Animation has consistently proven itself to be one of the most acclaimed and versatile methods of storytelling in film, with a wide array of exceptionally brilliant films having been created through the lens of different animation styles. However, for every exceptionally well-crafted work of art that animation has gifted audiences, there are also just as many films that fail to meet the mark and end up as disappointingly below average in their scope and execution.
However, even beyond films that aren’t particularly well-made, there have managed to be a select few animated films that areinfamous for their lack of quality, becoming arguably unwatchable in the process. Whether it be due to unappealing animation, lazy and formulaic writing, or everything in between, these stains on cinematic animation prove to only make the truly great films shine that much more. These films are even lacking when it comes to so-bad-they’re-good qualities, with next to no reason to actually watch them outside morbid curiosity.
10’Mars Needs Moms' (2011)
Directed by Simon Wells
Animation always finds itself as a testing ground for the latest technologies and revolutions, with one of the most notable of the early 21st century being the use of fully mocap animated films likeThe Polar ExpressandMonster House. While these uncanny and strange-looking films would find dedicated audiences after their initial mixed reception, the same cannot be said forMars Needs Moms, which was instantly regarded as a cinematic disaster.
Often considered one of theworst Disney moviesof all time,Mars Needs Moms’s generic sci-fi plot and underwhelming characters were made endlessly unappealing by an array of disgusting alien designs and equally unsavory human designs.The film blends cartoony and realistic visual styles to create a deeply unsettling final product, managing to appeal to absolutely nobody in the process. The film’s notorious box-office disaster would end up shutting down the animation studio that created it andforever changed Disney’s approach to filmmaking.
Mars Needs Moms
9’The Ice Age Adventures of Buck Wild' (2022)
Directed by John C. Donkin
While far from the most beloved animated franchise out there, theIce Ageseries found unexpected box-office success as the premiere franchise of Blue Sky Studios before they were sadly shut down following Disney’s buyout of 20th Century Fox. However, the end of Blue Sky wouldn’t result in the end ofIce Age, as Disney would sap all the goodwill out of the franchise that they could withThe Ice Age Adventure of Buck Wild. The film acts as a cheap, straight-to-streaming spinoff film thatremoves all the positive qualities of previous entries and has worse animation quality than the 2001 original.
Even the endless charm and likability ofSimon Peggreprising the fan-favorite character of Buck isn’t enough to save this film from its myriad of issues and overall lack of care. It’s blatant from the very beginning that the film’s only purpose is to make use of a recognizable IP and to fill out the catalog of Disney+, as it has nothing of value as an actual filmmaking experience. Although there is hope that the franchise can retain some of its former charm withthe upcoming Ice Age 6, just about anything that they do will end up being better thanThe Ice Age Adventures of Buck Wild.
The Ice Age Adventures of Buck Wild
8’The Emoji Movie' (2017)
Directed by Tony Leondis
When it comes to blatantly corporate animated films that reek of out-of-touch producers in every way, no film quite effectively exemplifies the concept quite likeThe Emoji Movie. It was brazenly obvious to the vast majority of audiences thatThe Emoji Moviewas a bad idea, feeling like a shallow attempt to cater to a nonexistent audience of young people who are head-over-heels about emojis. When the film managed to be released, it lived up to all the fears and reputation that its title could give, being filled with generic characters, unfunny jokes, and egregious product placement.
The Emoji Movieis arguablyabout as soulless as a studio animated film can get, feeling less like a genuine work of art crafted by filmmakers but instead, a 90-minute-long commercial fine-tuned by a board of executives for blanket mass appeal. The film has no substance behind its bright colors and celebrity cast, being predictable from the first scene until the very end.The Emoji Moviequickly became the face of such blatantly moronic decisions by Hollywood executives and is still in contention for being one of theworst animated moviesout there.
The Emoji Movie
7’Norm of the North' (2016)
Directed by Trevor Wall
Being one of the highest-grossing animated franchises of all time and a worldwide phenomenon that has nominated the animated world for 15 years now,Despicable Me’s influence on the animation industry has been far from particularly positive, with one of the worst examples beingNorm of the North. While not immediately apparent at first glance, a closer look shows that Norm of the North perpetuates a lot of the worst aspects of theDespicable Mefranchise while removing all of the charm and likability in the process.
The seemingly eco-friendly story of a polar bear traveling to New York City to spread awareness of the melting of his home manages to be more convoluted and barren than one could ever imagine. Any semblance of plot or structure is largely thrown out the window in favor of failed attempts at virality, between awkward signature dances and a trio of quirky lemmings that are basically just unfunny minions with fur. Immediately being forgotten as soon as it was released,Norm of the Northwas destined for a life of rotting away in a bargain bin, never to be thought of again.
Norm of the North
6’Marmaduke' (2022)
Directed by Mark A.Z. Dippé
Marmadukehas been no stranger to bad film adaptations in the past, most notably receiving a painfully unfunny live-action adaptation withOwen Wilsonin 2010. However, this 2022 animated rendition of the character easily stands out as the worst thing the classic comic strip character has ever been a part of.What remaining charm and likability that the character still had is completely removedin favor of constant toilet humor and deeply uncomfortable character designs.
Even the likes of widely notable stars likePete DavidsonandJ.K. Simmonsaren’t enough to save what is easily one of theworst animated movies of the 2020sso far. After the 20th failed slapstick joke that ends in either a poop or fart joke, the film reaches a point of painful dread where its relatively short 87-minute runtime feels as though it’s going on for hours upon hours. One can only hope that this marks the end of adaptations for this long-since tired and forgotten relic of the past.
Marmaduke (2022)
5’Megamind vs. the Doom Syndicate' (2024)
Directed by Eric Fogel
Much worse than simply being a poorly made film is being a film that actively disappoints and spits in the face of something great, a facet that rocketedMegamind vs. the Doom Syndicateinto being one of the most hated sequels in recent memory. Even more than just a low-budget sequel with worse animation than its 15-year-old predecessor, the film seems to go out of its way to diminish the plot of the original and make changes only meant to annoy fans of the original film.
The film fundamentally misunderstands and mischaracterizes the character of Megamind throughout the film, actively going against the lessons he learned in the first film and making him a bumbling idiot. It only exists to draw in fans to watch the equally low-budget animated series and entice people to check out the middling Peacock streaming service,suckering in fans with promises of a grand return only to give a sharp slap to the face.
Megamind vs. The Doom Syndicate
4’The Legend of the Titanic' (1999)
Directed by Orlando Corradi and Kum Jun Ok
There are surprisingly many moremovies about the Titanic disasterthanJames Cameron’s legendary romantic drama, many of which were created in an attempt to cash in on the success of Cameron’s film. This, of course, would end up resulting in an animated take on the story, resulting in one of the most tone-deaf and poorly executed animated films of the 20th century inThe Legend of the Titanic. The Italian musical ends up using the original framework of a romance aboard the Titanic, yet fills it with an increasingly prevalent side-plot of talking animals, a gang of evil sharks, and a giant octopus.
It’s already a notably bad decision to lessen the impact and legacy of a real-life tragedy by filling it with cartoon characters, as is also done with the notably terribleTitanic: The Legend Goes On…However, the film’s complete lack of care for the original disaster is soon put on full display in one of the most egregious decisions imaginable, whenthe giant octopus ends up saving everyone aboard the ship so that nobody dies. It acts as the cherry on top of this painful dessert and further cements it as an animated travesty.
Rent on Amazon Prime
3’Foodfight!' (2012)
Directed by Lawrence Kasanoff
One of the most difficult aspects of animation as a medium is just how much the technology and capabilities have evolved at an exponential rate, as even films from 10 years ago can look dated in their visual design. This can be especially bad for an animated film that finds itself in development hell, as while the passage of time expands the possibilities of the animated landscape, the film will still be using a dated style when it finally ends up getting released.
This is all in an attempt to justify and comprehend exactly how and whyFoodfightmanaged to look and sound as terrible as it does, despite releasing the same year asBraveandWreck-It Ralph. The film’s attempts at being theToy Storyfor supermarkets are completely botched from the get-go when its cheap animation makes it look worse than the originalToy Storydid despite being released 15 years later. This painful animation quality serves to make everything else present within this product-placement-fueled nightmare that much worse.
Foodfight!
2’Delgo' (2008)
Directed by Marc F. Adler and Jason Maurer
WhileDelgohad high hopes oftrying to be The Lord of the Ringsin animation with its scope and scale, the final result would end up beingone of the most boring and mind-numbing experiences imaginable. The film ended up spending a decade in development hell and amassing a notable $40 million budget in hopes of being the next great fantasy epic, yet it floundered at the box office to become one of the biggest animated bombs of all time.
The film has all the pieces and concepts to make for a fun, in-depth fantasy world, but simply doesn’t know how to establish its world and characters without incessant exposition and cookie-cutter characters. The film will lose steam within the first few minutes and never be able to regain it throughout its runtime, with each passing scene feeling more sluggish and boring than the last. It doesn’t help that, just likeFoodfight, a decade in development hell resulted in the animation quality already being incredibly dated when it was released.
Buy on Amazon
1’Finding Jesus' (2020)
Directed by Jason Wright
With everything that can be said about some of the worst movies of all time, at the very least they could actually be considered movies, with craft and care, even if minimal, put into them to create a movie meant to be enjoyed.Finding Jesusonly barely meets the minimum requirements for what a movie could be, fulfilling the same role and capabilities of a wallpaper slideshow meant to take up background noise. The film’s marketing and presentation would lead audiences to believe that it’s a more Christian take on a classic aquatic animated movie likeFinding Nemo, yet the truth is much more dire.
In what may just be the laziest approach to filmmaking imaginable, the film constantly cycles between the same repeating animation frames as its characters go through the motions and go through scenes at a snail’s pace.After watching a few minutes of the film, audiences will already see all the animation that the film has to offerbefore it will repeat and reuse animation for the next 65 minutes with no semblance of change or excitement. The film makes a mockery of the art of animation and only exists to trick people into watching it, being the cinematic equivalent of watching paint dry.
