To paraphrase Terry Pratchett, human beings need fantasy to be human, regardless of their age. With films like Disney’s Encanto, Turning Red, or even The Secrets of Dumbledore being such large hits with audiences, it’s clear that there is still a constant need for the genre.
Adults, in particular, are just as big of fantasy fans as their younger counterparts, with many getting nostalgic about the characters, themes, setting, and even soundtrack. However, given that most fantasy movies targeted at kids try to keep their plots light-hearted, some adults might prefer their fantasy films to be a bit darker and more mature. Even with so many famous fantasy films imprinted on viewers from a young age, there are plenty of choices for grown-ups with an appetite for adventure.
Christopher Robin (The Many Adventures Of Winnie the Pooh)
Available To Stream On Disney+
Winnie the Pooh has been a fixture in many viewers’ lives from very early ages, second perhaps only to Mickey Mouse. But those who grew up with the silly, old bear certainly wouldn’t mind a return to the Hundred Acre Wood on occasion. Enter Disney’s Christopher Robin which perfectly mirrors many audience members in similar shoes to the film’s titular lead.
As the title implies, the film focuses on a now-adult Christopher Robin being reunited with his friends from the Hundred Acre Wood. It’s as kid-friendly as Pooh can be, there is still enough material directed at an older audience to make it resonate with older viewers. It’s certainly interesting to see Christopher returning from World War II.
Meet Joe Black (Twilight)
Available To Buy On Amazon Video
Whether its audience is Team Edward or Team Jacob, there’s no denying that Stephenie Myer’s infamous Twilight saga has an unquestionable stigma about it. Compared to some modern contemporaries and other entries in the genre, the saga of vampires and lycanthropes isn’t exactly what some would call romantic-movie gold.
If viewers want a truly enjoyable supernatural romance, they can’t go wrong with Meet Joe Black. In this remake of Death Takes a Holiday, the Angel of Death enlists the help of an aging business mogul to understand the human condition whilst simultaneously falling in love with the man’s daughter. With performances from Brad Pitt and Anthony Hopkins, there’s certainly plenty to warrant at least some curiosity.
Stardust (The Princess Bride)
Available To Buy On Amazon
William Golden’s inconceivable romantic tale of princesses, pirates, “mawidge,” and miracle chocolate balls is a classic of the fantasy movie genre. It’s quotable, it’s heartwarming, and it’s a standard of romantic comedies. That all being said, Neil Gaiman understood the assignment when he made Stardust.
The hero, Tristian, is in love with Victoria, but when Yvaine falls from the sky and into his life, he’s whisked away into a fantasy world outside of the walls of reality. Along with having Gaiman’s pen behind it, Stardust reworks and reimagines several different fantasy and fairytale tropes, including references to Shakespeare, to create a unique and romantic fantasy adventure.
Snow White And The Huntsman (Snow White And The Seven Dwarfs)
Available To Stream On Starz
Snow White is one of the most adapted fairytales in modern media, but to think that it would serve as grounds for a solid action movie is certainly out there. The tale of an evil queen, a magic mirror, a sleeping curse, and Seven Dwarves already has the grounds for a classic fantasy, but mixing in an ax-wielding Chris Hemsworth is also a plus.
This high-fantasy take on the fairytale offers a little more action than some incarnations of the tale and its darker elements truly shine, particularly with Charlize Theron’s spellbinding portrayal as the queen. Kristen Stewart might not be the most traditional fairest of them all, but this retelling is certainly exciting, to say the least.
Pan’s Labyrinth (The Chronicles Of Narnia)
Available To Stream On Starz
When it comes to creature features, there’s certainly no better name in the business than Guillermo del Toro, and Pan’s Labyrinth has been considered by some to be one of his finest films. While it’s been called a more grown-up Lord of the Rings, more attentive and literate viewers will find it has much more in common with Narnia than it does Middle-Earth.
Although there’s no lion, no witch, and no wardrobe, the story does have a little girl who discovers a magical land with a faun and a prophecy while hiding in a war-torn country. It definitely deals in the darker themes and motifs more than other such whimsical tales.
Tales From Earthsea (The Sword In The Stone)
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The story of King Arthur is as old as the fantasy genre itself, but Wart isn’t the only lad that got whisked away on some magical adventure with a wily old wizard. Enter Tales From Earthsea from Studio Ghibli with a more Game-of-Thrones–esque scale to a familiar setup.
Possessed by an evil entity, Prince Arren flees his kingdom after slaying his father with his own sword. He’s rescued by the Archmage, Sparrowhawk, and the pair embark on a grand quest to restore magic to a fantasy realm. Throw in a romance arc, dragons, and a warlock played by Willem Dafoe, and it’s a brilliant anime epic that honestly needs further discussion.
Clash Of The Titans (The Lightning Thief)
Available To Stream On HBO Max
With the new adaptation on its way to Disney+, many fans of Rick Riordan’s book series might be considering a rewatch of the 2010 adaptation. It’s a good stand-in, but it lacks a lot of the classic mythological elements and themes that made the books what they are. Fortunately, fans don’t have to look very far for a film that scratches that itch.
Although it received a big-budget remake in 2010 with big names like Liam Neeson and Ralph Fiennes, the original Ray Harryhausen classic will always be the standard by which all mythological movies are judged. It’s a classic of ’80s cinema and has more than enough gods and monsters to go around.
The Shape Of Water (Beauty And The Beast)
Available To Stream On Hulu
This tale as old as time has been told and retold long before Disney got their hands on the title. The animated adaptation of Beauty and the Beast might be the most well-known variation of the tale, but dozens and dozens of stories involve a love story between beauty with a heart of gold and a hideous monster with a prince underneath. Guillermo Del Toro’s wonderfully weird adaptation just removed the conventional fairytale element from it to earn Oscar gold.
The Shape of Water is as much a romance as it is a monster movie, as a woman falls in love with a strange amphibious creature being held in a government facility. What may have sounded like a completely B-Movie plot soon turns into an allegory for love, prejudice, and other concepts that hold a mirror up to the audience that shows them that sometimes it’s the humans who are the true monsters. As cliche as that might seem, it was met with very vocal critical acclaim.
Spirited Away (Alice In Wonderland)
Available To Stream On HBO Max
Alice In Wonderland can be looked at through a multitude of different lenses. While some might refer to it as an experience in the surreal and the psychedelic, others might refer to it as a sort of coming of age story where Alice learns to use logic and reason in a nonsensical dimension. However, the themes seen in Alice have a lot in common with those seen in Hayao Miyazaki’s Spirited Away.
Where Chihiro’s journey differs from Alice’s is her defining character arc. Chihiro grows up after her encounters where Alice is like Dante in the Inferno. Both movies use similar imagery and motifs such as an accidental separation from reality, the importance of names, a villainess obsessed with games, and a smiling creature who likes to disappear. However, only one character is completely changed by the time the credits roll.
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