Fantasy Films: Magical, Mythical, or just plain Fantastical
Movies with a fantasy flavor, possibly involving magic or something akin to it, that appeal to the other-worldly sensibilities of theNeoplatonist.
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- DirectorGeorge PalStarsTony RandallBarbara EdenArthur O'ConnellA mysterious circus comes to a western town bearing wonders and characters that entertain the inhabitants and teach valuable lessons.A Chinese sage, Merlin the Magician, the Loch Ness Monster, the Medusa, the Abominable Snowman, Barbara Eden.... Heart-warming fantasy.
- DirectorMichael PowellEmeric PressburgerStarsDavid NivenKim HunterRobert CooteA British wartime aviator who cheats death must argue for his life before a celestial court, hoping to prolong his fledgling romance with an American girl.The afterlife presented in highly surreal colors (or even black-and-white), and drenched in romance. Offbeat and enchanting.
- DirectorJan SvankmajerStarsKristýna KohoutováCamilla PowerA surrealistic revision of Alice in Wonderland.LSD style adaptation of "Alice in Wonderland". Wondrous indeed.
- DirectorSam RaimiStarsBruce CampbellEmbeth DavidtzMarcus GilbertWhen Ash Williams is accidentally transported to 1300 A.D., he must retrieve the Necronomicon and battle an army of the dead in order to return home.Third in the "Evil Dead" trilogy but can be watched by itself. Magical.
- DirectorJohn CarpenterStarsKurt RussellKim CattrallDennis DunA rough-and-tumble trucker and his side kick face off with an ancient sorcerer in a supernatural battle beneath Chinatown.Little China is Chinatown, San Francisco, where weird and wild magical events engulf a trucker named Jack Burton. Jaw-dropping.
- DirectorDesmond DavisStarsLaurence OlivierHarry HamlinClaire BloomPerseus must battle Medusa and the Kraken to save the Princess Andromeda.Greek mythological magic. The Medusa terrified me as a child.
- DirectorAng LeeStarsChow Yun-FatMichelle YeohZiyi ZhangA young Chinese warrior steals a sword from a famed swordsman and then escapes into a world of romantic adventure with a mysterious man in the frontier of the nation.Kung Fu upgraded into (frankly) magic, and very good too.
- DirectorAlex ProyasStarsBrandon LeeMichael WincottRochelle DavisA man brutally murdered comes back to life as an undead avenger of his and his fiancée's murder.A murder victim rises from the grave as a comic-book superhero. Brandon Lee's masterpiece and (alas) swan-song.
- DirectorAlberto CavalcantiCharles CrichtonBasil DeardenStarsMervyn JohnsMichael RedgraveRoland CulverGuests invited to a weekend in the country share their supernatural stories, beginning with Walter Craig, who senses impending doom as his half-remembered recurring dream turns into reality.The fantastical, other-worldly atmosphere pervading the four stories in the movie makes it a fantasy masterpiece.
- DirectorJohn BoormanStarsNigel TerryHelen MirrenNicholas ClayMerlin the magician helps Arthur Pendragon unite the Britons around the Round Table of Camelot, even as dark forces conspire to tear it apart.Arthurian myth and magic brought to vivid and gripping life. Bloody and brilliant, with Nicol Williamson stealing the show as the best Merlin we've ever seen on screen (in theNeoplatonist's dispensable opinion).
- DirectorJoseph L. MankiewiczStarsGene TierneyRex HarrisonGeorge SandersIn 1900, a young widow finds her seaside cottage is haunted and forms a unique relationship with the ghost.Romantic fantasy par excellence.
- DirectorGordon HesslerStarsJohn Phillip LawCaroline MunroTom BakerSinbad and the vizier of Marabia, followed by evil magician Koura, seek the three golden tablets that can gain them access to the ancient temple of the Oracle of All Knowledge.Here's Tom Baker just before he became the Fourth Doctor Who, doing a rather wonderful turn as the evil magician Prince Koura.
- DirectorJoe DanteStarsZach GalliganPhoebe CatesHoyt AxtonA young man inadvertently breaks three important rules concerning his new pet and unleashes a horde of malevolently mischievous monsters on a small town.
- DirectorHenry KosterStarsJames StewartWallace FordWilliam H. LynnDue to his insistence that he has an invisible six foot-tall rabbit for a best friend, a whimsical middle-aged man is thought by his family to be insane - but he may be wiser than anyone knows.A giant rabbit with magic powers who can only be seen by Jimmy Stewart... Turns all ideas of sanity and madness upside-down.
- DirectorSteven SpielbergStarsHarrison FordSean ConneryAlison DoodyIn 1938, after his father goes missing while pursuing the Holy Grail, Indiana Jones finds himself up against the Nazis again to stop them from obtaining its powers.Quasi-religious quest for the magical holy grail, with colorful characters a-plenty, and James Bond himself as a convincing father of Indiana Jones. Exhilarating stuff.
- DirectorFrank CapraStarsJames StewartDonna ReedLionel BarrymoreAn angel is sent from Heaven to help a desperately frustrated businessman by showing him what life would have been like if he had never existed.Comment is superfluous.
- DirectorDon ChaffeyStarsTodd ArmstrongNancy KovackGary RaymondThe legendary Greek hero leads a team of intrepid adventurers in a perilous quest for the legendary Golden Fleece.Ray Harryhausen's masterpiece. Endlessly rewatchable. Watch out for the Second Doctor, Patrick Troughton, as a blind man tormented by hideous flying harpies.
- StarsSam NeillHelena Bonham CarterJohn GielgudLegendary wizard Merlin tells his story of his war against Queen Mab of the Sidhe and his creation of Camelot.No shortage of magic in this Merlin-centered version of the Arthur myth.
- DirectorKen AnnakinStarsGlynis JohnsGoogie WithersGriffith JonesA young married physician discovers a mermaid, and gives in to her request to be taken to see London. Comedy and romantic entanglements ensue soon after.Charming mermaid fantasy, with Glynis Johns as a blonde seductive sea-girl who decides to live for a while on land, ensnaring every man she meets (not too hard, presumably, if you look like a 25 year old Glynis Johns).
- DirectorWolfgang PetersenStarsNoah HathawayBarret OliverTami StronachA troubled boy dives into a wondrous fantasy world through the pages of a mysterious book.Fairly indescribable piece of phantasmagoria. Just let it wash over you.
- DirectorAlbert LewinStarsJames MasonAva GardnerNigel PatrickA seductive woman falls in love with a mysterious ship's captain.Another fantasy romance, with James Mason and Ava Gardner captivating the screen with charisma and beauty.
- DirectorClyde GeronimiWilfred JacksonHamilton LuskeStarsBobby DriscollKathryn BeaumontHans ConriedWendy and her brothers are whisked away to the magical world of Neverland with the hero of their stories, Peter Pan.The cartoon version. Admirable, in theNeoplatonist's pointless opinion.
- DirectorP.J. HoganStarsJeremy SumpterJason IsaacsOlivia WilliamsThe Darling family children receive a visit from Peter Pan, who takes them to Never Never Land where an ongoing war with the evil Pirate Captain Hook is taking place.This version's pretty good too, with real people.
- DirectorAlbert LewinStarsGeorge SandersHurd HatfieldDonna ReedA corrupt young man somehow keeps his youthful beauty, but a special painting gradually reveals his inner ugliness to all.Evil Egyptian sorcery (basically cat-worship) has intruded into Oscar Wilde's tale, but seems to improve it. The definitive version.
- DirectorWilliam DieterleStarsJennifer JonesJoseph CottenEthel BarrymoreIn Depression-era New York, an impoverished painter has a chance encounter with an enigmatic, old-fashioned little girl in Central Park who inspires him and changes his destiny.Another fantasy romance, highly evocative of the ghostly, with an eerie song sung by Jennie.
- DirectorRob ReinerStarsCary ElwesMandy PatinkinRobin WrightA bedridden boy's grandfather reads him the story of a farmboy-turned-pirate who encounters numerous obstacles, enemies and allies in his quest to be reunited with his true love.Those who don't know this one should be shot.
- DirectorSteven SpielbergStarsHarrison FordKaren AllenPaul FreemanIn 1936, archaeologist and adventurer Indiana Jones is hired by the U.S. government to find the Ark of the Covenant before the Nazis can obtain its awesome powers.First and still the best of the Indiana Jones saga, although I suppose you have to get to the end to see the real magic.
- DirectorRoger CormanStarsVincent PricePeter LorreBoris KarloffA magician, who has been turned into a raven, turns to a former sorcerer for help.A childhood favorite. Who would not wish to see Boris Karloff, Vincent Price, and Peter Lorre hamming it up and fighting it out as cheesy sorcerers?
- DirectorWolfgang ReithermanClyde GeronimiDavid HandStarsRickie SorensenSebastian CabotKarl SwensonA poor boy named Arthur learns the power of love, kindness, knowledge and bravery with the help of a wizard called Merlin in the path to become one of the most beloved kings in English history.Another addition to the Arthurian cycle of movies. If only it inspires the viewer to go read the glorious novels by T.H.White, of which "The Sword in the Stone" is the first, then the movie has succeeded beyond all expectation.
- DirectorVictor FlemingKing VidorStarsJudy GarlandFrank MorganRay BolgerYoung Dorothy Gale and her dog Toto are swept away by a tornado from their Kansas farm to the magical Land of Oz, and embark on a quest with three new friends to see the Wizard, who can return her to her home and fulfill the others' wishes.Couldn't omit this one, could I?