2007 was weird. It was this strange, transitional bridge where the old ways of making animation were desperately holding on while the new CGI overlords finally figured out how to make us cry over a rat in a kitchen. If you look back at the cartoon movies of 2007, you aren't just looking at a list of nostalgic hits. You're looking at the precise moment the industry shifted gears forever.
Think about it. We got the long-awaited Simpsons Movie, which basically proved that 2D animation could still dominate the global box office if the writing was sharp enough. Then we had Pixar dropping Ratatouille, a film so technically complex for its time that it made every other studio realize they had to seriously level up or get out of the game. It wasn't just a good year for kids; it was a high-water mark for the medium itself.
The Rat That Changed Everything
Brad Bird is a bit of a perfectionist. Actually, that's an understatement. After the success of The Incredibles, he stepped into Ratatouille late in the game, replacing Jan Pinkava. The result? A masterpiece about a French rat that somehow became the gold standard for how to animate food and lighting.
Before 2007, CG food usually looked like plastic blocks or weirdly glowing sludge. Pixar’s team actually spent time with chefs like Thomas Keller at The French Laundry to understand the physics of a kitchen. They cooked real ratatouille. They let produce rot in the office to see how colors shifted. Honestly, it sounds gross, but that obsession is why the movie still looks better than half the stuff coming out today. It’s about the "subsurface scattering"—how light hits a grape or a piece of cheese. It changed the visual language of cartoon movies of 2007 by proving that digital textures didn't have to look sterile.
Why The Simpsons Movie Was a 2D Miracle
For years, people said The Simpsons had peaked in the 90s. By the time 2007 rolled around, the "Yellow Fever" had cooled off significantly. Then, Matt Groening and his army of writers decided to finally pull the trigger on a feature film.
It was a massive risk.
If it flopped, it would have signaled the death of 2D animation in theaters. But it didn't. It made over $500 million. They used a "widescreen" aesthetic that kept the hand-drawn charm but added depth through subtle shadows and massive crowd scenes that the TV show could never afford. Who could forget the "Spider-Pig" song? It was a cultural reset. It reminded everyone that simple lines and great voice acting (looking at you, Dan Castellaneta) could still outshine the flashiest 3D renders.
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The Surf's Up Mockumentary Experiment
Sony Pictures Animation was in a weird spot back then. They weren't quite Pixar, and they weren't DreamWorks. So, they tried something genuinely ballsy with Surf's Up. Instead of a standard "hero's journey," they made a mockumentary about surfing penguins.
It sounds stupid on paper. It really does.
But the animation was revolutionary. They used handheld camera movements—simulated, of course—to give it that raw, "Cops" or "The Office" vibe. They even had the characters "break the fourth wall" and talk to the camera crew. Jeff Bridges basically played a penguin version of The Dude from The Big Lebowski. It didn't do Shrek numbers at the box office, but among animators, it’s still cited as one of the most creatively directed cartoon movies of 2007. They weren't just making a movie; they were playing with the medium.
Shrek the Third and the Franchise Fatigue
We have to talk about the Ogre in the room. Shrek the Third was huge, but it was also the moment the world started to get a little tired of the DreamWorks formula. The first two were subversive and fresh. The third one? It felt a bit like a corporate mandate.
Don't get me wrong, it made a billion dollars. But critics weren't kind. It relied heavily on pop culture references that haven't aged as well as the character-driven humor of Ratatouille. It’s a fascinating case study in how a franchise can become "too big to fail" while simultaneously losing its soul. It marked the end of the "ironic" era of animation and pushed audiences back toward wanting stories with more heart.
The Bee Movie Meme Legacy
Jerry Seinfeld as a bee. It's a sentence that shouldn't work, and honestly, in 2007, it was just "that weird bee movie." Fast forward to the internet age, and Bee Movie is a god-tier meme.
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But looking at it objectively, the production was actually top-tier. Seinfeld was incredibly hands-on, often rewriting lines on the fly. The animation of "New Hive City" was bright, saturated, and technically impressive. It’s one of those cartoon movies of 2007 that has lived three different lives: first as a blockbuster, then as a forgotten DVD, and finally as an immortal piece of internet surrealism. Does it make sense that a bee sues the human race? No. Is it entertaining? Absolutely.
Persepolis: The Dark Horse
While Hollywood was focused on penguins and ogres, Marjane Satrapi was bringing her graphic novel Persepolis to life. This wasn't a "cartoon" in the Saturday morning sense. It was a stark, black-and-white, hand-drawn autobiography about growing up during the Iranian Revolution.
It won the Jury Prize at Cannes. It showed that animation was a serious tool for journalism and memoir. If you compare the visuals of Persepolis to something like Meet the Robinsons (another 2007 release), the contrast is staggering. One is a high-octane 3D future-fest, and the other is a haunting, minimalist reflection on war and identity. 2007 was the year that proved these two things could exist in the same ecosystem.
The Technical Leap of Meet the Robinsons
Disney was in a "blue period" before their second renaissance. Meet the Robinsons is often overlooked, but it was their first real attempt at finding their 3D voice after the departure from traditional 2D.
It’s messy. It’s hyperactive. But it’s also deeply emotional. The "Keep Moving Forward" message—a direct quote from Walt Disney—felt like a mission statement for the studio. They were struggling to keep up with Pixar (who they had recently acquired), and this movie was the training ground for the tech they would later use for Tangled and Wreck-It Ralph.
The Forgotten Gems and Oddities
Not everything was a hit. We had TMNT, the gritty, all-CGI take on the Ninja Turtles. It looked great—very moody and rainy—but the story was a bit thin. Then there was Beowulf.
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Now, is Beowulf a cartoon? It’s motion-capture. Robert Zemeckis was obsessed with "uncanny valley" realism back then. Watching it now, the eyes look a little dead, but in 2007, seeing a digital Angelina Jolie was a massive technical talking point. It pushed the boundaries of what we define as an animated film, even if it made us all a little uncomfortable.
What We Learned from the 2007 Slate
Looking back, the biggest takeaway is that 2007 killed the "one size fits all" approach to animation. You had the high-art of Persepolis, the technical perfection of Pixar, the satirical powerhouse of The Simpsons, and the experimental mockumentary style of Surf's Up.
The industry realized that "animation" isn't a genre—it's a medium. You can tell a story about a rat, a revolutionary, or a surfer, and as long as the visual style matches the emotional tone, people will show up. It was the last year before the Marvel Cinematic Universe took over the world, and you can see that creative freedom in every frame of these films.
Actionable Takeaways for Animation Fans
If you're looking to revisit this era, don't just stick to the hits. To truly appreciate the cartoon movies of 2007, you should watch them in a specific order to see the technical evolution:
- Watch Ratatouille first to see the pinnacle of lighting and texture. Notice how the copper pots and the steam look tactile.
- Follow it with Surf's Up but ignore the plot. Watch the "camera work." Notice how it shakes and zooms like a real documentary crew is holding it.
- Check out Persepolis to reset your palette. It reminds you that you don't need 10 million polygons to tell a heart-wrenching story.
- End with The Simpsons Movie to appreciate the sheer craftsmanship of hand-drawn timing and physical comedy that 3D often struggles to replicate.
The year 2007 wasn't just a blip. It was a crossroads. We chose a path toward high-fidelity CGI, but we did it while celebrating the final, glorious breaths of 2D dominance. It’s a year worth studying if you want to understand why movies look the way they do today.
Next Steps for Your 2007 Watchlist:
- Locate a high-definition copy of Ratatouille to appreciate the "SSS" (Subsurface Scattering) technology that defined the year.
- Compare the "uncanny valley" effects in Beowulf with the stylized characters of Meet the Robinsons to see two different philosophies of 3D design.
- Listen to the director's commentary on The Simpsons Movie to understand the grueling process of converting a 4:3 TV show into a cinematic experience.