- [Narrator] The holiday season is here,
the days are merry and bright,
and it's a perfect time to cozy up
with a cup of hot chocolate
and spend quality time with friends and family.
And what better way to celebrate
than with films that teach compassion
toward all living beings?
From old classics to new favorites,
here are our top picks for heartwarming movies
that the whole family can enjoy.
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Number one, "Annabelle's Wish."
"Annabelle's Wish" is the 1997 animated film
that tells the story of a friendship between Billy,
a boy who lost the ability to talk after losing his parents,
and Annabelle, a calf born on Christmas Eve.
On Christmas Eve, Santa visits the farm
and grants the animals the ability to talk,
and Annabelle becomes fascinated with Santa's reindeer.
Before Santa leaves,
he tells her that the ability to talk must be kept secret,
but Annabelle breaks the promise when she tells Billy,
"Bless you," after he sneezes.
It's then that she learns that Billy can't talk,
but the two form a friendship that lasts a lifetime.
Billy is willing to sacrifice his own beloved possessions
to save his cow from being taken away,
and in turn, Annabelle selflessly wishes for Santa
to give her friend his voice back,
giving up her own voice in order to do so.
The two live together until Annabelle is an old cow,
teaching a valuable lesson about friendship
and empathy toward animals.
Number two, "Bambi."
Disney's 1942 classic "Bambi,"
based on the 1923 Austrian book,
is about a young deer growing up in the forest.
Bambi loses his mother to a hunter at a young age,
revealing the bleak reality of hunting animals for sport.
Later in the film, a wildfire starts
as the result of an unattended fire at a hunters' camp,
forcing the animals to flee their homes.
At the time of its release, Bambi faced harsh criticism
for straying from the fantasy world
that Disney was known for.
The 1942 edition of the magazine "Outdoor Life"
called the movie,
"the worst insult ever offered in any form
"to American sportsmen."
However, today, "Bambi" is considered a timeless classic
whose lesson reaches people of all ages.
Number three, "Happy Feet."
"Happy Feet" is a 2006 CGI film
that takes place in Antarctica,
where emperor penguins sing to attract their mates.
But, the main character, a young penguin named Mumble,
played by Elijah Wood, can't sing.
He can only dance.
The story is mainly about Mumble
finding his place in the world,
but it's also filled with examples
of how humanity impacts wildlife.
Lovelace, a rockhopper penguin,
has a plastic six-pack ring stuck around his neck.
(Lovelace whimpering)
- You were swimming and it just got caught around your neck.
- [Narrator] Mumble's journey also leads him
to being captured by humans and sent to a marine park,
where he falls into a depression,
echoing the reality for animals in captivity.
He is eventually returned to his family,
and researchers learn that overfishing
is making it hard for animals to survive,
leading to a ban on all fishing in Antarctica.
Number four, "101 Dalmatians."
Disney's 1961 animated feature "101 Dalmatians"
tells the story of a litter of puppies
stolen by Cruella De Vil, a fur fashion aficionado
who wants to make a coat out of the puppies.
At a time when fur fashion was very in,
"101 Dalmatians" empathizes with animals
killed for their fur.
♪ Cruella, Cruella De Vil ♪
- She's gonna make coats out of us.
- I worship furs!
- [Narrator] Cruella's considered one of
the most iconic Disney villains.
She was portrayed by Glenn Close
in the 1996 live action film,
and in an upcoming live action origin story,
she'll be played by Emma Stone.
Number five, "Ferdinand."
This 2017 animated film stars a gentle bull named Ferdinand,
who loses his father to a bullfight at a young age.
Despite his big size,
Ferdinand doesn't wanna fight for glory
like the other bulls.
- I am not a fighting bull.
Can you guys help me out?
- [Narrator] And even though the tone of the film is light,
it reveals the cruel reality of bullfighting.
One of Ferdinand's friends
risks being sent to the slaughterhouse,
or being killed by a matador in a bullfight.
Even when he ends up in a bullfight,
Ferdinand sticks to his peaceful ways,
and convinces humans in the crowd to stick up for him.
Number six, "Chicken Run."
"Chicken Run" is a 2000 stop motion animated film
about egg-laying hens whose caretaker decides to begin
slaughtering chickens for profit
in order to make more money.
After meeting a rooster named Rocky,
the chickens devise a plan to escape their fate.
Number seven, "Babe."
"Babe" is a 1995 drama about an orphan piglet
who's taken in by a farmer.
Babe grows up with a border collie and her puppies.
The film is packed with lessons
about how humans treat animals.
Babe comforts the mother dog
when her puppies are sold for profit.
He meets a duck who crows like a rooster,
in hopes of making himself useful,
and he becomes distressed when he learns from the farm cat
that humans kill pigs for food.
- The fact is that pigs don't have a purpose,
just like ducks don't have a purpose.
- Uh, I, I don't--
- Oh, all right, for your own sake, I'll be blunt.
Why do the bosses keep ducks?
To eat them.
- [Narrator] The film had such an impact
on star James Cromwell, who played the farmer,
that he went vegan and is now an outspoken advocate
for animal rights.
Number eight, "FernGully: The Last Rainforest."
"FernGully" is a 1992 animated musical
about a fairy named Crysta and a human lumberjack named Zak,
who through a mishap shrinks him down
to the size of a fairy.
The movie takes a strong stance
for the environment and animals.
Crysta teaches Zak about how harmful
cutting down the rainforest is.
They meet a bat named Batty, played by Robin Williams,
who is experimented on by humans.
The main villain, Hexxus, played by Tim Curry,
is an anthropomorphized cloud of pollution
who gains strength from fossil fuel emissions.
Number nine, "The Fox and the Hound."
Disney's 1981 animated classic "The Fox and the Hound"
tells the story of an unlikely friendship
between a young orphan fox named Tod, raised by a human,
and a puppy named Copper.
Wild animals warn Tod not to get too close to Copper,
even showing him the pelts of animals
that Copper's master shot.
- Copper's gonna come back a trained huntin' dog.
A real killer.
- Oh, no, not my friend Copper.
- [Narrator] As he gets older,
Tod's caretaker releases him back into the forest,
where he adapts to life in the wild.
He's eventually confronted by an older Copper,
who, despite his master's orders,
spares the life of his former friend.
Number 10, "Fly Away Home."
"Fly Away Home" is a live action coming-of-age drama
from 1996 about Amy, played by a young Anna Paquin,
who moves in with her estranged father
after losing her mother.
When construction destroys a small wildlife habitat,
Amy comes across an abandoned nest with 16 goose eggs.
When the eggs hatch,
the young goslings see Amy as their mother,
and she takes up the responsibility
of teaching them everything about surviving in the wild,
including learning to fly a plane
so she can help them learn their migratory pattern.
Number 11, "Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron."
"Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron" is a 2002 animated film
set in the 19th century American west.
Spirit is born to a herd of wild horses,
but is eventually captured by wranglers.
He's sent to a US cavalry post,
where they try to force him to be obedient to humans.
He's rescued by a Lakota Native American named Little Creek,
and they form a mutual respect
for each other's desire to live free.
Number 12, "The Lorax."
Based on the Dr. Seuss book,
the 2012 animated film "The Lorax"
takes place in a world where all plants are artificial,
and the mayor sells bottles of oxygen
marketed as fresh air.
The main character, a boy named Ted Wiggins,
has a crush on an environmentalist
who wants to see a real tree more than anything.
- What I want more than anything
is to see a real, living tree.
- [Narrator] This children's movie teaches the importance
of respecting nature above all.
Number 13, "Marmaduke."
Based on the newspaper comic strip,
2010's "Marmaduke" follows the story
of its titular character
as he navigates the divide between pedigree dogs
and other neighborhood dogs.
The movie teaches the lesson
that every dog is an individual, and worthy of love,
no matter what their background.
Number 14, "Frozen 2."
A sequel to Disney's 2013 hit musical,
"Frozen 2" sees its stars Elsa and Anna
discover that older generations
prioritized themselves over nature,
ignoring the warnings
of the land of Arendelle's native tribe.
The two sisters set to right the wrongs of the past.
The sisters must also learn to navigate a world
in which the people they looked up to
were the ones who destroyed an ecosystem
in the name of greed,
paralleling the current climate all too well.
Number 15, "Charlotte's Web."
"Charlotte's Web," based on the children's book
by E. B. White, is about a pig named Wilbur
who befriends a clever spider named Charlotte.
When young Wilbur learns that pigs are killed for food,
Charlotte comforts him and comes up with a plan
to save him from slaughter by spinning webs praising him,
which humans see as a miracle.
Because of Charlotte's kind heart,
Wilbur is allowed to live out the rest of his days.
Number 16, "Black Beauty."
"Black Beauty" is a 1994 live action adaptation
of Anna Sewell's novel of the same name.
It tells the story of a black stallion named Beauty,
voiced by vegan actor Alan Cumming,
as he grows up and experiences both kindness and abuse
at the hand of humans.
The impactful story,
which revealed the abuse horses suffered
at the hands of carriage drivers,
had a significant impact on animal welfare.
Outcries from leaders led to an outright ban
on painful bearing reins for carriage horses
in Victorian England,
and it is said to have sparked a call
for more anti-animal cruelty legislation.
Number 17, "Rio."
This 2011 animated film, starring a Spix's macaw named Blu,
shows how exotic birds found in pet shops
are the result of the cruel smuggling trade.
Blu is kidnapped from his home at a young age,
and finds a home in Minnesota,
where his crate falls off a transport truck.
When he's older, he's brought back to Rio de Janeiro
to mate with a female Spix's macaw named Jewel,
who longs to return to the wild.
During the movie, the birds sabotage a pet trafficking ring,
which results in smugglers being sent to jail.
Blu and Jewel spend the rest of their lives
together in the wild.
Number 18, "Brother Bear."
In Disney's 2003 animated feature "Brother Bear,"
a young Inuit man named Kenai,
voiced by vegan actor Joaquin Phoenix,
seeks revenge on a bear who he blames
for the accidental death of his brother.
But, after he tracks down and kills the bear,
the spirits deem the death unnecessary,
and change him into a bear as punishment.
As a bear, Kenai learns that he can speak to other animals,
and meets a young cub named Koda,
whose mother is the bear that he killed in revenge.
Through his journey, Kenai grows empathetic toward Koda,
gaining respect for animals as individuals.
Number 19, "Finding Nemo."
Pixar's 2003 CGI film "Finding Nemo"
tells the story of Marlin, a single clownfish father
whose son Nemo is captured by divers
to be held captive in a small aquarium tank.
Marlin is joined by Dory, a blue regal tang,
voiced by Ellen DeGeneres,
and they go on an epic journey to bring Nemo home.
Along the way, they meet a vegetarian shark named Bruce,
who resists his instincts because he believes that--
- [Sharks] Fish are friends, not food.
- [Narrator] Number 20, "Spirited Away."
Legendary animator Hayao Miyazaki's
2001 feature "Spirited Away"
is about a young girl named Chihiro
who is trapped in the spirit world
after her parents eat food meant for the gods.
Many of Miyazaki's films have an environmental message,
and "Spirited Away" is no different.
While working at a bathhouse for the gods,
Chihiro saves a powerful customer
who is the spirit of a polluted river.
Her friend throughout the film, Haku,
is a river spirit who lost his memories
when city planners filled the river
to make room for new apartment buildings.
Number 21, "Dumbo."
The 2019 remake of "Dumbo" is a far cry
from the original 1941 film.
The movie still follows Dumbo,
a young circus elephant who is separated from his mother
when she defends him for being bullied for his big ears.
When the circus learns that Dumbo can fly,
he becomes part of an act,
but the young elephant only wants
to be reunited with his mother.
At the end of the film,
Dumbo and his mother are allowed to return home to India,
and the circus enforces a strict no-animal policy,
and the amusement park owner Vandevere
is arrested for misconduct.
That's it for the list.
Which movie is your favorite?
Let us know in the comments below.
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