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Best Animation Movies On A Long Flight From The 2020S That Flew Under The Radar

These animation films were selected by the Moviepiq editorial team for a long flight. Popularity and critic scores don't factor in here. Emotional fit does.

The best animation movies on a long flight from the 2020s that flew under the radar. Includes Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio, KPop Demon Hunters, Transformer...

A long flight is one of the few times you have no choice but to sit still and actually watch a film - no phone calls, no errands, nothing to do but commit. Use it wisely.

The 2020s have already produced films that will be studied for decades - lean, precise, unafraid to take audiences seriously.

Animation isn't a genre - it's a medium. And in the right hands, it reaches emotional places live-action simply cannot.

Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio movie poster
1
2022 · ★★★★☆ 8.0/10

During the rise of fascism in Mussolini's Italy, a wooden boy brought magically to life struggles to live up to his father's expectations.

KPop Demon Hunters movie poster
2
2025 · ★★★★☆ 8.0/10

When K-pop superstars Rumi, Mira and Zoey aren't selling out stadiums, they're using their secret powers to protect their fans from supernatural threats.

Transformers One movie poster
3
2024 · ★★★★☆ 8.0/10

The untold origin story of Optimus Prime and Megatron, better known as sworn enemies, but once were friends bonded like brothers who changed the fate of Cybertron forever.

Robot Dreams movie poster
4
2023 · ★★★★☆ 8.0/10

A lonely dog's friendship with his robot companion takes a sad turn when an unexpected malfunction forces him to abandon Robot at the beach. Will Dog ever meet Robot again?

Miraculous World: Shanghai - The Legend of Ladydragon movie poster
5
2021 · ★★★½☆ 7.9/10

On school break, Marinette heads to Shanghai to meet Adrien. But after arriving, Marinette loses all her stuff, including the Miraculous that allows her to turn into Ladybug!

What makes these films remarkable is their emotional honesty. They're animated, but they don't soften anything.

Suzume movie poster
6
2022 · ★★★½☆ 7.9/10

Suzume, 17, lost her mother as a little girl. On her way to school, she meets a mysterious young man. But her curiosity unleashes a calamity that endangers the entire population of Japan, and so Suzume embarks on a journey to set things right.

Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero movie poster
7
2022 · ★★★½☆ 7.9/10

The Red Ribbon Army, an evil organization that was once destroyed by Goku in the past, has been reformed by a group of people who have created new and mightier Androids, Gamma 1 and Gamma 2, and seek vengeance against Goku and his family.

A Whisker Away movie poster
8
2020 · ★★★½☆ 7.9/10

A peculiar girl transforms into a cat to catch her crush's attention. But before she realizes it, the line between human and animal starts to blur.

Ron's Gone Wrong movie poster
9
2021 · ★★★½☆ 7.9/10

In a world where walking, talking, digitally connected bots have become children's best friends, an 11-year-old finds that his robot buddy doesn't quite work the same as the others do.

Nimona movie poster
10
2023 · ★★★½☆ 7.8/10

A knight framed for a tragic crime teams with a scrappy, shape-shifting teen to prove his innocence.

Overlooked films are overlooked for the wrong reasons. Not because they failed - because they didn't fit. These didn't fit. They're excellent.

The best animated films stay with you the way a dream does. Vivid, emotional, and hard to fully explain.

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