Pixar Movie Moments Ranked by How Much They Make You Cry in the Shower
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This nostalgic adult cries often (very often) in a Pixar movie setting. Somewhere between one tear on a lunch break when I catch a whiff of Up’s “Married Life” instrumental on my For You page, to bawling uncontrollably over the random Tuesday-afternoon thought of Andy giving away his toys in Toy Story 3.
The impact Pixar has had on my understanding of grief and friendship left a huge dent in my early frontal lobe development, and the nostalgia is weirdly comforting to revisit as an adult. Especially with the release of Toy Story 5 this week, I can’t help but slip into a deep crying-in-the-shower mood, thinking about all the past traumas these morally electric movies have put me through.
So, if you’re looking to pregame the ultra depressed (but happily so) mood this new Pixar release will inevitably put us all in, I decided to revisit some of the most tear-jerking Pixar scenes that still have a permanent mark on me and my everything shower—all judged by their weight in tears and how long I stared into the void after watching. Enjoy the nostalgia and queue “Married Life,” my fellow emotional cinephiles.
8. Onward: Ian sacrifices his chance to connect with his father for Barley
This more recent Pixar release slapped me in the face in a way I honestly didn’t expect during my first watch. Maybe because we were all emotionally numb from being confined during Covid, I knew Onward would be a tear-jerker (it’s Pixar), but not like THIS. It doesn’t hit the way a lot of the other classics do, but as an eldest daughter, this pouring of sibling love still forced me to shed a very bowling-ball-sized tear on my cheek while watching Ian sacrifice his opportunity to meet his deceased father for Barley.
Shower Cry Level: Happy crying in the shower until I realize the tips of my fingers are turning pruny and I’ve been in there for twenty minutes. The tears are joyful, but just as heavy as the sad ones.
Emotional Wreckage: Calling your parent to say you love them, booking the next flight out just to hug your brother, and also taking up tap dancing as a new hobby.
7. Luca: Luca rescues Alberto in the rain after being exposed as a sea monster
If Call Me By Your Name were an animated Disney film, it’s very close to Luca. I remember when this movie came out in 2021 and I couldn’t help but rewatch it three times that same week, wanting to live in it just a little longer. Something about the film’s sunny skies and sparkling-blue waters made it feel like a soothing European vacation, but the deeper exploration of friendship between Luca and Alberto was also a tender heartbreak that can make even the most stubborn of hearts shed a little twinkly tear under that Italian sun.
Shower Cry Level: Turns the faucet to a nice warm-water setting that feels like swimming in the ocean, met with the feeling of that suspicious salty tear that drips to the corner of your mouth. Feels better with a bowl of homey pasta after.
Emotional Wreckage: Plans a spontaneous Europe trip with your bestie where you both sign up for a marathon race together, Googles where to buy a Vespa immediately, and won’t stop saying “Silenzio, Bruno!” for at least one week after watching.
6. Monsters Inc.: Sulley says goodbye to Boo
What do you mean they’re never going to see each other again?! The way Sulley tucks Boo into bed for the last time at the end and then slowly closes the door only for it to be put to shreds—along with my heart—between flecks of hand-painted florals in the wood shredder? What do you mean, Pixar? WHAT DO YOU MEAN?!
Shower Cry Level: Stares deeply at the shower wall until those white tile walls start to look like a portal through Boo’s door, shedding a single tear at the thought of what Boo and Sulley lost, but then bouncing back quickly thinking about Boo overcoming her fear of monsters.
Emotional Wreckage: Permanently scarred by bedroom corner silhouettes until the end of time, still gets a great Halloween costume idea out of the trauma and the confidence to star in a one-person musical.
5. The Good Dinosaur: Arlo and Spot bond by drawing their stick families in the sand
The fact that I can barely revisit this movie without also revisiting the traumatic state this scene put my fragile self in means I can’t help but put this one on the list. Nothing rocks me more than a tale of friendship and family that is put to the test by an unlikely bond between two troubled characters that unveils a hidden strength in the other.
Shower Cry Level: More of a full-body heave than a cry. The flow of tears makes it hard to differentiate between the shower water streaks down my cheek and thick tears, but there is nonetheless a lot of water on my face.
Emotional Wreckage: Permanently scarred but also moved by the idea of letting loved ones go, DIYs a handprint stepping stone to “make your mark,” and never goes river rafting ever again.
4. Inside Out: Riley comes home and cries about missing Minnesota
This movie taught me so much about the importance of embracing sadness wholeheartedly in order to be happy. Watching Joy realize that happiness isn’t the only emotion Riley needs to be her best self, and also help Sadness take charge of the “emotional console,” is so stunning and forever resonant.
Shower Cry Level: Let myself feel sad in a scolding hot shower until it runs cold—symbolically embracing the bittersweet temperatures of both until I neutralize myself and feel renewed after exiting. Truly nothing like a good detox cry. It’s wellness.
Emotional Wreckage: Won’t stop thinking about what my core memories might be, names my dog Bing Bong, and texts group chat: who wants to go to the moon?
3. Up: All of it, but also the opening “Married Life” scene
A deep trauma that feels like a cultural connective tissue for the entire human experience, Up’s opening scene is Pixar at its most beautifully devastating. I genuinely don’t know anyone who can make it through this scene untouched. The mere thought of it is making my eyes a little foggy. Watching Carl and Ellie build their life together only to have it change in traumatic ways alongside the emotional sway of Michael Giacchino’s Oscar-winning track is a pain you will know for the rest of your life.
Shower Cry Level: Fully clothed in a fetal position, unaware of what temperature the water even is.
Emotional Wreckage: Starts scrapbooking, hugs your partner extra tight the next time you see them, gets emotional over the mere sight of balloon bouquets and soda caps. Also plans an ice cream date with your grandpa.
2. Soul: Joe revisits home and plays a simple melody on his piano
I love the way this scene embraces the everyday moments over the grandifed single purpose. The flashbacks we see of this character feeling moments like autumn leaves and getting a haircut completely changed me. I think about this movie often, and feel like it fits as a beautiful lesson for young eyes but also people in their twenties trying to figure it out.
Shower Cry Level: The kind of cry that makes your cheeks hot and makes you stare at the shower wall until you start analyzing every little moment you’ve ever taken for granted.
Emotional Wreckage: Starts soaking in more sunsets, makes a cinematic soundtrack to accompany those random Mondays, dances barefoot in the grass for no reason.
1. Toy Story 3: Andy gives away his toys to Bonnie
Watching this final scene of Toy Story 3, you can’t help but think about your own childhood and the toys you loved and outgrew playing with. I remember having to cover my mouth to stop myself from letting out an embarrassingly loud wail and ruining the movie trauma for everyone else. Toy Story was the start of Pixar’s legacy, and knowing how much these toys mean to Andy while also wanting them to mean something to someone else destroyed me in the best ways. 10 points Pixar.
Shower Cry Level: Doesn’t shower for at least three days, unable to shake the feeling. When you do, it’s a full-body cry that doesn’t leave you until the suds wear off.
Emotional Wreckage: Asks mom if she still has that box of old toys, develops Teddy Bear trust issues, and rewatches all the old Toy Story movies in one sitting.