While the newanimeof every year get plenty of attention, the new anime movies of every year are just as deserving of such. Whether they’re spinoffs or adaptations of popular anime or manga or original stories from celebrated directors, there are always great new anime movies to watch, and in many cases, they end up among the best pieces of animation a person can watch in their respective year.
Anime movies are almost always fun, and 2024 was no different. Dozens of incredible anime films were released worldwide in 2024, and according to major anime siteAnime!Anime!,Japanese fans have officially chosen the 10 anime films they consider to be the best films of 2024. In most cases, the top 10 films are all among the most critically and financially successful anime films of 2024, and they’re all films any anime fan should watch as soon as they become available.
The Colors Within
Cast
The Colors Within, directed by Naoko Yamada, follows Totsuko, a high school student who perceives the ‘colors’ of others' emotions. Forming a band with classmates Kimi and Rui, they bond through music and friendship while practicing at an old church on a remote island.
Science Saru’sThe Color Withinis an original film starring Totsuko Higurashi, a girl who can see people as colors and is fascinated with the colors she sees in her classmate, Kimi Sakunaga. Totsuko’s obsession with Kimi leads to her joining a band with Kimi and Rui Kagehira, a boy who likes to collect musical equipment, and as the trio grows as a band and as friends, they ultimately have to confront their personal drama, as well.
With the combined prestige of Science Saru and legendary director Naoko Yamada,The Colors Withinis an incredible anime movie thanks to its gorgeous visuals and thoughtful, human drama portrayed through a somewhat surreal lens. It’s a testament to the film’s quality that it’s the only original film in the top 10, and with it coming to the West later this month, there’s no reason for anime fans to pass it up.
Look Back
Confident artist Fujino and reclusive Kyomoto bond over their shared passion for drawing manga. As they navigate the challenges of growing up and pursuing their artistic dreams, their friendship deepens. The story beautifully explores themes of creativity, dedication, and the impact of personal connections on their journey.
Studio Durian’sLook Backstars Ayumu Fujino, an aspiring young artist who loses her drive after another girl, Kyomoto, is shown to be far better than she could ever hope to be. Kyomoto, though, turned out to be a major fan of Fujino’s work, and that inspired Fujino not only to stick to her art, but to befriend Kyomoto and draw manga with her as a team, a partnership that leads to more dramatic turns than either girl could have imagined.
Just like the original manga,Look Back’s gorgeous artwork and heartbreaking narrative of loss and tragedy made for a highly engaging short story, and the stellar animation courtesy of Studio Durian and Kiyotaka Oshiyama helped emphasize that even further. It’s the best adaptation of Tatsuki Fujimoto’s work to date, and it’s easy to see why it’s received so much praise from fans and critics alike.
Blue Lock
Blue Lock is a sports-centric animated series based on the manga series of the same name. The show follows the Japan Football Association trying to recover from their poor showing in the 2018 FIFA World Cup by hiring a football genius, Ego Jinpachi. With his new intense training regimen, Jinpachi invites the best football players in Japan to compete to become the team’s new star player - and high school student Yoichi Isagi may be exactly who he’s looking for.
Eight Bit’sBlue Lock: Episode Nagiis a film adaptation of theBlue Lockspinoff manga of the same name. As the title would imply,Episode Nagiretells the story ofBlue Lockfrom the perspective of major character Seishiro Nagi, the film covering the beginning of his soccer career and friendship with Reo and showing how the first arc of the anime played out from his point of view.
Blue Lockis one of the biggest anime franchises from the 2020s, and sure enough,Blue Lock: Episode Nagidid a great job of playing into the success of the anime with its intense sports action and how much extra development it gives to Nagi and Reo. The film leaves out a lot of what made the manga so great, but even so, it’s still plenty of fun forBlue Lockfans old and new.
7Birth Of Kitaro: The Mystery Of GeGeGe: True Birth Edition
Anime Film By Toei Animation; Based On The Manga By Shigeru Mizuki
Toei Animation’sBirth of Kitaro: The Mystery of GeGeGeis a prequel film to the 2018 adaptation of the popular anime franchiseGeGeGe no Kitaro. The film was originally released in 2023 to celebrate the 100th birthday of series creator Shigeru Mizuki, but in 2024, the film was re-released with additional scenes and mature content under the subtitle “True Birth Edition.”
The 2018 adaptation ofGeGeGe no Kitarodid a great job of modernizing the classic anime, and sure enough,Birth of Kitaro: The Mystery of GeGeGe: True Birth Editionis the perfect means of capping off the series with its darker and gorier storytelling that still maintains all the same charm of the anime. Neither version of the film is readily available on most streaming sites in the West, but any fan of the franchise would be remiss to pass it up as soon as it becomes available.
My Hero Academia: You’re Next
In a world where heroes and villains clash, Deku faces a powerful new threat in the form of Dark Might, an evil doppelgänger of his mentor, All Might. As a mysterious fortress begins devouring entire cities, Class 1-A must rise to stop this unprecedented danger and uncover the villain’s true motives.
Bones’My Hero Academia: You’re Nextis the latest, and presumably final film in theMy Hero Academiafranchise. As Izuku and his friends prepare for the final battle, Japan is attacked by an evil doppelganger of All Might named Dark Might who seeks to take over the country amid its chaotic state, and the heroes must band together to stop this new threat from making things even worse for everyone.
Between its themes of regression versus progress and how well it forces Izuku and his friends to take charge in a crisis,My Hero Academia: You’re Nextdoes a great job of playing into the themes ofMy Hero Academiaseason 7 and beyond. Add in some of the best animation and fight choreography in the anime to date, especially in the film’s climax, andMy Hero Academia: You’re Nextis one of the franchise’s strongest offerings to date.
Attack On Titan
Based on the manga, Attack on Titan is a dark-action fantasy series set in a world where humanity has been corralled into walled cities from fear of monstrous human-eating Titans that exist outside of them. When protagonist Eren Yeager’s mother is killed in front of his eyes at a young age, his thirst for vengeance leads him to join an elite group of soldiers created to fight back against the Titan menace.
MAPPA’sAttack on Titan The Movie: The Last Attackis the grand finale of the legendaryAttack on Titananime. The film re-edits the original two specials that closed out the series,The Final Chapters, into a single film with slightly reworked art and animation and a bit of additional content, most notably the addition of a post-credits scene adapting theAttack on School Castesgag manga featured in the collected volumes.
Attack on Titan: The Final Chaptersdid a great job of closing out the series with their incredible animation and storytelling, and sure enough,Attack on Titan The Movie: The Last Attackcondensing everything great aboutThe Final Chaptersinto a single film works to make the already great finale even better.The Last Attackpremieres in English in February, and when it does, everyone should see why it’s being held in such high regard.
4trapezium
Anime Film By CloverWorks; Based On The Novel By Kazumi Takayama
CloverWorks’trapeziumstars Yu Azama, a high school girl who tries to start an idol group with her friends and take the country by storm. The group does find success, but that success ultimately puts a strain on their friendship, and Yu has to decide if living her dream is worth destroying what she has with her friends.
trapeziumlargely succeeds as a story thanks to how well it shows the struggles of working in the idol industry with great visuals to go along with everything, all of which is made even better by how the original novel was written by former idol Nogizaka46 member Kazumi Takayama. It has a lot of the same appeal that helped makeOshi no Kosuch a massive success, and with that sort of overlap, it’s easy to see whytrapeziumhas been so popular.
Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Freedom
In a future where humanity is divided by war, the fight for freedom intensifies as new and old conflicts emerge. As the struggle between the Earth Alliance and the ZAFT forces reaches a critical point, pilots must navigate treacherous alliances and personal vendettas to shape the fate of their world.
Sunrise’sMobile Suit Gundam SEED Freedomis the long-awaited film sequel to theMobile Suit Gundam SEEDfranchise. Taking place a year afterMobile Suit Gundam SEED Destiny, Earth is at risk of falling into another devastating conflict with the remnants of Blue Cosmos, and it’s up to heroes old and new to put an end to things, all while Kira and Lacus slowly deal with their feelings for one another.
While there was some understandable concern over the film’s quality due to it taking almost 20 years to come out,Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Freedom’s strong writing and incredible art and animation made it an incredibleGundamfilm and a largely fitting finale to the Cosmic Era.Freedomis currently the highest-grossingGundamfilmin the franchise, and because of that,Gundam Seedhas never been bigger.
Anime Film By TMS Entertainment; Based On The Manga By Gosho Aoyama
Detective Conan: The Million-dollar Pentagram
Detective Conan: The Million-dollar Pentagram, released in 2024, unfolds the thrilling confrontation between the clever young detective Conan Edogawa and the elusive master thief known as Kid. Set against a mysterious backdrop, the film escalates their iconic rivalry as they engage in a high-stakes game of wits.
TMS Entertainment’sDetective Conan: The Million-dollar Pentagramis the latest film in the long-runningDetective Conanfranchise. While Conan and Heiji are hanging out in Hakodate, the gentleman thief Kaito Kid announces his plan to steal a sword belonging to the wealthy Onoe family, and it once again falls on Conan to stop Kaito and everyone else vying for the sword, all while uncovering the truth of Kaito’s latest heist.
TheDetective Conanmovies are always major events in Japan, and sure enough,the intense action, engaging mystery plot, and the constant escalation ofDetective Conan: The Million-dollar Pentagrammake it the biggestDetective Conanmovie yet, especially with everything it does withConan and Kaito Kid’s relationship. It’s more than a worthwhile addition to the franchise, and it’s easy to see why it’s being held in such high regard.
HAIKYU!! The Dumpster Battle
“HAIKYU!! The Dumpster Battle” brings the long-awaited showdown between Karasuno High School and Nekoma High School to the big screen. The film focuses on the intense rivalry that has been building up over the series, highlighting the fierce competition and strategic play between the two powerhouse volleyball teams. As Karasuno’s Hinata and Kageyama refine their quick attacks, Nekoma’s captain Kuroo and genius setter Kenma prepare counter-strategies to match their opponents' prowess.
Production I.G’sHaikyu!! The Dumpster Battleis the first of a planned sequel film duology to the originalHaikyu!!anime. Picking up where the anime left off, Karasuno has advanced to the third round of nationals where they face off against Nekoma, and with everything on the line in the match, both teams have to give it their all to come out on top against their rivals and friends.
Between the incredible animation and direction and the always engaging character writing,Haikyu!! The Dumpster Battlewas a phenomenal film in every regard that more than justified the long wait fans had to go through before its release.The Dumpster Battlewas one of the biggest anime films in the world in 2024 both critically and financially, and it’s easy to see why it was regarded as thebest anime movie of 2024 according to Japanese fans.
