Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc
(2025)A young man who can transform into a chainsaw demon gets entangled with a mysterious woman. They form a bond, but she has a hidden mission that threatens everything.
Anime films beyond Studio Ghibli
Ghibli is the door most people come in through, and then the recommendations run out. Japanese animation is much wider than one studio: quiet domestic dramas, science fiction that takes itself seriously, and a few things that have no equivalent in live action at all.
Your Name
(2016)Two high school students, Taki and Mitsuha, start swapping bodies without warning. They must figure out how to navigate each other's lives and find a way to meet.
A Silent Voice
(2016)A former bully reaches out to the deaf girl he tormented in elementary school to make amends. The story follows their fragile attempts at friendship and healing.
Attack on Titan: The Roar of Awakening
(2018)Humanity fights for survival against giant man-eating titans. This film retells the story of soldiers defending their walled city and uncovering secrets about the titans.
Perfect Blue
(1997)A young pop idol retires from her music group to become an actress. She is stalked by a dangerous fan and starts to lose her grip on what is real and what is fantasy.
The End of Evangelion
(1997)A teenage pilot must get into his giant biomechanical robot while a shadowy organization attacks his base and a woman tries to bring him back to the fight against a plan to merge all human souls.
Violet Evergarden: The Movie
(2020)Violet Evergarden takes on a job to write a letter for a dying boy, while she continues to search for the meaning behind the final words of the man she loved. The story follows her emotional journey as she helps others express themselves through writing.
The Quintessential Quintuplets Movie
(2022)A tutor named Futaro Uesugi decides to confess his love to one of the five identical quintuplet sisters he has been teaching. The film takes place during the sisters' final school festival.
Josee, the Tiger and the Fish
(2020)A college student meets a young woman who uses a wheelchair and has a sharp personality. They develop an unlikely connection through shared interests and time spent together.
I Want to Eat Your Pancreas
(2018)A quiet high school boy learns that his outgoing classmate Sakura has a terminal pancreas illness. Despite their different personalities they form a close friendship and spend her remaining time together.
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba the Movie: Mugen Train
(2020)A young demon slayer and his friends board a train to investigate mysterious disappearances. They must fight powerful demons while protecting the passengers.
Wolf Children Ame and Yuki
(2012)A young woman named Hana falls in love with a werewolf and they have two children. After his death, she raises their shape-shifting children Ame and Yuki alone in the countryside as they grow up and discover who they want to become.
Evangelion: 3.0+1.0 Thrice Upon a Time
(2021)A young man confronts his past and a final conflict in a post-apocalyptic world. Giant robots and deep personal struggles collide as the story reaches its conclusion.
Rascal Does Not Dream of a Dreaming Girl
(2019)A high school student faces a supernatural condition that causes a girl he knows to physically age backward. He must help her confront a traumatic event to stop the regression.
Look Back
(2024)Two girls bond over their shared passion for drawing. The outgoing Fujino and the reclusive Kyomoto start as rivals but later become creative partners.
Maquia: When the Promised Flower Blooms
(2018)A young woman from a long-lived race flees a war and adopts a human baby. She raises him as her son while struggling with their different lifespans.
My Hero Academia: Heroes Rising
(2019)A class of superhero students goes on a training trip to a remote island. They have to protect the local people from a villain with a dangerous power.
Jujutsu Kaisen 0
(2021)A young student named Yuta Okkotsu is haunted by a powerful cursed spirit, the ghost of his childhood friend Rika. He enrolls at Jujutsu High to learn sorcery and control her, battling other curses alongside fellow students. The film shows his struggle against dark forces and his own inner turmoil.
Violet Evergarden: Eternity and the Auto Memory Doll
(2019)Violet Evergarden, a former soldier turned auto memory doll, is hired to tutor a noble girl at a private school. She helps the young woman write letters that reveal hidden feelings and forge a connection.
Digimon Adventure: Last Evolution Kizuna
(2020)Young adults Taichi and his friends must confront the fact that their partnership with their Digimon will end as they grow older. They face a new threat that forces them to choose between their future and their bonds with their digital companions.
Black Clover: Sword of the Wizard King
(2023)A young mage without magic joins a squad of knights to fight against a revived former wizard king who seeks revenge. The story takes place between arcs of the main anime series.
Kizumonogatari Part 3: Reiketsu
(2017)A high school boy confronts three vampire hunters who want to kill the vampire he saved. The story resolves the consequences of his choice and his new existence as a half-vampire.
Weathering with You
(2019)A teenage boy runs away from his rural home to Tokyo and meets a girl who can control the weather. They form a bond as he tries to help her use her power.
Kizumonogatari II: Nekketsu-hen
(2016)A high school boy is turned into a vampire after helping a wounded woman. He must hunt other vampires to reclaim his humanity.
Dragon Ball Super: Broly
(2018)Goku and Vegeta meet a powerful Saiyan named Broly. The film shows the history of the Saiyan race and how these three fighters are connected.
Whisper of the Heart
(1995)A teenage girl discovers a passion for writing after following a stray cat into a mysterious antique shop. She meets a boy who inspires her to pursue her creative dreams, and together they navigate the challenges of growing up and finding their paths.
Akira
(1988)In a destroyed Tokyo rebuilt as a sprawling futuristic city, a young biker named Tetsuo gains powerful psychic abilities after a motorcycle crash. His friend Kaneda must try to stop him as the military and mysterious children with similar powers also get involved.
When Marnie Was There
(2014)A withdrawn girl named Anna goes to stay with relatives in a rural Hokkaido town. She befriends a mysterious girl named Marnie at an abandoned mansion, and their summer together helps Anna understand her past and her feelings about adoption.
Tokyo Godfathers
(2003)Three homeless people in Tokyo find an abandoned baby on Christmas Eve. They set out to find the baby's parents, getting into various misadventures along the way.
Ghost in the Shell
(1995)In 2029, a cyborg police major named Motoko Kusanagi hunts a mysterious hacker known as the Puppet Master. The chase forces her to question what it means to have a soul when your body is mostly machine.
In This Corner of the World
(2016)The story follows a young woman from a rural fishing village who moves to the city of Kure after an arranged marriage. It shows her daily life and struggles as World War Two escalates and eventually impacts her family and community.
La Maison en Petits Cubes
(2008)An old man lives alone in a house that is slowly being submerged by rising water. He builds new levels on top to stay above the water, and while doing so he remembers his life and lost family.
The Boy and the Beast
(2015)A lonely boy runs away to a fantasy world of animal-like beasts. He trains under a gruff bear-like creature to become a warrior and finds a new family.
Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero
(2022)Piccolo and his former student Gohan must protect the world from the Red Ribbon Army which has returned with new power. The two heroes face off against cyborgs and other threats in an animated adventure.
A Whisker Away
(2020)A teenage girl who feels invisible at school discovers a magical mask that lets her turn into a cat. She uses this power to get close to a boy she likes but the transformation comes with consequences.
Millennium Actress
(2001)A documentary crew interviews a legendary retired actress about her life and career. As she recounts her experiences, the lines between her movies and real memories start to blend together.
FLCL
(2000)A twelve-year-old boy's ordinary life is turned upside down when a manic alien woman named Haruko arrives in his town. She hits him in the head with her guitar and strange robots start sprouting from the bump. He gets pulled into her chaotic battles against an intergalactic corporation.
Suzume
(2022)A 17-year-old girl and a young stranger work together to close magical doors across Japan to prevent earthquakes caused by a giant supernatural worm. Their journey turns into a race against time as they face disasters tied to the past.
My Hero Academia: Two Heroes
(2018)Izuku Midoriya visits a high-tech island with his mentor All Might. When villains attack the island, the young superheroes must work together to stop them.
The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya
(2010)A high school student arrives at school to find that his eccentric classmate Haruhi Suzumiya has vanished and the world has changed around him. He must piece together what happened while trying to restore things to how they were.
This list is from Underplayed Gems, a catalogue of films and series from everywhere. Not quite it? Tell the Catbot what you feel like watching, or browse by genre, country and year.