinese Anime With Beautiful Background Art That Makes The Cityscape Come To Life

It’s always nice to watch an anime film that treads new ground, and Flavors of Youth is a great example of the same. This movie is split into three self-contained stories that focus on the necessities of life — food, clothing, and transportation.

The character animation might be slightly rigid at times, but that’s never the focus of Flavors of Youth. Rather, it’s the amazing artwork and visual design that helps each story stand out on its own.

28 Dragon Ball Z: Battle Of Gods

An Incredible Return To Form For The Legendary Shonen Series With The Animation To Match

After a lengthy hiatus, the fact that Dragon Ball was finally coming back with a new chapter in Goku’s story excited many people to no end. It helped that this movie lived up to all the hype, introducing a new form along with fresh new characters who have completely changed the scale of power wielded by fighters for good.

The battle between Goku and Beerus is a major highlight, with the beloved Saiyan putting it all on the line to save Earth from the Destroyer God. It’s an amazing chapter that marks the beginning of Super and lets fans enjoy a wealth of incredible battles that will make long-time fans feel all giddy inside.

27 A Silent Voice

An Emotionally Stimulating Movie With Amazing Visuals

Bullying is a serious issue, and A Silent Voice takes a look at how a man who bullied a deaf girl ends up regretting this heinous act for most of his life. It explores a wonderful friendship and deals with many powerful themes that will elicit a tear out of any viewer.

It helps that the movie looks incredible from a visual standpoint, elevating the quality of this cinematic experience. People interested in watching this movie should keep some tissues handy since they will shed many a tear throughout this emotional tale.

26 Jujutsu Kaisen 0

Incredible Fight Scenes With Great Direction

Jujutsu Kaisen has quickly climbed up the charts to become one of the most popular shonen series around right now. The combination of amazing animation, astounding action sequences, brilliant characters, and solid world-building has led to this show garnering a ton of fans who simply can’t stop talking about how good it is.

After the fandom was left salivating for more content following the end of this season, the release of Jujutsu Kaisen 0 must’ve been something truly special indeed. The movie chronicles the journey of Yuta Okkotsu as he slowly overcomes his trauma while understanding how his powers work. The movie’s animation is simply off the charts, with some of the animation being truly mind-blowing and proving once again why MAPPA is a master of its craft.

25 Millennium Actress

Another Satoshi Kon Masterpiece With The Visuals To Match

Satoshi Kon is a true master of his craft, known for creating some truly mind-bending movies that blur the lines between fantasy and reality time and time again. The surreal and unique nature of his storytelling is one of the biggest hallmarks of this director, with his creativity leading to the creation of amazing films like Perfect Blue and Tokyo Godfathers.

One of the many critically acclaimed films under his belt with amazing animation is Millennium Actress, one of the greatest anime movies of all time that fans should definitely check out. The storytelling is obviously in a class of its own, but what makes Millennium Actress such a special experience is the fact that the animation is simply sublime and will keep fans engaged till the very end.

24 The Tale Of The Princess Kaguya

A Classic Studio Ghibli Movie With Charming, Beautiful Visuals

Another studio known for animating some truly wonderful movies is Studio Ghibli, with its amazing body of work pretty much speaking for itself. The sheer amount of love and passion that goes into their projects is truly unmatched, with the series’ lofty reputation having barely any dents… barring some poor attempts at integrating 3D into modern animation.

The Tale of the Princess Kaguya is one of their many excellent movies that is chock-full of some of the best animation fans will have the pleasure of seeing. The fact that this movie is the most expensive Japanese film of all time to this day proves just how much money went into making this title as perfect as humanly possible.

23 Ghost In The Shell

A Cyberpunk Movie With Incredible Detail And Visual Flair

For a movie that was released almost three decades ago, it’s amazing to see just how brilliant Ghost in the Shell‘s animation really is. The movie is a visual extravaganza that still holds up to this day.

It helps that the movie’s story, setting, and presentation are in a class of their own. The fact that Ghost in the Shell was a major source of inspiration for movies like The Matrix goes to show that this cyberpunk adventure is indeed in a class of its own.

22 Bubble

Incredible Animation Elevates An Average Story

Bubble is a pretty interesting film, using the concept of simple bubbles to tell a riveting story. It chronicles the story of Hibiki and a person made from these otherworldly bubbles, named Uta. The story is pretty tragic, although the presentation could’ve been way better. However, it’s the animation of Bubble that is absolutely incredible and makes it well worth a watch.

21 Paprika

A Mind-Bending Movie With Amazing Visuals

Satoshi Kon is considered by many to be one of the greatest anime movie directors of his time. It’s a shame that pancreatic cancer took this man and his genius away, but his amazing work is still present for everyone to see.

Paprika‘s story is obviously brilliant given the stellar reputation of its direction. However, it’s the animation that’s a pretty major highlight as well, with Paprika‘s visuals being astounding to this day.

20 Redline

Stylized Visuals That Carry A Movie That Doesn’t Need A Great Plot

Madhouse was the production house behind Paprika, and they made an appearance once again with Redline. As expected from this studio, the animation is simply in a class of its own.

The film was worked on for seven years, and this shows in every carefully animated frame of this movie. The racing scenes are an obvious highlight, with each scene feeling exhilarating and incredible to behold.

19 Nausicaa

A Beautiful Journey From A Young Miyazaki

One of Hayao Miyazaki’s most underrated films, Nausicaa showcases the masterful aesthetics we have become used to from his work. With an array of stunning scenes and settings, as well as a captivating and relevant story about environmental ecocide, Nausicaa is a great introduction to Miyazaki’s work but will also surely please long-time fans looking to expand their catalogue.

The visuals of the show are ahead of their time by several decades, with the stunning hand-drawn scenes being rendered with such depth and detail that they still rival many of the cutting-edge animations of today.

18 Grave of the Fireflies

A Heart Wrenching Ghibli Classic

Grave of the Fireflies is a wartime drama following two brothers as they scavenge the ruins of a defeated Imperial Japan in search of food and shelter. The tale depicts their desperate struggle to survive in incredible cinematic detail, with countless incredibly drawn and well-choreographed scenes.

While the films subject matter is both gloomy and tragic, Isao Takahata is able to capture even these situations with a view of aesthetic beauty. For anime fans with a stern heart, Grave of the Fireflies will be an unforgettable watch in many different ways.

17 Dragon Ball Super: Broly

An Incredibly Well-Animated Movie That Gives A New Origin Story To A Beloved Character

The end of Dragon Ball Super left many fans starved for more content featuring their favorite Saiyans. This finally appeared in the form of Dragon Ball Super: Broly, which canonized a character who had played a central role in three great Dragon Ball Z films before.

Broly’s character was revamped for the better, with this character’s powers being a joy to witness firsthand. The fact that Goku and Vegeta had to fuse to tackle this threat showed that Broly was not someone to be messed with, and only time will tell how big of a role this character will play in later sagas.

16 Pokemon: Mewtwo Strikes Back – Evolution

A 3D Pokemon Movie That Looks Gorgeous

Pokemon: Mewtwo Strikes Back – Evolution was released in 2019. The movie has an approval rating of 44% on Rotten Tomatoes and has an average rating on other websites. However, despite that, it is one of the most unique-looking Pokemon content out there.

The movie drops the anime’s traditional 2D style and goes for a full-blown 3D while keeping the art style intact. It is one of the most colorful and detailed Pokemon movies ever made and is certainly worth watching.

15 Demon Slayer: Kimetsu No Yaiba The Movie: Mugen Train

Ufotable Shows Exactly Why Demon Slayer’s Animation Is Praised Through The Roof In This Movie

Released in 2020, Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba the Movie: Mugen Train is an impressive anime film. The Japanese film is many steps up when it comes to traditional animation. It combines various techniques such as bloom, lens flares, and depth-of-field effects that aren’t very much used in anime movies.

The movie tells the tale of Tanjiro, Nezuko, Zenitsu, and Inosuke going on a mission to hunt for a demon that has killed over forty passengers on a train.

14 Violet Evergarden: The Movie

Kyoto Animation Prove Their Authority Once More

Violet Evergarden: The Movie is the continuation of the anime series by the same name, telling the next chapter in Violet’s story. Bearing all the same hallmarks of the original, the movie is a compact, complete package reminding fans why they fell in love with this story in the first place. The setting is downright gorgeous, even better than the anime, as the studio had more budget to work with on this one. The storytelling is immaculate, the characters are charismatic, and most importantly, the movie is relatable on a very human level.

The only caveat to Violet Evergarden: The Movie is that, since it is a direct sequel to the 2018 anime adaptation, watching the anime is practically a requirement for enjoying it properly. There would be very little emotional weight otherwise.

13 Suzume

Downright Breathtaking Animation To Uplift An Already Excellent Story

Suzume is the story of a 17-year-old high school girl thrust into a world of fantasy and wonder. In Suzume, there are doors in abandoned places all across Japan that lead to the world after death, where souls go after they pass away, called the Ever-After. These doors need to be closed and locked, otherwise a great disaster, known as the ‘worm’ will descend, rocking the landscape with earthquakes and destroying everything.

Suzume, alongside Souta Munakata, the male lead, travels across Japan to find these doors and close them, discovering the secrets of what these doors are and their importance to her specifically. Suzume is lighthearted at times and melancholic at others, telling a thrilling tale of secrets and discovery, all wrapped up in a gorgeous package.

12 Weathering With You

Incredible Animation That Elevates The Quality Of This Heartwarming Movie

Weathering with You was released quite recently in 2019. With a 7.5 on IMDb and 91 percent on Rotten Tomatoes, it is clear that the film has received majorly positive reviews. One part of this can be given to its style of animation and visuals.

This film is breathtaking by every means, especially when it comes to the over-the-top sequences such as falling from the sky. This Japanese anime film actually had a budget of ¥1.2 billion.