All Of Your Favorite Animated '90s Movies Not Made by Disney
Though Disney animated films dominated the '90s box office, the best non-Disney films from that era reveal a renaissance for animated content. Nearly every studio in Hollywood cashed in on the public's renewed interest in animated fare. Several invested in the Don Bluth business; the Land Before Time auteur directed four films in the decade, including Thumbelina for Warner Bros., and the well-received Anastasia for Fox. Meanwhile, An American Tail: An American Tail: Fivel Goes West, produced by Steven Spielberg, marked the first entry from Spielberg's Amblimation studio, a short-lived company responsible for We're Back: A Dinosaur's Story and Balto; it eventually folded into DreamWorks Animation by the end of the decade. DreamWorks Animation, founded in 1997, is the only non-Disney success story of the '90s, releasing hits Antz and The Prince of Egypt in 1998, and laying the foundation for their reputation as the cheekier alternative to Disney's Pixar juggernaut.
The most revered non-Disney animated feature of the '90s, Warner Bros.' exciting and heartbreaking The Iron Giant, served as a cautionary tale that explains the entire decade in non-Disney animated films. Despite unanimous critical praise, without the Disney branding The Iron Giant flopped at the box office. A massive failure that, along with the failures of Osmosis Jones and Looney Tunes: Back in Action, stopped Warner Bros. Animation from making another movie for over a decade. Though they never matching the box office success, and rarely the critical success, of their Disney counterparts, animated films from the '90s not by Disney now hold a legacy of their own, and paved the way for films like Despicable Me, Kung Fu Panda, and Happy Feet.
- Fantasy, Animation, Thriller
- Actors: Robin Williams, Tim Curry, Christian Slater, Cheech Marin, Tommy Chong
- Released: 1992
- Directed by: Bill Kroyer
FernGully: The Last Rainforest is a 1992 Australian-American animated fantasy environmental film directed by Bill Kroyer. It was produced by Peter Faiman and Wayne Young, with the screenplay written ...more - Animation, Kids, Music
- Actors: Meg Ryan, John Cusack, Kelsey Grammer, Christopher Lloyd, Hank Azaria
- Released: 1997
- Directed by: Don Bluth, Gary Goldman
The evil wizard Rasputin (Christopher Lloyd) puts a hex on the royal Romanovs and young Anastasia (Meg Ryan) disappears when their palace is overrun. Years later, the Grand Duchess (Angela Lansbury) ...more - Animation, Kids, Adventure
- Actors: Jennifer Aniston, Eli Marienthal, Harry Connick, Vin Diesel, Christopher McDonald
- Released: 1999
- Directed by: Brad Bird
In this animated adaptation of Ted Hughes' Cold War fable, a giant alien robot (Vin Diesel) crash-lands near the small town of Rockwell, Maine, in 1957. Exploring the area, a local 9-year-old boy, ...more - Animation, Kids, Adventure
- Actors: Phillip Glasser, James Stewart, Erica Yohn, Cathy Cavadini, John Cleese
- Released: 1991
- Directed by: Phil Nibbelink, Simon Wells
Fievel and family continue their pursuit of the American dream by heading West. Fievel wants to be a lawman and his sister wants to make it as a dance hall singer. They are trying to get away from ...more - Animation, Kids, Music
- Actors: Val Kilmer, Ralph Fiennes, Michelle Pfeiffer, Sandra Bullock, Jeff Goldblum
- Released: 1998
- Directed by: Brenda Chapman, Steve Hickner, Simon Wells
In this animated retelling of the Book of Exodus, Egyptian Prince Moses (Val Kilmer), upon discovering his roots as a Jewish slave, embarks on a quest to free his people from bondage. When his plea ...more - Animation, Kids, Adventure
- Actors: Miriam Margolyes, Lola Bates-Campbell, Kevin Bacon, Bob Hoskins, Bridget Fonda
- Released: 1995
- Directed by: Simon Wells
In this animated feature, a deadly diphtheria epidemic strikes the remote town of Nome, Alaska. With the life-saving medicine located hundreds of miles away, the residents decide to send out a ...more - Animation, Kids, Adventure
- Actors: E.G. Daily, Christine Cavanaugh, Kath Soucie, Cheryl Chase, Tara Strong
- Released: 1998
- Directed by: Igor Kovalyov, Norton Virgien
This animated comedy finds Tommy Pickles (E.G. Daily) trying to return his baby brother to the hospital after being warned by his mean-spirited friend, Angelica (Cheryl Chase), that once his new ...more - Animation, Kids, Adventure
- Actors: Jeff Bennett, Linda Gary, Heather Hogan, Candace Hutson, John Ingle
- Released: 1994
- Directed by: Roy Allen Smith
After his tribe of herbivorous dinosaurs moves to the carnivore-free Peaceful Valley in the animated "The Land Before Time," young brontosaurus Littlefoot (Scott McAfee) and his friends chase after a ...more - Animation, Kids, Fantasy
- Actors: Jodi Benson, Kenneth Mars, Charo, Gino Conforti, Barbara Cook
- Released: 1994
- Directed by: Don Bluth, Gary Goldman
Born of a flower and growing to only a couple of inches tall, poor Thumbelina (Jodi Benson) is worried she'll never meet someone her own size, until she happens to catch the eye of Prince Cornelius ...more - Kids, Comedy
- Actors: Wayne Knight, Theresa Randle, Danny DeVito, Billy West, Dee Bradley Baker
- Released: 1996
- Directed by: Joe Pytka
Swackhammer (Danny DeVito), an evil alien theme park owner, needs a new attraction at Moron Mountain. When his gang, the Nerdlucks, heads to Earth to kidnap Bugs Bunny (Billy West) and the Looney ...more - Fantasy, Romance Film, Animation
- Actors: John Cleese, Jack Palance, Frank Welker, Steven Wright, Sandy Duncan
- Released: 1994
- Directed by: Richard Rich
The Swan Princess is a 1994 American animated musical fantasy film based on the ballet "Swan Lake". Starring the voice talents of Jack Palance, John Cleese, Steven Wright, and Sandy Duncan, the film ...more - Fantasy, Anime, Science Fiction
- Actors: Megumi Hayashibara, Mayumi Iizuka, Shin-ichiro Miki, Kōichi Yamadera, Hirotaka Suzuoki
- Released: 1998
- Directed by: Michael Haigney, Kunihiko Yuyama
Pokémon: The First Movie: Mewtwo Strikes Back, commonly referred to as Pokémon: The First Movie, originally released as Pocket Monsters the Movie: Mewtwo Strikes Back!, is a 1998 Japanese anime film ...more - Animation, Children's/Family, Zombie Film
- Actors: Mark Hamill, Frank Welker, Adrienne Barbeau, Billy West, Tara Strong
- Released: 1998
- Directed by: Jim Stenstrum, Kazumi Fukushima, Hiroshi Aoyama
Scooby-Doo on Zombie Island is a 1998 animated direct-to-video horror-comedy film based on the animated television series Scooby-Doo Saturday morning cartoon franchise. In the film, Scooby-Doo, ...more - Animation, Kids, Fantasy
- Actors: Jessalyn Gilsig, Andrea Corr, Cary Elwes, Bryan White, Gary Oldman
- Released: 1998
- Directed by: Frederik Du Chau
In this animated tale, Kayley (Jessalyn Gilsig) dreams of being one of the Knights of the Round Table; she gets her chance when the fabled sword of Excalibur is lost. Without its power to protect ...more - Animation, Kids, Romance
- Actors: Woody Allen, Sharon Stone, Gene Hackman, Sylvester Stallone, Christopher Walken
- Released: 1998
- Directed by: Eric Darnell, Tim Johnson
Z the worker ant (Woody Allen) strives to reconcile his own individuality with the communal work-ethic of the ant colony. He falls in love with ant-Princess Bala (Sharon Stone), Z strives to make ...more - Kids, Fantasy
- Actors: Macaulay Culkin, Christopher Lloyd, Ed Begley, Mel Harris, Kanin Howell
- Released: 1994
- Directed by: Maurice Hunt, Joe Johnston
A storm forces frightened Richard Tyler (Macaulay Culkin) inside a nearby library for shelter. Mr. Dewey (Christopher Lloyd), the librarian, sees that Richard needs an adventure and tries to give the ...more - Animation, Kids, Fantasy
- Actors: John Goodman, Jay Leno, Rhea Perlman, Blaze Berdahl, Julia Child
- Released: 1993
- Directed by: Phil Nibbelink, Simon Wells, Ralph Zondag, Dick Zondag
Four fun-loving dinosaurs take a trip to New York City, courtesy of Capt. Neweyes (Walter Cronkite). The time-traveling alien is intent on bringing some joy to the lives of the children of the Big ...more - Animation, Kids, Adventure
- Actors: Scott McAfee, Candace Hutson, Heather Hogan, Jeff Bennett, Rob Paulsen
- Released: 1995
- Directed by: Roy Allen Smith
Littlefoot (Scott McAfee) and his young friends Cera, Ducky and Spike are being harassed by a group of older dinosaurs led by Hyp (Whitby Hertford). When a meteorite strikes nearby, it causes a ...more - Animation, Family, Adventure Film
- Actors: Charles Durning, Frank Welker, Tress MacNeille, Rob Paulsen, Kenneth Mars
- Released: 1996
- Directed by: Roy Allen Smith
The Land Before Time IV: Journey Through the Mists is a 1996 direct-to-video animated adventure musical film directed by Roy Allen Smith. This is the last Land Before Time sequel directed by Smith, ...more - Animation, Family, Children's/Family
- Actors: Tim Curry, Frank Welker, Jane Wiedlin, Jennifer Hale, Mary Kay Bergman
- Released: 1999
- Directed by: Jim Stenstrum
Scooby-Doo and the Witch's Ghost is the second in a series of direct-to-video animated films based upon Hanna-Barbera's Scooby-Doo Saturday morning cartoons. It was released on October 5, 1999, and ...more - Animation, Musical, Family
- Actors: Henry Gibson, Charlotte Rae, Tony Jay, Richard Kind, Don Messick
- Released: 1992
- Directed by: Phil Roman
The popular cartoon cat and mouse are thrown into a feature film. The story has the twosome trying to help an orphan girl who is being berated and exploited by a greedy guardian. - Animation, Adventure, Fantasy
- Actors: Claire Danes, Gillian Anderson, Jada Pinkett Smith, Billy Bob Thornton, Minnie Driver
- Released: 1997
- Directed by: Hayao Miyazaki
A prince becomes involved in the struggle between a forest princess and the encroachment of mechanization. - Animation, Kids, Adventure
- Actors: Jeff Bennett, Aria Noelle Curzon, Miriam Flynn, John Ingle, Brandon Lacroix
- Released: 1997
- Directed by: Charles Grosvenor
A plague of locusts strikes the Great Valley, decimating the plants and forcing the dinosaurs to migrate in search of food. When the adults in the herd begin fighting over the scarce resources, young ...more - Animation, Kids, Adventure
- Actors: Kathleen McInerney, Rachael Lillis, Maddie Blaustein, Eric Stuart, Michelle Goguen
- Released: 2000
- Directed by: Michael Haigney
Ash's adventure begins when a powerful storm beaches him and his friends on Shamouti Island just as the islanders are preparing to cast the hero role in their annual festival. They offer it to Ash. ...more - Animation, Family, Adventure Film
- Actors: Kris Kristofferson, Frank Welker, Thomas Dekker, Nancy Cartwright, Rob Paulsen
- Released: 1998
- Directed by: Charles Grosvenor
The Land Before Time VI: The Secret of Saurus Rock is a 1998 direct-to-video animated adventure musical film and the sixth film in The Land Before Time series about five dinosaurs who live in the ...more