Kubo and the Two Strings (2016)

This has been an excellent year for animation, and in an off-year for Pixar at that (Finding Dory was good but uninspiring). And amid all these excellent animations, this one is surely the most beautifully done. This stop motion has some very impressive visuals, and it is rightly on the shortlist for the Oscar for Best Visual Effects It plays on the theme of origami and you could only imagine how difficult it must be to do stop motion in origami. There is a seamless combination with computer generation that you legitimately cannot even tell the difference.

On top of that, I love the music. Kubo plays his two-stringed instrument with magic powers. The Italian translation incorrectly titles the film Kubo and the Magic Sword, but it's not about the sword at all. What makes it so special is that his weapon is a beautiful cultural instrument. This film embraces Japanese culture and puts it on display in a beautiful homage.

The imaginative story is wonderfully complex, and unexpectedly sad and powerful. The range of emotion is Pixar-level, bombarding these kids with more than might understand. Maybe Laika will pick up the torch of creativity where Pixar left it and become the new cornerstone for the medium.