The epic genre can have different interpretations, depending on who you ask. To the AFI, for example, the epic genre involves a large-scale story set within a larger-than-life, cinematic interpretation of the past; thus, there’s an inherent element of realism involved. To others, however, an epic film isn’t tied to a specific theme or setting; instead, it can spread through different genres, so long as it involves a sweeping sense of grandiosity and confrontation, brought to life by a large budget and a considerable collection of players, both in front of and behind the camera.

In the realm of animation, we can apply both approaches to determine what an animated epic is. For this list, where we’ll be celebrating the greatest animated epics of all time, we’ll consider both movies set in the past and other, more modern efforts that fit within this larger-than-life condition. As a result, we’ll see everything from toned-down adaptations of great literary classics to fantastical tales of warfare and environmentalism, all told with the creative liberty allowed by the medium. No matter how they tackle the epic genre, these movies are bona fide masterpieces and crowning achievements of animation.

10

‘Mulan’ (1998)

Based on the Chinese legend of Hua Mulan, Disney’s 1988 <em>Mulan</em> is an animated musical that features one of the studio’s most inspiring and dynamic protagonists. The story follows Mulan (Ming-Na Wen), a young woman who pretends to be a man and takes her sick father’s place in the army. As China faces the threat of the dangerous Huns, Mulan rises through the ranks in the army, proving her worth as a strategist and warrior.

Sure, the film’s treatment of Imperial China comes with a heavy dose of fantasy, including a talking, scene-stealing dragon named Mushu (Eddie Murphy). However, it also has several clever things to say about the nature of heroism, the true meaning of courage, and the burden of legacy. Moreover, Mulan also has a rather interesting approach to identity and how flexible it can be. It’s not exactly historically accurate, nor does it have to be. Instead, the film offers an endearing coming-of-age tale that ranks among the Renaissance’s best and most layered efforts.

9

‘The Hunchback of Notre Dame’ (1996)

Quite possibly the darkest movie in Disney’s animated library, The Hunchback of Notre Dame is a movie unlike any other in the studio’s long history. Based on Victor Hugo‘s seminal classic, the film tells the story of Quasimodo (Tom Hulce), a hunchback who lives atop Notre Dame Cathedral and acts as the bell-ringer under the controlling watch of his guardian, the cruel Judge Claude Frollo (Tony Jay). When they meet the young Roma woman Esmeralda (Demi Moore), she becomes the subject of Quasi’s love and Frollo’s obsession.

Although it tones down the heavy themes of its source material, The Hunchback of Notre Dame is still among the most complex animated movies, dealing with such harrowing issues as xenophobia, sin, heaven and hell, genocide, self-loathing, and “what makes a monster and what makes a man.” The film is surprisingly willing to deal with all these issues through a remarkable score and some of the most haunting songs in the Disney catalog. Suitably, its interpretation of 15th-century Paris is deceitfully bleak, seemingly beautiful but with an uglier, more intolerant side festering from within.

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