5 best animated war movies, ranked

War is a devastating force that has brought unimaginable horrors. When depicted through animated films, terrible stories from the battlefield take on a haunting power that differs from what live-action can capture. Animated war movies capture the brutality of conflict while offering unique artistic perspectives, immersing viewers in vivid worlds that can be full of gut-wrenching moments.

From the infamous tearjerker Grave of the Fireflies to the one-of-a-kind documentary Waltz with Bashir, the best animated war films blend artistry and profound storytelling to leave a lasting impact. Whether it’s through surreal dreamscapes or stark realism, these visually arresting works have cemented their legacy as some of the greatest and most profound war movies ever made.

5. In This Corner of the World (2016)

In This Corner of the World is an achingly beautiful anime film that portrays wartime Japan through the eyes of a young woman. Set in the 1930s and 1940s, the film follows the quiet and artistic Suzu Urano (voiced by Rena Nōnen), from her childhood in Hiroshima to her move to the neighboring port town of Kure after an arranged marriage. In this peaceful corner of the world, Suzu embraces the small joys despite the looming threat of war. Air raids and food shortages soon affect her community, but she is determined to find beauty wherever she looks, no matter what.

Director Sunao Katabuchi imbues the manga adaptation with a striking delicacy despite its heavy subject, highlighting Suzu’s subtle strength and optimism. This delicate approach is seen through the protagonist’s resilience and personality and in the film’s animation. In This Corner of the World‘s watercolor-like visuals and gentle brushstrokes evoke a nostalgia that contrasts sharply with the narrative’s harsh realities.

Stream In This Corner of the World on Peacock.

4. Flee (2021)

Directed by Jonas Poher Rasmussen, Flee tells the real-life story of Amin Nawabi (a pseudonym used to protect his identity), an Afghan refugee who recounts his journey from war-torn Kabul to Denmark. His interviews with Rasmussen reveal details about his past, including his family’s escape from the Mujahideen-controlled Afghanistan of the 1980s and their attempts to reach safety in Europe. A key part of his story is his recollection of his struggles with his sexual identity as a gay man in cultures that offered little acceptance. Amin also examines how his past plays a key role in shaping his relationships, particularly with his longtime partner, Kasper.

Flee is a distinct fusion of documentary, animation, and personal testimony, with this innovative combination allowing the film to reflect Amin’s psyche. The fluid, hand-drawn style shifts from realism to abstraction, showing the fragmented nature of the subject’s memory as well as the psychological weight of his displacement despite moving to safety. The 2021 film greatly benefits from Rasmussen’s sensitive direction, which never sensationalizes Amin’s trauma but allows his voice to guide the deeply moving narrative that becomes an essential story for survivors who understand the struggle of searching for a place to call home.

Watch Flee on Tubi.

3. Waltz with Bashir (2008)

Part documentary, part animated fever dream, Waltz with Bashir is a surreal odyssey that defies easy categorization. After realizing he has no recollection of his traumatic experiences from 1982, director Ari Folman reconstructs his own repressed memories of Israel’s invasion of Lebanon. To do so, he sets up a series of interviews with former comrades, piecing together fragments of lost history (sometimes surprised to find his own) in the remarkable 2008 movie. He soon discovers that he is much closer than he realized to one of the most infamous war crimes of the 20th century, the Sabra and Shatila massacre.

Folman takes audiences through the fog of memory as he uncovers the horrors of war, told through one dreamlike sequence after another. The film’s use of a graphic novel aesthetic makes it strangely hypnotic, with the animation of real-life testimonies lending them a detached, eerie atmosphere that underscores the distortion of trauma and memory. Waltz with Bashir invites viewers to this surreal world, only to deliver an unforgettable gut punch as Folman—and anyone watching—is reminded that this nightmare is reality.

Buy or rent Waltz with Bashir on Prime Video or Apple.

2. Persepolis (2007)

A bold coming-of-age film unlike any other, Persepolis breathes life into director Marjane Satrapi’s autobiographical graphic novel, capturing the events of her tumultuous youth in Iran during and after the Islamic Revolution. It starts with the depiction of a young Marjane (voiced by Chiara Mastroianni), a fiercely independent and outspoken girl, who witnesses the fall of the Shah, the rise of a repressive regime, and the devastating Iran-Iraq War. Marjane’s parents soon send her to Austria for her own safety, but she finds herself lonely, alienated, and questioning her place and identity.

The heart of the story is Marjane’s struggle to figure out where she belongs, with her wrestling between her love for Iran and the painful reality of the state of the country. Inspired by Satrapi’s original artwork, her story is told with striking black-and-white animation, complementing the highs and lows of the protagonist’s journey. Through Marjane’s complex experiences, Persepolis dispels the image of Iran as a monolith of oppression, instead revealing it as a place where love, resistance, and passion can exist.

Buy or rent Persepolis on Prime Video or Apple.

1. Grave of the Fireflies (1988)

For fans of the genre (and of Studio Ghibli), Grave of the Fireflies is a film that needs no introduction. Directed by Isao Takahata, this heartbreaking animated film takes place in the final days of World War II, when Seita (Tsutomu Tatsumi) and his younger sister, Setsuko (Ayano Shiraishi), are struggling to survive. After their mother dies in an air raid on Kobe and their father, a naval officer, is missing in action, the pair are forced to fend for themselves as they go from one crumbling town to another. As food becomes scarce, their resourcefulness and strength are tested in ways no children should have to endure.

Grave of the Fireflies contrasts its breathtakingly beautiful animation style with the tragedy that it captures. The chaos is anchored by Seita and Setsuko’s connection as siblings, with their small moments of joy only making the devastating ones hit so much harder. The 1988 movie crucially showcases the human cost of war not through soldiers or politicians but rather through children caught in its merciless tide. Grave of the Fireflies has an iconic emotional ending that demands to be felt and remembered, not as a manipulative tearjerker but as a raw depiction of the consequences of a world that fails its most vulnerable.

Stream Grave of the Fireflies on Netflix.