Tokyo Godfathers

Tokyo Godfathers is a 2003 adventure, drama, comedy, family, Christmas Japanese anime movie. It was directed and storyboarded by Satoshi Kon, written by Satoshi Kon and Keiko Nobumoto, musically composed by Keiichi Suzuki and Moonriders, edited by Takeshi Seyama and Kashiko Kimura, distributed by Sony Computer Entertainment America Japan, cinematography by Katsutoshi Sugai, produced by Masao Takiyama, Shinichi Kobayashi, Taro Maki, and famous Japanese anime company Studio Madhouse, and it starred Toru Emori, Yoshiaki Umegaki, and Aya Okamoto. It's based on an old novel called Three Godfathers which was written by Peter B. Kyne.

Why It Rocks

 * 1) Tokyo Godfathers is often considered one of the best Christmas movies of all time by those who have actually seen it.
 * 2) Excellent animation.
 * 3) This movie is also an amazingly heartwarming and emotional family film, too.
 * 4) This is one of the few movies made in Japan to be Christmas-themed. Wouldn't that make Santa Claus proud or what?
 * 5) Very appealing character designs.
 * 6) While the whole story was started because of a coincidence, the movie uses coincidence to drive the plot rather than being the whole focus behind it.  You never get the impression that the coincidence of the plot telegraphs you literally every single event that happens.
 * 7) Amazing soundtrack.
 * 8) Satoshi Kon managed to take this story of unlikely heroes (and unlikely parents), which he adapted from a novel, and modernize it in unique ways, weaving a multitude of character stories and arcs into one cohesive narrative.
 * 9) Great voice acting.
 * 10) The lighting in the movie also deserves special praise.  At night the movie is very dark, but oddly enough that's when the characters end up having the most fun, becuase they aren't restrained by the expectations of the daytime world.  Conversely, when daytime comes and the whole city of Tokyo lights up the characters don't do as much as they do at night due to said restrictions.  This is conveyed very well in the lighting and the tone.
 * 11) Surprisngly great comedy.

Reception
Tokyo Godfathers has a 90% critic rating and a 91% audience rating on Rotten Tomatoes, a 3.9/5 on Letterboxd, a 7.9/10 on the International Movie Database (IMDB), an 8.31/10 on MyAnimeList, an 82.69% community approval rating on Kitsu, and a 4.1/5 on AnimePlanet.