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Top 12 Animated Films to be Excited For in 2022

The following 12 Animated Films are organised according to release date from specific to general that I’m excited to see.

By Ed Sum
(The Vintage Tempest)

Every year, I’m more excited about what new animated films are coming. This medium offers more storytelling potential than live-action and the budget to realise it shouldn’t be as expensive as trying to create it in live-action. Not every work has its plot known, and for the sake of not spoiling, I won’t go into a lot of detail unless absolutely necessary.

The following 12 Animated Films are organised according to release date from specific to general.

Belle: The Dragon and the Freckled Princess
January 14

This anime about a shy high school girl who finds freedom in virtual reality will certainly speak about today’s obsession with this technology. But as for whether she’s ready depends if she can break free from that digital world and be herself.

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Perfection in Ron’s Gone Wrong Message!

I appreciate the subtle criticism that Ron’s Gone Wrong makes about social media and technology.

Spoiler Alert

It’s hard not to draw comparisons to Big Hero 6 in Ron’s Gone Wrong. The title character, a B-Bot, is a pill-shaped version of Baymax. This replacement is sleek and stylish and sometimes behaves like a Minion. In this film, no bot is alike because each robot is customized by its owner.

In a world where kids are very glued to social media, owning one of these mechanical wonders to stay ahead is a must. Nearly every child has one, except for Barney (Jack Dylan Grazer). His family can barely make ends meet and he’s a social outcast. This boy had the neighbourhood gang to hang out with before going to the local school became part of the complex equation. As they entered those formative tween years, they drifted apart because everyone has found a clique to belong to. Only his eccentric grandmother notices, and she tries her best to help.

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Apple TV Plus is All A “Blush”

The super deformed style character design in Jim Mateo’s Blush is very adorable, and it us a sense that there’s a life for the two kids we meet in this short film.

Blush (Short 2021) - IMDb Spoiler Alert
Available on Apple TV Plus

Joe Mateo’s computer animated short film, Blush, is definitely his most personal to date. After working on high-profile movies like Meet the Robinsons and Big Hero 6 in varying capacities, to see him direct is a win. In the former, he wrote the story about a boy getting a glimpse of the future, but is facing abandonment issues (he was left at an orphanage), and the latter, about a teen who loses his big brother and fears he has no one close to be with ever again.

The theme of loss is common for this storyteller, and he ups it another notch by exploring what it’s like to lose hope when a spaceship crashes on a desolate dry planet, and there’s no way to call for help. He’s somewhere in the boon dogs of space, and the small planetoid he lands on is bereft of life.

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All Work and No Play in Monster Hunter: Legends of the Guild

No knowledge of the Monster Hunter franchise is required as this story is a classic hero’s journey in disguise.

Image gallery for Monster Hunter: Legends of The Guild - FilmAffinity Available to view on Netflix

Not everyone can be a Monster Hunter, and if Legends of the Guildis any indication, this animated take makes for a better introduction than the dry live-action one from last year. Not everyone has to know the video game world, and this film does a better job at introducing the basics. Ever since its release in 2004, this franchise created by Capcom has its loyal cult following.

By going full CGI, this film has a lot more to like. The world is a lot more alive when compared to the live-action and the bringing together of characters from the games will certainly be a draw for those who know the IP in and out.

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On Vacation with The Addams Family 2

There’s not too much to take from the trailer which recently released. We can expect a lot of crazy funky sit-com type situations to which previous live-action iterations to which this series is based on. I

Release Date:
October 1, 2021

The Addams Family are on vacation! While the release date for the sequel is unusual–it’s playing this Autumn–the idea is straight in line with their ideology to never do things when it should happen but at the worse time.

This film directed by Greg Tiernan and Conrad Vernon looks to add to the kooky. We see them visiting Niagara Falls, The Grand Canyon and Miami–along with many other famous American locales.

There’s not too much to take from the trailer which recently released. We can expect a lot of crazy funky sit-com type situations may be comparable to the live-action iterations this series is based on. It doesn’t look like it’s going to follow up on how the family and neighbourhood have come together after the events from the last film.

Instead of the satire on being true to thyself and the look at modern society, this latest take is updated for the Millennial generation. We can certainly expect the family bond to tighten up (or should that be falling apart?) going on by this film’s end.

Boss Baby. From Back in Business to Family Business, the Clues are There…

Knowing the Netflix series isn’t required and I thought the next movie of the Boss Baby franchise on a rival streaming network unusual.

Playing on Peacock and theatres near you.

Spoiler Alert

The only shame with The Boss Baby franchise is the voice of Tim Templeton, one of the main characters, was recast. I would’ve preferred Pierce Gagnon from the Netflix continuation than James Marsden to take over. Tobey Maguire isn’t back because he doesn’t have the skills to sing. Usually someone else can fill in those bits but the producers opted to get a new performer. This information was reported on Yahoo News.

Unless Timmy’s voice cracked twice, he’s not likely to experience a second or third childhood since he never fully grew up. The hilarity isn’t tough to maintain. As a director, Tom McGrath‘s crazy sense of humour is exemplified when he was the brains behind Penguins of Madagascar. Ever since that series was retired, he’s been bringing his style to other properties. He directed Back in Business and shared creating the story with Michael McCullers. The short bursts of kiddie humour are off the rails—especially during the climax—and yes I miss the birds.

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