Movies Under 90 Minutes Part 9: Semi-Finals

 

Part Nine: The Semi-Finals - Three Films Eliminated

 

After the surprising results of the quarter-finals, I am now left with our final five competitors in this battle for greatest movie of all time that’s under 90 minutes! This penultimate installment will be a combination of new and old. I’m going to save repeating myself and not say the same things about these films I’ve already written at length about; instead, I’ll include links to what I’ve previously said about these finalists before, then focus on how they compare to one another before choosing the final two films to duke it out in the final round. That means for three of these movies, this will be as far as they go. 

In no particular order, first I’m looking at Toy Story.

Toy Story (1995): Favourite Films Series - https://cccmovies.blogspot.com/2025/11/toy-story-1995-favourite-films-series.html

Next up, Fantastic Mr. Fox.

Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009): Favourite Films Series - https://cccmovies.blogspot.com/2022/04/fantastic-mr-fox-2009-favourite-films.html

Next is Homeward Bound.

Homeward Bound: The Incredible Journey (1993): Favourite Films Series -  https://cccmovies.blogspot.com/2026/02/homeward-bound-incredible-journey-1993.html

Next is Stand by Me.

Stand by Me (1986): Favourite Films Series - https://cccmovies.blogspot.com/2021/09/stand-by-me-1986-favourite-films-series.html

And last but not least, Pinocchio.

Pinocchio (1940): Favourite Films Series - https://cccmovies.blogspot.com/2026/08/pinocchio-1940-favourite-films-series.html

 

It’s all fine and dandy to review why each of these films are part of my Favourite Films Series, but now I’m moving beyond that. It comes as no surprise that the dominant genre remaining is the family films genre. It was the toughest one to whittle down, and the remaining films are all of the highest caliber. Stand by Me is the outlier now, in terms of genres, but in many ways, that story is designed for all ages, despite dealing with some mature themes and containing content that is decidedly unfriendly for children. Does that put it at an advantage or disadvantage when compared with the other four?

Having seen each of these movies numerous times throughout my life, two considerations include which one I’ve seen the least number of times, and which one I saw latest in life. Thinking back, I’ve probably seen Pinocchio the least, which is a little ironic given it’s the oldest movie here, and among the three that were released before my lifetime (though Toy Story came out when I was only fourteen months old), but I think one of the main reasons was because I didn’t own it on VHS. There may have been some parental logic around renting types of movies that were different than what we already had at home; if I was in the mood for a Disney animated feature, it would make more sense to just put on one that we already owned, or rent something different to make the most of the rental fee. I recall picking Homeward Bound multiple times when renting movies, more often than Toy Story, and when I started buying movies myself, that was a game changer.

I can even recall in what order I came to own these five movies: first Fantastic Mr. Fox, then Toy Story, Stand by Me, Homeward Bound, and then Pinocchio. I first saw Fantastic Mr. Fox when I rented it in the twilight of my movie rental days (before streaming destroyed that wonderful pastime), and when I bought it later, it came with the Blu-ray, DVD, and a digital copy. I remember watching it on my old iPod with one of my best friends when we were on a camping trip in high school, I’ve watched the Blu-ray multiple times, and I’ve shown the movie on DVD to an art class. Homeward Bound rewatches have been lower since I’ve owned it compared to when I was a kid, but I think I’ve seen Toy Story more times as an adult and might even appreciate it more now. The same goes for Pinocchio. Stand by Me has been a consistent rewatch for me in my adult years. I distinctly remember the day I bought the DVD when I was in high school and the guy at the register looked at it, paused, and remarked on how great he remembered the movie being, and that he hadn’t thought about it in a while, but it was worth owning. I first saw it on TV, then kind of forgot about it myself for a little while, and I don’t recall what made me remember it. I think I just happened to find it when browsing at the store.

In chronological order, I first saw Toy Story, then Pinocchio, followed by Homeward Bound (all by age five, I’d estimate), then Stand by Me came later, around age 10, and last was Fantastic Mr. Fox, at age 15. There are also the individual nostalgia factors. For the sake of clarity, nostalgia is defined as pleasure and sadness caused by remembering something from the past and wishing that you could experience it again, so it does not mean the movie I saw first is the one I’m most nostalgic for. I would say I feel the most nostalgia watching Stand by Me, not because of my experience watching it for the first time, but because I can picture myself as Gordie Lachance, or Chris Chambers, or any of those kids, really, and remember what it felt like to be that age and experience the world at that point in life, even if their experiences differed quite a bit from my own. By virtue of the story’s core, it’s like a reservoir of nostalgia. In terms of wishing I could see one of these movies again for the first time, I think I would pick Pinocchio, believe it or not, just for how harrowing and exciting it is, as well as how unpredictable it can be, which is hard to imagine nowadays because the story is so universally known.

I’ve looked at the strengths of these movies plenty, but I must now look at some of their weaknesses. In terms of quality, that really is subjective, but there are plenty of metrics I can use. I don’t take stock in critic scores and Rotten Tomatoes percentages the way I once did, but if it’s any consolation, Pinocchio is the only film out of these five with a perfect 100 % critics’ score. All of them are 10/10 movies for me, so I need to get more specific.

Pinocchio, for all its timeless qualities, does feel a little dated in a couple respects. Whether intentional or not, for how varied the cast of characters is in terms of unique types (the protagonist is a living puppet, his sidekick is a cricket, and there are human characters amid talking animals and a magical fairy) there is a lot of boy energy; aside from Geppetto’s pet goldfish Cleo (who says nothing) and the aforementioned Blue Fairy (who only appears in two scenes), there are no female characters of note. When comparing the emotional impact of Pinocchio against some of the other Disney classics, even ones outside of this competition, Pinocchio’s desire to become a real boy isn’t the most emotionally compelling want of any Disney protagonist, and I get that it’s also connected to Geppetto’s dream of having a real son, but he’s absent for several scenes in the later part of the film, and we kind of forget about his emotional investment for a while until he’s reunited with Pinocchio in the belly of Monstro the Whale.

Homeward Bound, despite what I would call a superior emotional grip on the audience compared to Pinocchio, carries the asterisk of being a remake, and I'm going to compare it to not only the original The Incredible Journey from 1963 but also the 1961 book by Sheila Burnford which served as the source material for the initial adaptation. Homeward Bound loosely adapts the story, and any way you slice it, it’s a movie meant for kids to be watched with their families. Even compared to something like Babe, a similar film which came out two years later, it’s a softer, more easily digested tale, but author Sheila Burnford has been cited as saying she did not write The Incredible Journey just for kids to read. Having read the book myself, I recognize it’s a story that’s accessible for children but meant for all ages. Conversely, Babe was based on The Sheep-Pig, written by Dick King-Smith specifically as a children’s novel, but then the film adaptation appealed to more than just kids, partially because of its comparatively deeper themes. Homeward Bound, for all its effective meditations on survival, hope, and emotional bonds, just does not delve as deep as some similarly themed films. It’s also worth noting that in terms of legacy, the sequel, Homeward Bound II: Lost in San Francisco, was seen as less impressive on a technical level after the new benchmark set by Babe a year earlier.

Fantastic Mr. Fox is arguably the quirkiest of these five films, and I think it ties with Toy Story as the funniest, for me. Some of the laughs Fantastic Mr. Fox generates are bigger, but I think it’s because of the more askew nature, from the visual design and shot composition to its narrative structure and the strangeness of some of the characters, that its emotional impact is a little less compared to Toy Story. Sizing them both up against one another, both films tell unique stories, have a broad cast of colourful, interesting characters, and place those characters in harrowing scenes filled with action, gags, and thrills. By the very nature of what Toy Story is about—a kid who is just like any other kid, who has favourite toys and loves to play with them, living in a world where toys want to serve their purpose of being played with and bring children joy—it just taps into a deeper emotional connection than the plight of a family of stop motion foxes being pursued by angry farmers.

I won’t draw this out any further than I need to. What it comes down to, for me, in picking the final two films, is highlighting which of these five contenders have the greatest number of unique qualities in tandem with the greatest emotional impact in the stories that you just can’t duplicate or get anywhere else. That is why I am picking Stand by Me and Toy Story as the finalists! I’m sorry to those fans who were championing Homeward Bound, Pinocchio, or Fantastic Mr. Fox, but the final two films have been chosen for the elimination challenge. Next time I am going to reflect back on all of the films that I have covered in this series to see how these two made it through to the end, and I will crown one of them the title of greatest movie under 90 minutes of all-time! 

Movies Under 90 Minutes Part 8: Quarter-Finals

Part Eight: The Quarter-Finals - Final Five Films

I am narrowing down the ninety minute movies significantly again in this round. It is with a heavy heart that we shall say farewell to some exceptional films today, but today’s winners will duke it out for a spot in the finals in the conclusion to this unpredictable series! 

Before we get to the eliminations, let’s examine which films have made it this far, as well as the new way I will be assessing today’s winners and losers. First of all, this is a very animation-heavy set of quarter finalists, with three traditionally-animated Disney films, two animated movies that combine traditional methods with CGI, one fully computer-animated film, and two stop motion films. In addition, there is one war film, one coming-of-age drama, one musical romance drama, and one Disney live-action remake. Since we will be losing more than half of them today, let me touch on each one briefly before we look at the prioritization matrix. 

 

CONTENDERS 

Lilo & Stitch (2002): two of my favourite things about this Disney adventure are the ways it blends old school techniques like the watercolour backgrounds with that slightly more modern aesthetic to the character designs and animation, as well as science fiction and action with the typically-family-friendly plot, characters, and comedy. It’s no wonder Stitch has become one of the most iconic Disney character from the 21^st century so far; this original introductory story for him (as well as the other half of the title and her family) holds up as something unique.

The Lion King (1994): in a similar way to the previous Disney film, The Lion King has become an instantly recognizable name, but it’s even bigger than just one character. The original film spawned so much merchandise and so many follow-ups because of the strength of the story, the cast, and the perfected hand-drawn animation. It also holds the unique distinction of being the only movie here to not feature a single human character.

Tarzan (1999): compared to Lilo & Stitch, Tarzan was poised as a bigger Disney production for its time, but it has faded into the past a bit more by comparison, though remains just as thrilling and endearing as it ever was. The voice cast is stellar, the animation somehow looks more modern and yet as recognizable as any Disney movie before it, and the visual design of the environments and action makes it feel huge and epic, yet it’s also intimate and emotionally resonant, making it a well-rounded cinematic experience—and, it must be stressed just how epic that Phil Collins soundtrack is!

Pinocchio (1940): I’m not surprised the oldest film remaining in the competition is an animated one, nor am I surprised that it’s from Disney. Pinocchio is the definition of timeless, to me, because it took the source material of, at the time, an already-half-a-century-old tale and spun it into a grand adventure with a protagonist who was unlike any other before him, alongside many other memorable personalities. The whole cast of expressive characters helped prove that animation was a cinematic art form where anything was possible, and some things just couldn’t be done to the same level of immersion, nor inspire the same pureness of joy, in live-action filmmaking.

Toy Story (1995): many sequels, shorts, books, video games, and tie-ins later, the original Toy Story is still a miraculous movie, which set the instantly high standard for all the Pixar films to follow, as well as every other computer animated movie. Even taking its paradigm-shifting status out of the equation and looking at it simply for what it is, Toy Story remains hilarious, heartfelt, and visually dazzling, if a bit dated only in terms of the quality of the visuals. That story remains one-of-a-kind and shockingly well told (only for how tumultuous the film’s production was).  

Homeward Bound: The Incredible Journey (1993): as an adventure film lover, Homeward Bound was one of my first adventure movies, and like Pinocchio, it’s a timeless one. The trio of dog-and-cat characters are made so lovable by their voice actors, personalities, and determination to help each other survive, but the world they find themselves in is full of surprises both harrowing and humorous, and like more than one other film here, it really knows how to tug on your heartstrings. 

The Iron Giant (1999): what was that about heartstrings? Oh yeah, The Iron Giant’s story of a young boy befriending a gigantic talking robot channels a little Spielbergian magic and gets the waterworks going by the end, but it’s a funny, surprising, and impactful animated feature that has garnered greater appreciation in the time since its initial release, thanks to its reliable narrative features bolstered by memorable original characters.  

Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit (2005): the 2000s was perhaps the best decade for stop motion animated features, and two of the best from that decade are still in this competition, with the first being this Aardman production. It proved the beloved duo of man and dog first introduced two decades earlier could carry a feature-length narrative, which deftly plays on the tropes of classic horror movies while also providing a number of big laughs and eye-popping sequences.

Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009): the second stop motion masterpiece of the 2000s that’s still here hails from one of the most unique directors working today, the quirky Wes Anderson, and this is only his first of two (so far) stop motion films, as well as the only one that’s an adaptation of a classic Roald Dahl story. With a huge cast of lovable characters, several of which generate multiple unique laughs, and a storytelling structure that makes it as compelling for adults as it does for kids, it’s going to be tough for some of these other films to outfox Fantastic Mr. Fox.

Stand by Me (1986): though it was made in the 80’s and is set three decades earlier, Stand by Me somehow has some of the same ageless qualities as the animated films it’s up against, with good performances across the board despite the primarily adolescent cast, heartwarming (and heart wrenching) scenes and moments despite being from the mind of Stephen King, and a simple premise from which every ounce of gold was mined and put up on screen, and somehow, it’s still under 90 minutes from beginning to end.

Paths of Glory (1957): even if you ignore the directing credit for this one, Paths of Glory still stands out as an atypical war film on the merit of its everlasting visual and cerebral power, because it doesn’t center on the battlefield for the whole runtime, but rather touches on bigger philosophical issues surrounding war and reaches for the humanity that struggles in the midst of these conflicts. Great performances, great technical filmmaking, and the kind of film that grips you right until the credits roll.  

Once (2007): To paraphrase something Ted Lasso said one time, Once is so good you might want to see it twice. What it lacks in production quality it more than makes up for with heart. The improvisational style, setting, and relationship between the two main characters makes it stand out not just in this competition but amid all the musical-romance-drama combos I can think of, primarily for its songs and the talent of the two leads.   

 

ELIMINATIONS

Now, for this round’s elimination process: the prioritization matrix. It may look complicated at first, but once I wrapped my head around this method, it became even easier than the CAWSPEEL system. What it comes down to is matching each film and picking one or the other in terms of priority. Which one would I rather watch right now? Which one could I not live without? Instead of thinking about all of them all at once, I just thought about pairs of films, regardless of genre or content, and put in the chart which one would win. What I will be left with are five films with the highest scores, meaning the highest occurrences of being the priority. Let’s check out the results.

 

A

Lilo & Stitch

A

B

The Lion King

A

B

C

Tarzan

D

D

D

D

Pinocchio

E

E

E

E

E

Toy Story

F

F

F

F

F

F

Homeward Bound: The Incredible Journey

A

G

G

D

E

F

G

The Iron Giant

H

H

H

D

E

F

H

H

Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit

I

I

I

I

I

F

I

I

I

Fantastic Mr. Fox

J

J

J

J

J

F

J

J

I

J

Stand by Me

K

B

C

D

E

F

G

K

I

J

K

Paths of Glory

A

L

L

D

E

F

L

L

I

J

L

L

Once

A

B

C

D

E

F

G

H

I

J

K

L

FINAL TOTALS
A: 4	B: 2	C: 1	D: 7	E: 8	F: 11	G: 3	H: 4	I: 10	J: 9	K: 2	L: 5

Here they are, folks, the final five films going to the semi-finals! At number one, with 11 points, is Homeward Bound! I really did not expect this, because I wasn’t even sure if it would survive the genre elimination challenge when I started using the CAWSPEEL method. I gave it enough careful thought that it just managed to continue on, and then it really kicked butt when up against these films. At number two, with 10 points, is Fantastic Mr. Fox, which is another one that surprised me. Through these last two rounds I’ve come to realize how much I really love this movie; it is my favourite overall stop motion film, but I didn’t expect it to make it to the final five over so many others. At number three, with 9 points, is Stand by Me, which I think is a real frontrunner as we get closer to the finals. At number four, with 8 points, is Toy Story, one of only two animated movies to make it this far, which is notable considering how many survived the initial elimination round back when I did animated and family films. Finally, beating out Once for the last spot in the semi-finals, with 7 points, is Pinocchio, the last traditionally animated film standing. 

We are rapidly nearing the finale to this series on movies under 90 minutes, with the next installment being the semi-finals, where three of the finalists will be eliminated, and the remaining two films will go on to the final round!