The ’80s were a great time to be alive. It was a time kids could still play outside on their bikes with their friends, movies could be rented on VHS, music was great, and the stuff on TV was watchable and entertaining. Now we live in a fast-paced, technologically advanced era where nobody is ever safe, the music leaves much to be desired, and the movies seem to all be remakes.
There were so many original animated movies for kids back in the ’80s. Things weren’t nearly as complicated and weighed down as they are now. A lot of the same concerns are alive and well presently, but the kids were a bit different and a bit more feral. We were all different then, and some things mattered more or less than they do now. One thing is certain, all the animated characters in our movies just had a different vibe in the ’80s. It’s time to rewind for a moment for a trip down memory lane to remember all of those fantastic cartoon movies you loved as a kid. After all, those cartoons were what raised a generation or two.
15 The Secret of NIMH (1982)
The Secret of NIMH is one of the great books and movies of the ’80s. The story follows widowed field mouse, Mrs. Brisby as she frantically tries to save her son who has pneumonia before the plow comes. She needs to move him but can’t while he is so sick. Brisby must go through the rose bush to the Rats of Nimh and meet with their leader Nicodemus for help.
During the movie, Brisby fights off evil rats, learns that her husband was helping the rats, and they all looked up to him, befriends Jeremy the Crow, and finally gets what she needs for her little boy. Along the way, she learns that the rats were actually test subjects from the National Institution of Mental Health that escaped and are above average intelligent. This is a fantastic movie and book with a sequel that is just as good.
14 All Dogs Go to Heaven (1989)
This sweet story, All Dogs Go To Heaven, sure made a lot of children, and their parents cry at the end. We journey through this story about orphaned Anne Marie, who desperately wants a family of her own, and two dog criminals named Charlie and Itchy. Anne Marie is able to understand and talk to animals which gives her value to the thieving homeless dogs. Together they must face the music that Charlie is in big trouble with the dog mafia and owes them a lot of money. Carface, the former friend and partner of Charlie’s, had him murdered after getting him drunk and driving him into a body of water.
Charlie is given a second chance and helps Anne Marie find a family, but not before he uses her to pickpocket people, and she is kidnapped by Carface and his gang. Anne Marie becomes sick after being dropped down a well by Carface, and after Charlie has the battle of his second life, he saves her. Charlie makes the ultimate sacrifice to get the little girl safe before he dies for good. Itchy and Anne Marie are very sad without Charlie, but Anne Marie promises Charlie’s ghost that she will always look after Itchy and keep him safe. This is definitely one of the greatest animated films ever made.
13 An American Tail (1986)
This adorable movie, An American Tail, was a hit with all. In it we follow Fievel Mousekewitz and his family as they journey to America. Once they arrive, the family is broken up, and Fievel is lost and on his own. His family continues to believe that Fievel has drowned. Fievel meets many creatures on his journey to find his family, including a crooked rat, an Italian mouse boy, an Irish mouse girl, and a bunch of evil cats.
The mice rally to discuss how to overthrow the cats who torture them, but Fievel manages to get caught by the cats. He befriends a goofy orange cat named Tiger, and they become friends. Once freed, Fievel manages to trick the cats and once again is on his way to find his family when they hear others calling out his name and searching for him. Of course, they are reunited, and so begins the Fievel franchise.
12 The Land Before Time (1988)
In The Land Before Time, we meet Littlefoot, the Apatosaurus, and his pals as they embark on an epic journey by themselves across the lands until they find The Great Valley, where all the dinosaurs have gone. On their journey, they encounter heartbreak and loss and even end up raising a baby T. rex named Chopper.
This movie was the beginning of a long list of follow-up performances and many more editions to the Land Before Time. It is one of the longest-running movies of all time, with 14 movies. The wonderful movie embraces the joys and hardships of friendship and life. Together these friends conquer everything in their way and remain positive throughout. One of the saddest parts in any kid’s movie is when Littlefoot’s mother dies protecting him. Definitely a tearjerker.
11 Mighty Mouse in the Great Space Chase (1982)
Mighty Mouse in the Great Space Chase was a wondrous movie found only in the ’80s, whereas Mighty Mouse’s beginning was in 1942 when he was still known as Super Mouse. This guy had been around forever before we ever met him in the ’80s. Nevertheless, we loved him and his amazing ways that he seemed to always know when Pearl was in trouble with Oil Can Harry.
Of course, Mighty Mouse didn’t just look out for Pearl’s well-being though she was sort of his girlfriend, and each episode ended with them kissing as the camera panned out and blurred. Might Mouse also saved just about anyone needing help, though they tended to be female. This was one of those back-in-the-day cartoons where spanking, smoking, and violence were the norm.
10 The Little Mermaid (1989)
The Little Mermaid delighted children everywhere when it hit theaters. The tail of the red-haired underwater Disney princess and her pals Sebastian the Lobster and Flounder the fish were wildly popular. It seemed like every little girl out there wanted to be Ariel and had the doll and her friends to pretend play. The story was not unique and had been taken from the original 1837 Danish Hans Christian Andersen mermaid story written long before Disney got their hands on it.
The original was much darker and creepier and not so child-friendly, so of course, Disney added a lot of fluff and brought an R-rated book down to a G-rated movie. The story of the princess who wishes to be a human once she rescues the prince is timeless. Ariel makes a deal with Ursula to trade her beautiful singing voice for a night in the human world with legs.
9 Mickey’s Christmas Carol (1983)
Mickey Mouse’s Christmas Carol is probably the cutest take on this vintage Charles Dickens tale from 1843 about a greedy businessman at Christmastime. In it we see Donald Duck as Scrooge, Mickey, and his family are the Cratchit’s who are very poor. The story goes that Scrooge is visited by three ghosts on the night before Christmas in order to knock some sense into him and force him to look at life differently and more compassionately.
Those ghosts are Scrooge’s former partner Jacob Marley who played by Goofy, The Ghost of Christmas Past played by Jiminy Cricket, The Ghost of Christmas Present is played by Willy the Giant and the Ghost of Christmas Future is, of course, the Grim Reaper who shows Scrooge the young crippled son of the Cratchit’s grave as weasels dig it. It is a whimsical take on a difficult story, and it works beautifully. Surely most ’80s kids still watch it every holiday season.
8 The Muppets Take Manhattan (1984)
Who doesn’t love the Muppets? They are charismatic, happy, fun, adventurous, and always scheming about something. Kermit the Frog has been many children’s favorite frog for decades. This fantastic movie, The Muppets Take Manhattan, was about the gang taking their act to Manhattan and hoping to hit it big in the Big Apple. They wish to end up on Broadway and can’t wait to be rich and famous. Sadly, when they arrive, it isn’t quite so simple.
They are defeated over and over by a city with too many actors looking to make it big. Kermit gets angry and tells them there is no show; it was only a dream. They leave him in Manhattan alone, except Miss Piggy stays behind to spy on Kermit. The little frog finds a job at a local diner with a bunch of rats that he befriends, and a waitress named Jenny. Kermit ends up getting hit by a car and then has amnesia, which is cured by a swift blow from Miss Piggy. They end up going to Broadway after all and having a wonderful performance of Muppet Melodies, which is a huge hit.
7 Fluppy Dogs (1986)
Fluppy Dogs may not be one everyone remembers. This Disney show about a group of colorful fluffy dogs is adorable, to say the least. These pastel-colored puppies came through an interdimensional doorway using a magical crystal key to get back and forth and into the children, James, and Claire’s lives. They try to disguise themselves as regular dogs, but these guys and girls like to walk around on two legs and see a leash as an awful thing.
The Fluppy Dogs pose as regular dogs when captured and taken to the pound so that they can be adopted and escape. J.J. Wagstaff hears the dogs talking and goes on to search through books about talking dogs. He is the bad guy who happens to be a trophy hunter and has a home filled with live exotic animal prisoners, as well. He will stop at nothing to capture the Fluppy Dogs. This series was sadly canceled by Disney after their holiday special didn’t do very well.
6 My Little Pony: The Movie (1986)
My Little Pony: The Movie was an original ’80s movie that was so popular that the My Little Ponies have been revamped for the current generation and even given a second installment of the original movie. Certain elements of the new My Little Pony show and movie are loved by Comic-Con fans and cosplayers. The original Ponies were never sexualized the way these new Ponies have been. We live in a storage world these days.
The original movie followed the Pony friends as they embarked on a difficult journey to find a lost baby Lickety Split, and her small dragon friend, Spike. The evil and wicked witch, Hydia, and her two daughters plan to ruin the Pony’s dance event that day, but the daughters are not smart enough to do so, and the plan eventually fails, and Lickety Split is rescued. This movie is filled with pretty colors, fluffy clouds, and magical ponies who can do just about anything.
5 Swan Lake (1981)
Swan Lake is an anime tale based on the original ballet Swan Lake by Pyotr Tchaikovsky. Both stories follow the old tale of a beautiful princess, Odette, who is trapped in a swan’s body during the day and freed only at night to be a woman. She has many animal friends and is a kind and peaceful princess. She was transformed three years before by the evil sorcerer, Rothbart, who commonly takes the form of an owl and is evil and very jealous of Odette.
Rothbart conspires to force Odette to marry him and sends his equally evil daughter, Odille to steal the Prince Siegfried away from her by taking her place at the ball. It works, and the prince is convinced until the evil witch finally shows her true form. The Prince, and Rothbart fight, and once Rothbart is killed by a sword, all of his evil magic is undone, and the Swan Princess is now a human princess who marries the Prince, and they live happily ever after.
4 The Fox and the Hound (1981)
The Fox and the Hound is one of the greatest children’s movies ever adapted from a novel. The original novel by Daniel P. Mannix in 1967 is a bit darker and quite different than the Disney adaptation. The original story is extremely sad and ends with tragedy. The Disney movie smooths over the worst parts and makes them child-friendly, something the book is not.
This bittersweet story is about a young fox who meets a young hound after the fox is orphaned and raised by an elderly woman. The man next door is determined to kill the fox, so the woman thinks his best chance is to be free. The fox and hound start off as innocent friends, and as Copper, the hound, and Todd, the fox, become mature, they realize their places in life and become enemies. By the end of the Disney movie, they are friends again, and all is well. There’s even a Fox and the Hound 2. That definitely is not true for the original story.
3 Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988)
This movie, Who Framed Roger Rabbit, was live-action paired with animation, and people went nuts over it. It was for children, despite the sexual references, dark cartoons, and smoking. It certainly caused a generation or two to look at a female cartoon character, Jessica Rabbit, Roger Rabbit’s wife, as a sex symbol, which was a little strange, to say the least. Though she does say that she isn’t bad, she’s just drawn that way. Roger Rabbit was an adorable white rabbit with orange hair, a bow tie, and suspenders. He was adorable all the way down to his shoes.
In Toon Town, everything was always happy and pretty until the dark and completely evil ex-toon villain Judge Doom shows up. Roger and a detective, Eddie, are forced to go on an adventure together to save Toon Town and find out who framed Roger for the death of Marvin Acme, who was said to have played patty-cake with Jessica. It’s a strange and captivating movie that has certainly gone down in the book as iconic.
2 The Last Unicorn (1982)
This breathtakingly beautiful fantasy movie, The Last Unicorn, is a classic and is based on an equally amazing book written by Peter S. Beagle in 1968. Beagle also wrote the screenplay for this magical movie. It is not entirely for children as it has quite a lot of adult content, though most will go over the heads of young children. The characters in the movie are voiced by popular actors such as; Mia Farrow, Jeff Bridges, Angela Lansbury, Christopher Lee, and Alan Arkin.
The story follows a beautiful unicorn as she searches for more of her kind after hearing hunters in the woods talking about how they no longer see unicorns. The hunters know that the forest they are in harbors the last unicorn and choose not to hunt there. The unicorn sets out on an adventure and finds many friends and foes along the way, such as the caterpillar, Schmendrick the magician, Molly Grue, Prince Lir, Mommy Fortuna, King Haggard, and many more. The unicorn faces the Red Bull but fails, so Schmendrick changes her into a human so the Red Bull will not recognize her, and they can come up with a plan to attack. She is then known as Lady Amalthia, Schmendrick’s cousin. From there, she battles in her mind over the quest for answers and defeating the Red Bull or marrying the Prince and living happily ever after. This is definitely one of the most underrated and fantastic animated movies ever made.
1 Oliver and Company (1988)
Oliver and Company is a cute movie and is based on Oliver Twist, the Charles Dickens classic novel. This story follows Oliver, the homeless kitten who teams up with some stray dogs when the going gets tough. He promises to help them get money for their owner to pay off his debt with a bad man named Sykes.
While trying to rob a limousine, Oliver is snatched up by a little inside and taken to her family’s mansion. Oliver is treated very well but returns to the gang once they show up and help him escape. They concoct a plan to get the little girl, Jenny, to pay ransom to get Oliver back. She brings her piggy bank and is kidnapped by Sykes and held for ransom once he catches onto her family being wealthy. Oliver and his friends save the little girl, and Oliver is reunited with her. The gang remains friends with Oliver and Jenny, visiting each other often. This movie is adorable, and the animals in it are highly musical.
