The Iron Giant

The blog post made recently about the show Archer, and the ways in which it utilizes both 2D and 3D animation techniques in its production, reminded me of one of my most beloved childhood movies that also uses both animation styles (though not in the same way). The Iron Giant, released back in 1999, takes place in the era of McCarthyism in the U.S., and is the story of a boy finding a giant alien robot and befriending it. Almost the entire movie is animated in 2D, with the exception of the Iron Giant itself, who is rendered in 3D. The animators do an incredible job of making the 3D alien robot feel less alien within its 2D environment, and, along with its great story and interesting characters, make for one of my favorite films of all time.

Here's the trailer for the remastered edition: