Some of the highest grossing movies of all time are animated features. Movies like Finding Nemo, The Lion King and the Toy Story and Shrek franchises all struck gold upon release, and other top grossers like Avatar, The Lord of The Rings series and Alice in Wonderland (2010) each rely on their fair share of animated elements as well.
The success of these movies is mostly due to their wide appeal. Families like the idea of talking toys who go on adventures, tween girls drag their boyfriends — and vice versa — to their favorite fantasy flicks and the older, more mature crowd enjoys movies that recall familiar childhood memories.
Since the early days of animated features, Disney proved to be the best in the business. The world-renowned studio pumped out dozens of animated films during the 20th century, and virtually all of their productions have become pillars of childhood. It seems as though everyone has seen movies like Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Bambi, Cinderella and Peter Pan at some point in their lives. That said, with the advent of better and faster computer technologies, the competitive field for animated motion pictures has become increasingly diverse and — perhaps more importantly — increasingly popular.
Animation studios like Pixar, DreamWorks and Warner Bros. have all continued the trend of high quality blockbuster hits. More recent movies have seen even greater success than before. Up (2009) received a total of five Academy Award nominations, and last year, DreamWorks notched another win with its highest grossing film, Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted.
But animation doesn’t automatically mean success. Poorly received sequels like Cars 2 (2011), and Shrek Forever After (2011) remind studios even the best laid plans can fall flat when used too many times.
This March, DreamWorks released the latest in the saga of animated features — The Croods, an animated film about a prehistoric family that embarks on a quest to find a new home. It’s neither been a complete and utter flop at the box office, nor has it been totally lambasted by the critical community — it received a modest 67 percent rating from review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes. So far it has made more than $142 million, having a decent first day and opening weekend at the box office.
Will The Croods be an international sensation? Probably not. It is doubtful that this latest DreamWorks Studios project is going to even dent the already flooded legacy of highly successful movies. The concept of a loveable Neanderthal has already been perfected with The Flintstones.
But just because The Croods won’t join the list of defining animated classics of the 21st century doesn’t mean we shouldn’t celebrate it. Animated movies have played a crucial role in shaping our collective pop culture conscious — whether you were five years old or 45 when Lion King came out, you know the words to “Hakuna Matata” — and we can definitively say that hasn’t changed. The Croods might not be a widespread hit, but it’s a marker of an ongoing era, beloved by all.
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