7 Animated Movies Like Luck You Must See

Directed by Peggy Holmes, ‘Luck’ is an Apple TV+ computer-animated fantasy family film. It tells the story of Sam Greenfield (Eva Noblezada), a young woman who seems to have the worst luck in the world. Having grown up sheltered in an orphanage, Sam feels tentative about facing the world by herself after she turns 18. Despite this, she tries to lead the best life she can, even though bad luck follows her everywhere. One day, she meets a Scottish magical black cat (Simon Pegg), who accidentally leaves behind a penny. When Sam picks it up, her luck changes.

‘Luck’ is a heart-warming film with a simple and wonderful message. If you have watched ‘Luck’ and loved it, here is a list of recommendations that might fit your taste. You can watch most of these movies similar to ‘Luck’ on Netflix, Hulu, or Amazon Prime.

7. Earwig and the Witch (2020)

Based on the namesake novel by Diana Wynne Jones, ‘Earwig and the Witch’ is the first full 3D CG animated film developed by Studio Ghibli. Set in 1990s England, the story follows Earwig, who has spent the first ten years of her life at St. Morwald’s Home for Children. She is very content with her life there and has no desire to be adopted. Despite this, she is adopted by a bizarre couple, Bella Yaga and Mandrake. Bella Yaga is revealed to be a witch. She tells Earwig that she and Mandrake adopted her only because she needs help with her work. The more time Earwig spends in her magical home, the more she realizes that her current circumstances have a connection to her past. Both Sam of ‘Luck’ and Earwig spend the early years of their life in an orphanage and leave it at the start of their respective stories.

6. Onward (2020)

‘Onward’ is set in a world that is just like ours with certain key differences — fantastical creatures exist in that world as does magic. However, with the advent of technology, people don’t feel the need to use magic in their everyday lives. The story revolves around Elven siblings Ian Lightfoot (Tom Holland) and Barley Lightfoot (Chris Pratt). On Ian’s 16th birthday, their mother gives the two boys three items left by their late father— a Phoenix gem, a magical staff, and a letter detailing a visitation spell that can bring back the deceased for a day. Due to Bartley’s actions, the spell is incomplete and only the lower half of the body of their father appears. This prompts Ian and Barley to embark on a journey to find a way to complete the spell. Both ‘Luck’ and ‘Onward use fantastical settings to tell a story about family.

5. A Bug’s Life (1998)

Inspired by Aesop’s fable ‘The Ant and the Grasshopper,’ ‘A Bug’s Life’ is both a morality tale and a classic underdog story. Flik is a young and industrious ant that dreams of freeing his colony from the tyrannical control of the grasshoppers and their diabolical leader, Hopper. After a failed attempt to do so, Flik ends up worsening the circumstances for the ants and is subsequently exiled. He meets a group of circus bugs. Mistaking them to be warriors, he takes them back to the colony so they can help the ants overthrow the grasshoppers. Both ‘Luck’ and ‘A Bug’s Life’ are based on relatively simple concepts, but the execution is multi-layered.

4. Toy Story (1995)

One of the seminal animated works of all time, ‘Toy Story’ revolves around a group of anthropomorphic toys. Whenever they are around humans, they assume lifeless forms. Until recently, Sheriff Woody (Tom Hanks) has been the favorite toy of the boy Andy, but that changes with the arrival of a Buzz Lightyear action figure (Tim Allen), who fails to comprehend the notion that he is a toy and earns Woody’s ire for replacing him. Like ‘Luck,’ ‘Toy Story’ celebrates friendship and family. Both films also encourage us to seek out the inner good.

3. Soul (2020)

If ‘Luck’ is about infusing life into the abstract concept of fate, ‘Soul’ does the same thing with the afterlife. Joe Gardner (Jamie Foxx) is a jazz pianist and music teacher. Life hasn’t turned out the way Joe wanted it to. Moreover, right when he gets his big break, Joe is seemingly killed after falling down an open maintenance hole. Joe subsequently finds himself in a disembodied state, moving toward a place known as the Great Beyond. After a failed attempt to escape, Joe ends up in Great Before and encounters 22 (Tina Fey), who doesn’t want to go to Earth.

2. Spirited Away (2002)

Like Sam, Chihiro Ogino, the protagonist of ‘Spirited Away’ is transported to an otherworldly realm. While on their way to their new home, Chihiro and her parents stop at what seems like an abandoned amusement park. With the help of a boy named Haku, Chihiro soon discovers that she and her family are now stuck in the spirit world. She must find a way to escape as quickly as possible because the more time she spends in the spirit world, the more she will forget about herself.

1. Inside Out (2015)

If ‘Luck’ and ‘Soul’ explore fate and the afterlife through easily understandable tropes, ‘Inside Out’ does so with human emotions. The film revolves around a young girl named Riley and the five basic emotions that inhabit her mind — Joy, Disgust. Anger, Fear, and Sadness. Led by Joy, the others try to minimize the effects of Sadness. After her father gets a job, Riley relocates from Minnesota to San Francisco and struggles to fit in. The experiences that Riley has turn into memories. They are then transferred through tubes to the long-term memory. After Joy and Sadness are sucked out of the headquarters during a struggle between them, the remaining three are forced to take over, which drastically alters Riley’s personality.