Line #30 DarkerAndEdgier/AnimatedFilms


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11	[[caption-width-right:350:A [[Literature/MrsFrisbyAndTheRatsOfNIMH relatively light novel]] becomes [[WesternAnimation/TheSecretOfNIMH one of the darkest animated films]] of TheEighties.]]
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16	* ''WesternAnimation/The3LittlePigsTheMovie'': While some parts of the story have been made lighter, one part of the original story the film does '''not''' shy away from, is the seriousness of the pigs lives being in real, immediate danger, with some characters going into [[{{Squick}} specific]] detail about what they want to do with the pigs remains.
17	-->'''Vulture''': "I hope they let us have some bones to gnaw on, eh Alfred?"
18	* ''Babar: The Movie'', the first Babar animated film with theatrical release premiered a few months after the 1989 [[WesternAnimation/{{Babar}} animated series]], is much darker than the series, including things like rhinos pillaging and burning down villages, separating children from their mothers (and throwing one of them into a water well), using elephants as slave labor to build pyramids and planning a genocide on Elephantland. The animated series had some pretty harsh stuff (like Babar's mom being shot dead), but in general was a more light-hearted comedy with rhinos as more comedic antagonists than evil slavers.
19	* The WesternAnimation/DCUniverseAnimatedOriginalMovies is a line of animated movies aimed for older comic fans. Tellingly, [[WesternAnimation/SupermanDoomsday the first movie out of the gate]] was an adaptation of ''ComicBook/TheDeathOfSuperman''. At times, the AnimatedAdaptation [[WesternAnimation/BatmanTheDarkKnightReturns of]] ''ComicBook/BatmanTheDarkKnightReturns'' got darker than the comic it's based on, and ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheKillingJoke''[[note]]which takes after the 20th Anniversary UpdatedRerelease in its more subdued coloring, Batman lacking the yellow oval around the batsymbol on his costume, and Joker crying TearsOfBlood during his first laugh[[/note]], ''WesternAnimation/JusticeLeagueDark'', ''WesternAnimation/BatmanGothamByGaslight'', ''WesternAnimation/SuicideSquadHellToPay'', ''WesternAnimation/JusticeLeagueDarkApokolipsWar'', ''WesternAnimation/DCShowcaseBatmanDeathInTheFamily'', ''WesternAnimation/BatmanSoulOfTheDragon'', part two of ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheLongHalloween'', and ''WesternAnimation/DCShowcaseConstantineTheHouseOfMystery'' all got rated "R".
20	** The 2009 made-for-DVD animated film ''{{WesternAnimation/Wonder Woman\|2009}}'' takes this approach. Wonder Woman is shown killing on numerous occasions, including cold-bloodedly killing several guards (including two who have their throats cut ''by her tiara''). The film also ramps up the sexual innuendo.
21	** ''WesternAnimation/BatmanVsTheTeenageMutantNinjaTurtles'': While it's not uncommon for animated Batman movies to be rated PG-13, the movie falls into this even more due to being the first animated Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie, as well as the first animated Nickelodeon movie, to be rated PG-13. There are a number of brutal moments in the movie including, but not limited to, [[spoiler:Shredder nailing a Foot Soldier in the head with a shuriken, Mr. Freeze's DisneyDeath, Leo's Scarecrow induced nightmare of his brothers dying as ''rotting corpses'', and Donatello's brutal arm shatter.]]
22	** ''WesternAnimation/JusticeLeagueDarkApokolipsWar'' is the darkest film so far in the WesternAnimation/DCAnimatedMovieUniverse, although this is to be expected since this is the GrandFinale of the current continuity. [[spoiler:With most of the heroes dead or crippled and Earth left near-inhospitable, Constantine tells Flash to reboot the timeline. AnyoneCanDie is played for keeps in this movie. It's also one of the [[BloodierAndGorier bloodiest and goriest]] DC stories.]]
23	** The aforementioned ''WesternAnimation/DCShowcaseBatmanDeathInTheFamily'' is also this to ''WesternAnimation/BatmanUnderTheRedHood'' as an R-rated InteractiveFiction remake of the earlier PG-13 film.
24	* In the first ''WesternAnimation/DespicableMe1'' film, when the girls were taken by Vector, things just got really serious. [[WesternAnimation/DespicableMe2 The sequel]], on the other hand, averts NeverSayDie multiple times, and the villain's plans for global domination are to [[spoiler:set the BrainwashedAndCrazy minions (who are turned into [[OmnicidalManiac omnicidal maniacs]] as a result of the PX-41 serum) onto the major continents if world leaders don't hand over control to him. And he wants Gru to help him]].
25	* Franchise/DisneyAnimatedCanon:
26	** ''WesternAnimation/TheBlackCauldron'' and ''WesternAnimation/{{The Hunchback of Notre Dame\|Disney}}'' are considered to be among Disney's darkest.
27	*** ''The Black Cauldron'', as it was based on Literature/TheChroniclesOfPrydain, which is itself based on the {{Literature/Mabinogion}} of [[Myth/CelticMythology Welsh Mythology]], was known for its heavy use of darker fantasy concepts, such as the undead, and (attempted) ritualistic sacrifice, as well as the antagonist being a [[OurLichesAreDifferent lich king]] rather than a normal human overlord, and ''very'' mild gore mixed in with heavy violence. In short, it was the first Franchise/DisneyAnimatedCanon movie to get a PG rating.
28	*** ''The Hunchback of Notre Dame'', despite getting a G rating, is just as dark. The whole story is driven by the villain's sexual obsession with one of the female protagonists, and a number of darker themes -- including lust and [[TheFundamentalist religious fanaticism]] -- are shown. For that matter, [[BigBad Frollo]] tries to ''drown baby Quasimodo'' solely because of his deformities, right after killing his mother early in the film, as well as having a lust for Esmeralda and later on, plotting a genocide against the Gypsies. Even though it takes away some of the more explicitly adult themes, it also manages to be significantly darker than [[Literature/TheHunchbackOfNotreDame the original book]], which never brought up infanticide and Gypsy genocide.
29	** ''WesternAnimation/{{Frozen\|2013}}'' is a major contender for this, despite having a bodycount of only two minor characters (the King and Queen), and the villains punished justly without death. The film features childhood trauma, dead parents, murderous and/or selfish noblemen taking advantage of a crisis for their political gain, a comic relief character that spends the movie dreaming about what would kill him, and the entire cast nearly dying [[spoiler:in a massive snowstorm near the end]].
30	*** The first movie already had sombre themes, but ''WesternAnimation/FrozenII'' manages to up the ante by a fair bit. One point of the whole film is how things eventually change and people have to adapt to it. We have war, two major characters suffering a [[spoiler:DisneyDeath that takes some time to get fixed without hints that they'll be revived, and the movie uses that extended time to explore grief further and in more detail than previously. Olaf -- a character symbolic of joyous and innocent childhood love -- dissolves in the arms of Anna, who not only mourns him as her friend, but knows that his death also means that her sister is dead, too. This is shortly after she finds out that her kingdom must be destroyed, and the usually optimistic and unflappable Anna, left without everything and everyone she's ever had,]] reaches her DespairEventHorizon.
31	** While not as extreme as the above, ''WesternAnimation/TheLionKing1994'' is considered darker than most Disney movies seeing as it involves the villain successfully killing one of the good guys, ''his own brother'', [[KilledOffForReal for real]], and clearly averted NeverSayDie. It also dealt rather bluntly with issues like mass starvation. Creator/RogerEbert notably stated that Lion King [[http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/19940624/REVIEWS/406240301/1023 "is surprisingly solemn in its subject matter, and may even be too intense for very young children."]]
32	*** Even in comparison to the first movie, ''WesternAnimation/TheLionKingIISimbasPride'' is perhaps ''even darker''. Its VillainSong is considered much more intense than that of the first, subjects like child abuse and war are dealt with much more bluntly, and the violence is both heavier and more frequent.
33	*** ''WesternAnimation/TheLionKing2019'' is all of the lion-fighting violence and child witnessing his father's death (and being made to think he caused it) of the original that Ebert thought might be too much for young children, now with photo-realistic animals, many of the jokes that took the edge off the intensity of the original film removed, and a subplot re-purposed from the Broadway show in which Scar tries to make Simba's mother his queen.
34	** Disney's ''WesternAnimation/{{Pinocchio}}'' is dark both literally and metaphorically, especially compared to the other early Disney films. There's a few really horrifying sequences such as the scene [[spoiler: where a boy is seen turning into a donkey, made even worse when we see tons of other boys being turned into donkeys who are either sold to the salt mines or kept to pull the carriage to take more boys to the island to meet the same horrifying fate]]. Even more unusual for a Disney film, there are four different villains, including a duo, and [[spoiler:all but one of them get away with the things they do, including the ruthless Coachman who kidnaps boys and turns them into donkeys]].
35	** ''WesternAnimation/{{Mulan}}'' thoroughly addresses the subject of war, and the grim consequences thereof, including the implied large-scale murder of the innocent and the grieving family members of those killed. Unfortunately for some, the comic relief may ruin the mood of these scenes.
36	*** And Mulan's strategic avalanche-triggering makes her personally responsible for the deaths of hundreds of men, something you cannot say about any other Franchise/DisneyPrincess.
37	*** The original poster for the film, compared to the VHS cover.
38	** ''WesternAnimation/BeautyAndTheBeast'' is a very dark movie, despite the breather instances of the 'Be Our Guest' number of dancing teapots and silverware. The story openly shows how much of an outcast Belle is in the town for not conforming to the norm of how the rest of the girls were and were going to throw Maurice into an insane asylum, for [[CassandraTruth talking about a monster nearby]]. The Beast's background and current position is pretty dark as well. Isolated, cursed with a horrible appearance and the only way to break the curse is to get a woman to fall in love with him, which is difficult because of his looks, but also his personality. It's well-balanced with the aforementioned, lighter moments, but in essence is one of the darker movies Disney had brought out at the time.
39	** ''WesternAnimation/CinderellaIIIATwistInTime'' is ''way'' darker/edgier than [[{{WesternAnimation/Cinderella}} the original classic]]. We have Lady Tremaine concocting a very diabolical plan, this time with dark magic on her side, a demonic pumpkin carriage that nearly carries Cinderella to her doom and a pretty intense climax. In addition, Cinderella and her prince [[TookALevelInBadass take levels in badass]].
40	** ''WesternAnimation/{{Tarzan}}'' was generally quite lighthearted, but still was darker than a standard Disney film. Most of the film's action sequences (aside from the baboon chase and Kala's fight with Sabor) are rather serious, with rare funny moments, it deals with themes such as identity and adoption, blood is shown onscreen and [[BloodierAndGorier messily]] and three characters receive [[FamilyUnfriendlyDeath rather dark goodbyes]]: Kala and Kerchak's son is mauled off-screen by Sabor, who also killed Tarzan's biological parents (whose bodies are actually briefly seen, alongside Sabor's ''bloodied pawprints''), and Clayton, the film's BigBad, ''hangs himself'' after cutting off all the vines Tarzan trapped him in, except for the one tangled around his neck.
41	** ''WesternAnimation/{{Dinosaur}}'', for the time, deviated from the Disney norm of warm sing-along-filled movies. It has a subplot where a meteor destroys the lemur's once-lived lands, the musical tone is dark and the movie is about survival.
42	** Some of the Creator/DisneytoonStudios ''Franchise/WinnieThePooh'' works, while still very light hearted (especially compared to everything described above), have a much greater sense of peril and emotion than the original film and books. In both ''WesternAnimation/TheTiggerMovie'' and ''WesternAnimation/PigletsBigMovie'', characters nearly ''die'' and many of the movies Deconstruct the usual playfulness of the cast to deal with rather heavy insecurities and conflicts (especially ''WesternAnimation/PoohsGrandAdventure'').
43	** ''WesternAnimation/TheBraveLittleToaster'' put a [[{{Deconstruction}} very cynical]] spin on the idea of anthropomorphic appliances and electronics: the plot kicked off with the main characters believing that they had been abandoned by their owner, introduces newer appliances which threaten their coveted favorite status, and delivers a truly horrific climax where, [[spoiler: the appliances (and their master) are dumped into a junkyard, thrown onto a conveyor belt by a psychopathic magnet, and almost crushed to death.]]
44	** ''WesternAnimation/RayaAndTheLastDragon'' qualifies to some extent too, since we get to see a princess who actually fights with bladed weapons, as opposed to the stereotypical [[GirlyGirl Girly Girl]] princesses we've seen in past movies.
45	* Creator/DreamWorksAnimation:
46	** While it has its hilarious moments, ''WesternAnimation/KungFuPanda1'' is the film that started the more serious and emotional line of films that Creator/DreamWorksAnimation would go on to produce in the future, being an action comedy with some pretty serious drama going on, as well as the comedy being a bit darker and dropping the pop-culture jokes that [=DreamWorks=] is known for using. In fact, any of [=DreamWorks=]' major franchises will fall subject to either this or CerebusSyndrome at one point:
47	** ''Franchise/{{Shrek}}'' got this with the release of ''WesternAnimation/ShrekForeverAfter'', in which the titular protagonist ends up trapped in a alternate world tyranically ruled by the movie's BigBad, which he has to escape from.
48	** As the ''Franchise/{{Madagascar}}'' movies went on (up until ''WesternAnimation/PenguinsOfMadagascar'', which somewhat returned the original nature of the first movie), comedy was touched upon less frequently, being slowly replaced by a large number of dramatic and emotional scenes.
49	** ''WesternAnimation/KungFuPanda2'' is significantly darker than the first film. Multiple characters are KilledOffForReal onscreen (though we don't get to see most of their bodies), and the NeverSayDie rule from the first movie is broken a LOT, to the point where it seems like "death", "dead", and "kill" are used every other sentence. The BigBad wants to take over all of China with giant cannons that are seemingly unstoppable and really are used to kill. And then there's the repressed memories of Po's traumatizing childhood, which involved the attempted genocide of his entire species.
50	** ''WesternAnimation/{{How to Train Your Dragon\|2010}}'', being released shortly after ''Kung Fu Panda'', wasn't ''that'' dark or edgy, but it was still more serious compared to most of [=DreamWorks=]' other films. [[WesternAnimation/HowToTrainYourDragon2 The sequel]], on the other hand, takes it further. Here, the BigBad is an AxCrazy warmonger who wants to enslave all dragons, there is a battle with a gigantic ice dragon and [[spoiler: Stoick dies. To make matters worse, it was the titular dragon, who was BrainwashedAndCrazy, that killed him]]. [[WesternAnimation/HowToTrainYourDragonTheHiddenWorld The third film]] is no better, with the BigBad, Grimmel the Grisly, being an AxCrazy BloodKnight and a [[HunterOfMonsters dragon hunter]] who's fixated in carrying out [[FinalSolution a mass genocide on all dragons]]. [[spoiler:The film ends with the Vikings and dragons deciding to separate permanently]].
51	** ''Franchise/{{Trolls}}'' has to hit this yet, but it seems that it's already on the way with the overall context and depths that ''WesternAnimation/TrollsWorldTour'' had established.
52	** ''[[WesternAnimation/TheBadGuys2022 The Bad Guys]]'' is more realistic and grounded compared to the book series it's based on, which allows the darker elements -- the prejudice the gang experiences, and the consequences of [[spoiler:Mr. Wolf's betrayal]] -- to stand out better.
53	** ''WesternAnimation/PussInBootsTheLastWish'' is darker than [[WesternAnimation/PussInBoots2011 the previous film]] and the darkest film in the ''Shrek'' franchise overall. While the first film was a conventional swashbuckling adventure with character development and backstory moments, ''The Last Wish'' depicts Puss being forced to come to terms with his mortality. This is emphasized during his first fight with the bounty hunter Wolf, who manages to cut him with his sickle, and [[WhamShot blood drips down Puss's face]]. Speaking of the Wolf, he's one of the most terrifying villains to have ever existed, mainly because of his design, his voice, [[SinisterWhistling his creepy whistle]], and the fact he's portrayed as [[KnightofCerebus a legitimate threat who hunts down Puss to take his last life and isn't played for laughs]]. [[spoiler: Oh, and he's actually not a bounty hunter. In reality, he's actually '''[[TheGrimReaper DEATH]]''']].
54	* ''WesternAnimation/Epic2013'' is this to Creator/BlueSkyStudios' [[WesternAnimation/{{Robots}} other]] [[WesternAnimation/{{Rio}} films]]. As Blue Sky stuck mainly with comedies, this is their first film where the action is pushed to the forefront. Characters die, and a few have major daddy issues.
55	* ''WesternAnimation/IceAgeTheMeltdown'' has quite a bit more peril, as now there's a threat to ''all'' of the cast, main and background, the threats ranging from being eaten by reptiles to being killed by explosive geysers.
56	* The ''Literature/{{Franklin}}'' film ''Franklin and the Turtle Lake Treasure'' threw off a lot of viewers with this and pretty much completely split parents and the show's base. ''Franklin'' is an animated children's show once aired on Creator/NickJr in the United States in which a typical story dealt with something like two friends having a sleepover, or having an argument about a lost baseball card. ''Franklin and Friends'', its AllCGICartoon spinoff, features stories pretty much along the same lines. The ''Turtle Lake Treasure'' film opens with the title character's grandmother having a flashback of her losing her home and family in a fire. Later, the same grandmother falls ill, and Franklin states out loud his worry that she might die. He and his friends, along with two new characters, one of his aunts and her goddaughter, go on a journey to retrieve a magic amulet and along the way, Franklin's friend Snail is kidnapped by a group of birds and spirited away to their nest on a high mountain.
57	* The ''Franchise/GIJoe'' animated film ''WesternAnimation/GIJoeResolute'' predated the live-action ''Film/GIJoeTheRiseOfCobra'' in depicting the Joes as actually hitting and killing enemy soldiers, something that was rather glossed over in the classic TV series.
58	* ''WesternAnimation/TheLegoMovie2TheSecondPart'': Parodied. Bricksburg has become a ''Film/MadMax''-like wasteland where almost everyone has a grungy, battle-tired aesthetic... except Emmet, who looks and acts almost exactly the same as in the last film, bar some new scratches on his uniform's shiny stripes. And the town's citizens deliberately chose the wasteland look in order to fend off the Duplo aliens. The reason for this of course is that Finn is now a teenager and is trying to create a more "mature" narrative with his LEGO sets based on the movies meant for older audiences he's become familiar with in the years since the first film.
59	* Among ''WesternAnimation/TheMindsEye'' series of videos, there's ''The Gate to the Mind's Eye''. While the others showcase a number of different animation segments with a wide range of atmospheres and subjects, the beginning of ''The Gate'' goes for the jugular with depictions of an advanced civilization at war, decimation of the environment, implications of death by the millions (called "River of Souls" for a ''very'' good reason), dark and gritty imagery in general, and a Satan-like being who likes to loom in the sky using the moon as a headrest. The music for these sequences features OminousLatinChanting and a downtrodden piano solo. Naturally, the first of these sequences is called "Armageddon". The rest of the video remains about as sombre until "Nuvogue", where it picks the whimsical and fun-loving tone back up.
60	* A few parents complained that the ''WesternAnimation/MissSpidersSunnyPatchFriends'' film ''The Prince, the Princess and the Bee'' went a bit too far with this with a fire-spitting fire and some drama involving danger in a hot-air balloon, but it really isn't too much of a slide.
61	* ''WesternAnimation/MoominsOnTheRiviera'' was not so much darker but definitely edgier than the other animated adaptations of ''The Moomins''. Critic Sara Steensig of gbtimes was enthusiastic towards the film but pointed out Moominpappa's painful hangover and Moomintroll's bitter jealousy, and noted that "These are phenomena that adults will recognize but most children will not, and they are shown in a way that will not make young kids wonder about things they are not ready for."
62	* ''WesternAnimation/MortalKombatLegendsScorpionsRevenge'' is this compared to previous adaptions. Given how we follow a martial arts tournament where the fate of the world is at stake, and it's rated R this definitely follows suit.
63	* ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyTheMovie2017'' is a BigDamnMovie and considerably more dramatic and [[ActionizedSequel actionized]] than [[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic the show]] it is based on, as evident from the trailers, which show the characters basically almost dying several times (even though [[SavedByCanon they won't]]) To cement this further, [[AvoidTheDreadedGRating the movie actually received a]] ''[[AvoidTheDreadedGRating PG]]'' [[AvoidTheDreadedGRating rating, when most expected a]] ''[[AvoidTheDreadedGRating G]]''. Of course, [[SugarBowl it's still]] ''My Little Pony'', so it being "Darker And Edgier" really [[DownplayedTrope doesn't say much]] in the long run. The movie still has all the lighthearted fun one would expect from the show and its characters. It's also notable that it's not really much more intense than some of what goes on during the show's more actionized episodes: the show itself has a tendency to open and end seasons with episodes featuring heavy action and dark subplots, while going with lighter often more SliceOfLife stuff throughout most of the rest of a season.
64	* ''Animation/ThePiedPiper'': Even though the original fairy tale had the Pied Piper lure the children of Hamelin away to never be seen again, this version contains a bit of violence, a darker and gloomier atmosphere, [[spoiler:a heavily implied rape and murder scene of an innocent woman and the Pied Piper transforming all of the townspeople into rats and leading them to the lake to drown]]. Also, the Pied Piper's appearance is much darker and more mysterious than the jester like appearance in other interpretations looking more like a DarkLord or a specter.
65	* As far as Creator/{{Pixar}} movies go, ''WesternAnimation/{{Brave}}'', ''WesternAnimation/TheIncredibles'', ''WesternAnimation/Cars2'' and ''WesternAnimation/ToyStory3'' are darker than the usual fare.
66	** ''Toy Story 3'' doubles as an example of Darker And Edgier ''within'' a series, and was an especially memorable case, since it took a series with a reputation for lightheartedness and gave it a PrisonEpisode.
67	** ''The Incredibles'', with its gun violence, depictions of ElectricTorture, suicide attempts, large-scale destruction, bad guys who WouldHurtAChild, and "good guys" who run from the police and lie to their own families, all in the same film, may very well be the darkest Pixar movie yet. Creator/BradBird's history of working on ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'' really comes through here.
68	-->'''Brad Bird:''' Really, really little kids should not see this movie. They should wait till they get older. We're getting some reactions from people who were disappointed that their four-year-old was a little freaked out by it. Well, I don't want to compromise the intensity in order to please a four-year-old.
69	** Poked fun at in ''WesternAnimation/Incredibles2'' when Helen complains about her new "angsty looking" monochromatic super-suit. It also serves as a TakeThat to dark superhero redesigns.
70	** A good portion of ''WesternAnimation/WallE'' takes place in a [[AfterTheEnd dark, trash-covered]] Earth. Not to mention the main character is completely alone. His only company is a cockroach. He then finds himself on a [[CrapsaccharineWorld colorful starship]] full of apathetic obese people.
71	** Despite being considered a BreatherEpisode by some, ''WesternAnimation/Cars2'' is a lot more intense than the first one. Its plot focuses on [[GeniusDitz Mater]] accidentally getting mixed up on a spy mission, and there's a lot of violence and character deaths to be seen along the way, in spite of the wackier narrative and protagonist trying to moderate it. Several brutal on-screen deaths occur, such as a character being crushed into a cube, a character being blown up alive, and some characters being crushed alive.
72	*** The teaser for ''WesternAnimation/Cars3'' is substantially grittier than the rest of the franchise since it revolves around a life-changing car crash that its protagonist, Lightning [=McQueen=], gets into. The color palette is [[RealIsBrown washed-out grey]], the CGI looks a lot more realistic, and the cartoonish faces of the cars themselves are nowhere to be seen. The whole thing actually has more in common with a PublicServiceAnnouncement about car safety than it does a Pixar movie. {{Subverted}} with the film itself, however, which remained fairly in-tone with the first film.
73	* [[Creator/{{Sanrio}} Sanrio Animation's]] second ''Manga/{{Unico}}'' movie starring the titular character ''Anime/UnicoInTheIslandOfMagic'' from 1983 has a darker story compared to the 1981 movie ''Anime/TheFantasticAdventuresOfUnico''. While the movie does share it's lighthearted tone as the 1981 film. It doesn't include musical numbers and the tone is more serious. Even posters for the sequel reflects the film's darker tone such as [[https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNDA5MTkyODctMWU0ZC00OTRlLTlkZmItYjg2OWFjNGJiZTY3XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMzUwMTgwMw@@._V1_.jpg an angry Unico and a silhouette of the film's main antagonist]] while another poster [[https://pics.filmaffinity.com/The_Fantastic_Adventure_of_Unico-108346495-large.jpg shows a worried Unico]] compared to the previous film's posters reflecting it's [[https://ecshopsanrio.blob.core.windows.net/ecimage/N-1308-760951_1.jpg whimsical]] and [[https://i.pinimg.com/originals/3b/9d/6d/3b9d6de9a0bed8a797623892a9843488.jpg mysterious tone]].
74	* ''WesternAnimation/TheSecretOfNIMH'' is much more frightening than the novel ''Literature/MrsFrisbyAndTheRatsOfNIMH''. While it has does have some elements of {{Disneyfication}}, the majority of the events are PlayedForDrama more than in the book, considering the protagonist is a mouse. For example, Brutus scares off Mrs. Brisby with a spear rather than simply turning her back from the rosebush. Then there's onscreen blood, an evil villain, multiple [[FamilyUnfriendlyDeath violent deaths]], and the threat of [[spoiler:Mrs. Brisby's home sinking into the mud]], all of which were completely absent from the novel. The director and producers ''tried'' to get a PG rating to [[AvoidTheDreadedGRating appeal to a wider audience]], but it rated G anyway.
75	* ''WesternAnimation/SpongeBobSquarePants''[='=] [[TheMovie film adaptations]] are much darker than the series.
76	** [[WesternAnimation/TheSpongeBobSquarePantsMovie The first movie]], unlike the rest of the series, is considerably a lot darker and has plenty of horror elements. Plankton is more depraved and vicious than in the series, to the point that he sadistically shows excitement and joy when King Neptune is about to kill Mr. Krabs, not to mention the monsters that abound in the way of [=SpongeBob=] and Patrick and the ruthless mercenary Dennis sent by Plankton to kill the duo. Spongebob and Patrick [[spoiler:literally die (before being brought back to life later on)]] and an early scene shows them getting hopelessly drunk and having a hangover in the morning ([[DrunkOnMilk on ice cream.]] Again, this is a PG movie).
77	** While it's not as dark as the first movie, ''[[WesternAnimation/TheSpongeBobMovieSpongeOutOfWater The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water]]'' still has its moments compared to the show. A major example being that the Bikini Bottom Apocalypse is actually played rather seriously, especially in the [[spoiler:sacrifice scene]].
78	* Downplayed in ''WesternAnimation/TheSuperMarioBrosMovie'', compared to the [[Franchise/SuperMarioBros games]]. Mario is less sure of himself and every reference to death that would be [[NeverSayDie replaced with a euphemism]] in the games ''isn't'', and one character explicitly [[DeathSeeker wants to die]], but it's just as cheerful and upbeat as the games otherwise.
79	* ''WesternAnimation/TheTransformersTheMovie'' compared to most of the rest of the series, the original series occasionally took a darker turn but everything usually turned out fine in the end, but in the movie the vast majority of the original Autobots are killed within the first 20 minutes in increasingly gruesome manners, Optimus Prime included, later the surviving Autobots (mostly newer characters) band together to save the world from Unicron, a [[PlanetEater planet-eating]] Transformer, while having to avoid Galvatron, the rebuilt Megatron.

Context DarkerAndEdgier / AnimatedFilms