feelsalike.com

Movies that feel like An American Tail (1986)

If you loved An American Tail, the closest films we have are The Land Before Time (1988), The Triplets of Belleville (2003) and A Bug's Life (1998). All three share An American Tail's epic and whimsical feel, which is what we rank on before quality. 10 of the 12 picks below are included with a subscription right now on Netflix, Netflix Standard with Ads and Disney Plus and others, checked against today's data.

A young mouse named Fievel and his family decide to migrate to America, a "land without cats," at the turn of the 20th century. But somehow, Fievel ends up in the New World alone and must fend off not only the felines he never thought he'd have to deal with again but also the loneliness of being away from home.

🍅 76% Rotten Tomatoes6.9 IMDb ↗TMDB ↗dir. Don Bluthepicwhimsicalwittyplayfulcontemplativewarm

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If An American Tail hit the spot, these will too

The Land Before Time poster
The Land Before Time
1988 · dir. Don Bluth
🍅 65%7.4family · animation · adventure

Both are Don Bluth films, and they rhyme

The difference: None of the wit that defines An American Tail

An orphaned brontosaurus named Littlefoot sets off in search of the legendary Great Valley. A land of lush vegetation where the dinosaurs can thrive and live in peace. Along the way he meets four other young dinosaurs, each one a different species, and they encounter several obstacles as they learn to work together in order to survive.

Feels alike?
The Triplets of Belleville poster
The Triplets of Belleville
2003 · dir. Sylvain Chomet
7.7animation · comedy · drama

The same mix in both: scale, then whimsy

The difference: Missing the warmth of An American Tail

When her grandson is kidnapped during the Tour de France, Madame Souza and her beloved pooch Bruno team up with the Belleville Sisters—an aged song-and-dance team from the days of Fred Astaire—to rescue him.

Feels alike?
A Bug's Life poster
A Bug's Life
1998 · dir. John Lasseter
🍅 92%7.2adventure · animation · comedy

Villain sits at the heart of each

On behalf of "oppressed bugs everywhere," an inventive ant named Flik hires a troupe of warrior bugs to defend his bustling colony from a horde of freeloading grasshoppers led by the evil-minded Hopper.

Feels alike?
Toy Story poster
Toy Story
1995 · dir. John Lasseter
🍅 100%8.3family · comedy · animation

The same preoccupation in both: villain

Led by Woody, Andy's toys live happily in his room until Andy's birthday brings Buzz Lightyear onto the scene. Afraid of losing his place in Andy's heart, Woody plots against Buzz. But when circumstances separate Buzz and Woody from their owner, the duo eventually learns to put aside their differences.

Feels alike?
The Secret of NIMH poster
The Secret of NIMH
1982 · dir. Don Bluth
🍅 93%7.5adventure · animation · drama

Don Bluth working the same nerve twice

The difference: Plays it as fantasy more than An American Tail does

A widowed field mouse must move her family -- including an ailing son -- to escape a farmer's plow. Aided by a crow and a pack of superintelligent, escaped lab rats, the brave mother struggles to transplant her home to firmer ground.

Feels alike?
Madagascar poster
Madagascar
2005 · dir. Eric Darnell
🍅 55%6.9adventure · animation · comedy

Witty where it counts, playful underneath

Four animal friends get a taste of the wild life when they break out of captivity at the Central Park Zoo and wash ashore on the island of Madagascar.

Feels alike?
Ice Age poster
Ice Age
2002 · dir. Chris Wedge
🍅 76%7.5animation · comedy · family

Warm adventure in both cases

Manny the mammoth, Sid the loquacious sloth, and Diego the sabre-toothed tiger go on a comical quest to return a human baby back to his father, across a world on the brink of an ice age.

Feels alike?
Inside Out poster
Inside Out
2015 · dir. Pete Docter
🍅 98%8.1animation · family · adventure

Contemplative animation, and it commits to that

The difference: A 2010s film, from a different era of filmmaking

When 11-year-old Riley moves to a new city, her Emotions team up to help her through the transition. Joy, Fear, Anger, Disgust and Sadness work together, but when Joy and Sadness get lost, they must journey through unfamiliar places to get back home.

Feels alike?
The Aristocats poster
The Aristocats
1970 · dir. Wolfgang Reitherman
🍅 64%7.1animation · comedy · family

Comedy with a pulse of scale, in both cases

When Madame Adelaide Bonfamille leaves her fortune to Duchess and her children—Bonfamille’s beloved family of cats—the butler plots to steal the money and kidnaps the legatees, leaving them out on a country road. All seems lost until the wily Thomas O’Malley Cat and his jazz-playing alley cats come to the aristocats’ rescue.

Feels alike?
Ice Age: The Meltdown poster
Ice Age: The Meltdown
2006 · dir. Carlos Saldanha
🍅 56%6.8animation · family · comedy

Both trade on whimsy more than on being family

Diego, Manny and Sid return in this sequel to the hit animated movie Ice Age. This time around, the deep freeze is over, and the ice-covered earth is starting to melt, which will destroy the trio's cherished valley. The impending disaster prompts them to reunite and warn all the other beasts about the desperate situation.

Feels alike?
Cars poster
Cars
2006 · dir. John Lasseter
🍅 74%7.3animation · adventure · comedy

Drama built on wit, twice over

Lightning McQueen, a hotshot rookie race car driven to succeed, discovers that life is about the journey, not the finish line, when he finds himself unexpectedly detoured in the sleepy Route 66 town of Radiator Springs. On route across the country to the big Piston Cup Championship in California to compete against two seasoned pros, McQueen gets to know the town's offbeat characters.

Feels alike?
Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs poster
Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs
2009 · dir. Carlos Saldanha
🍅 46%6.9animation · comedy · family

Both trade on play more than on being adventure

The difference: Reviewed a good deal more coolly

Times are changing for Manny the moody mammoth, Sid the motor mouthed sloth and Diego the crafty saber-toothed tiger. Life heats up for our heroes when they meet some new and none-too-friendly neighbors – the mighty dinosaurs.

Feels alike?

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The best-reviewed films that share An American Tail's defining feeling.