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A visually ravishing journey into the afterlife is proving a hit in Hong Kong this week, as the animated feature Another World, an adaptation of Naka Saijo’s novel Sennenki: Thousand-Year Journey of an Oni, is generating plenty of discussion about its unusual subject matter. The film tells the dark, absorbing story of a deceased young girl (voiced by Christy Choi Hiu-tung) who is escorted through the afterlife by the spirit guide Gudo (Chung Suet-ying) as she searches for her little brother. Its dazzling imagery marks a new benchmark in animation for Hong Kong cinema. Alongside Another World, perilous journeys through the underworld seem to be having something of a renaissance in international animation filmmaking of late. That can be seen, for example, in the box office behemoth Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba – The Movie: Infinity Castle, which unfolds entirely within a constantly revolving netherworld fortress, and Mamoru Hosoda’s coming Scarlet, a fantastical gender-flipped reimagining of William Shakespeare’s Hamlet. In light of this returning trend, we look back at 10 of the best animated films of all time that venture into the afterlife. 1. Watership Down (1978) The relative simplicity of the animation in Martin Rosen’s adaptation of Richard Adams’ beloved childhood novel should not be underestimated. This seemingly innocuous tale of a colony of rabbits is rife with rich, startling imagery and a layered mythology about life after death that has been credited with traumatising generations of young viewers. Featuring an incredible voice cast of British thespians that includes John Hurt, Michael Hordern and Denholm Elliott, the story follows a small rabbit colony contending with predators, humans and even rival rabbits, before they are visited by the spectral figure of the Black Rabbit and escorted into the great beyond. 2. Grave of the Fireflies (1988) Widely regarded as one of the most heart-wrenching depictions of war ever committed to the screen, Isao Takahata’s masterful adaptation of Akiyuki Nosaka’s novel chronicles the tragic fate of 14-year-old Seita and his younger sister at the end of World War II. Recounted from the ghostly perspective of both children after they have succumbed to malnutrition, we witness their final months, from losing their mother during the firebombing of Kobe to their own eventual deaths after weeks spent struggling in vain to find food and shelter. 3. All Dogs Go to Heaven (1989) Charlie B. Barkin, a streetwise German shepherd voiced by Burt Reynolds, is double-crossed and murdered by his scheming former partner in Don Bluth’s fantasy musical. Charlie finds himself in a serene version of heaven, where he learns that all dogs are inherently good-natured, but with unfinished business down on Earth, he tricks his way back to reality, where he befriends a young girl with the magical ability to talk to animals. Inevitably, however, Charlie’s fate eventually catches up with him. 4. South Park: Bigger, Longer and Uncut (1999) For the big screen spin-off of their hugely successful animated television series, South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone stage a gloriously profane musical extravaganza. When Earth is pushed to the brink of Armageddon as a result of a puerile, expletive-ridden cartoon that delights children but horrifies their parents, hell-dwelling lovers Satan and Saddam Hussein plot to take over the world. That is, unless Cartman, Stan, Kyle and the ghostly apparition of their dead friend Kenny can stop them first and save the day. 5. Waking Life (2001) Less a journey through the afterlife than a series of philosophical discussions about the meaning of existence and the nature of our reality, Richard Linklater’s experimental work is nevertheless a fascinating intellectual exploration of life, the universe and everything. Shot live-action and then retroactively animated using a technique known as rotoscoping, Waking Life adopts a similar structure to Linklater’s 1990 breakthrough Slacker, as our protagonist engages with a variety of different characters, including Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy – reprising their roles from Before Sunrise – as well as Linklater himself. 6. Spirited Away (2001) Hayao Miyazaki’s extraordinary supernatural fantasy broke box office records upon its release, as well as scooping the Golden Bear for best film at the Berlin Film Festival on its way to winning the Oscar for best animated feature film. The story follows 10-year-old Chihiro, who moves to the countryside with her parents, only to take an unexpected short cut into a magical spirit world populated by all manner of yokai demons and flying dragons. While her parents are transformed into pigs, our plucky heroine takes a job at a chaotic bathhouse in an effort to earn her family’s safe return. 7. Corpse Bride (2005) After producing a pair of stop-motion features for director Henry Selick, Tim Burton finally took the directorial reins for this typically ghoulish fable, inspired by a 17th-century Jewish folk tale. Victor (voiced by Johnny Depp) gets cold feet on his wedding day and accidentally completes a ritual that unites him with the corpse of a murdered young bride, Emily (Helena Bonham Carter). She whisks him off to the Land of the Dead, where he learns about her horrible past and is reunited with his childhood dog before eventually freeing Emily from her curse. 8. Coco (2017) Dia de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead, provides the setting for Pixar’s vibrant musical favourite, which won two Oscars at the 90th Academy Awards for best animated feature and best original song. It tells the story of Miguel, a young Mexican boy who grows up in a household where music is mysteriously banned. When his secret passion for the guitar is discovered, his instrument is destroyed. Stealing a replacement from the family mausoleum, Miguel is magicked away to the Land of the Dead, where he learns about his family’s secret history from his ghostly ancestors. 9. Soul (2020) Pixar takes us to the Great Beyond once again, and music remains the central hook in Pete Docter’s toe-tapping fantasy that also won Oscars for best animated feature and best original score. Jamie Foxx lends his voice to middle-school music teacher Joe Gardner, who moonlights as a jazz pianist. But after dying in a freak accident, Joe finds himself in the afterlife. There, he navigates a host of different spiritual realms and is made mentor to a disgruntled new soul named 22 (Tina Fey), before eventually making it back to Earth in the body of a house cat. 10. Mad God (2021) Simultaneously grotesque and endlessly fascinating, this passion project from visual effects maestro Phil Tippett is a one-of-a-kind audiovisual experience that, once seen, is never forgotten. Painstakingly produced over a period of 30 years, this stop-motion odyssey into the darkest corners of the underworld is equal parts writer H.P. Lovecraft and painter Hieronymus Bosch. It follows a gas mask-sporting assassin into the bowels of hell, where he must contend with a terrifying parade of ghoulish demons and apocalyptic monstrosities. Want more articles like this? Follow SCMP Film on Facebook
