The Joy of Fantasy
Fantasy films
Maybe I am feeling downright nostalgic, but I always loved fantasy films. And yes, the special effects do have a certain cheesiness to them now but you go to love a flying white dragon and a random non denominational Indian. These stories didn’t rely on groovy special effects, they had heart and character . Sure there were a few duds, but these films gave us a glimpse of brilliance that perhaps Harry Potter and lord of the Rings have given us. ( Click here to see my take on the Deathly Hallows film and what's in store for the franchise)
Neverending Story
The one film that actually got me proud to be a book worm ( although I was a bit annoyed by the fact that I wasn’t the one who got to be part of never land)Who could forget the flying dragon? The weird princess “ Bastian, Please Bastian…”
And that punk Atreyu, oh yeah and the rock person. And what is more scary than A film whose main villain is a vast plane of nothingness? Who can combat THAT?
I still had a hard time believing that everyone just revived in the end though.
The Last Unicorn
Yes this was a cartoon, but seriously should be made into a film. The only film I could truly compare this to is perhaps “ Everlasting” with Claire Danes. A beautiful unicorn is immortal, and comes to realize she is the last of her kind. A series of adventures ensues and a magician accidentally makes her human , which serves as a good disguise to enter into the evil greedy king’s lair who with the help of a Red Bull ( yes Red Bull) forces the unicorns to stay imprisoned into sea. The unicorn, though, becomes entangled with the prince who falls in love with her. This makes her become more and more human and cause her to forget who she really is. It is a very bittersweet story because although she saves the unicorns she is never truly human ever again.
Dark Crystal
Perhaps one of the most incredible puppet movies that Jim Henson made, unfortunately was way ahead of it’s time. The plot itself is really complicated and involves dual nature of the soul and the material but basically there was once a crystal which broke in two, and there are these beings who became split, one were good the other bad.
HMmmm hmmmm hmmm, the film opens with an ailing " evil" creature and queen, as well as an ailing" good"master. The evil queen is dying and the remaining creatures want the throne and the power of the dark crystal. The master has a boy from an extinguising race and has a special destiny.The boy, who is under the master’s care is told to find the crystal and make it whole again.
And yes the crystal is used to drain human souls and make them slaves. Really weird but great scenes. Good music and scenery too.
Legend
Young [B] Tom Cruise[/B] in a skirt? Seriously. Two young lovers play in meadow and decide to touch an immortal unicorn, which leaves it tainted and to become exposed. One of the unicorns tragically dies and leaves the world in half darkness, the second one is imprisioned along with the girl. Both become seduced by darkness and this devil guy. Great makeup, and some of the scenes look a little like Mordor.
Splash
Although technically not considered a “ fantasy” film, this film intelligently uses real life motifs to incorporate the fantastical element into the real world. However the real story is the pure love between a young mermaid and a kind of goofy guy played by Tom Hanks.
These are just some examples, tragically in the nineties these fantasy films disappeared. Thanks to Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter and other greats these fantasy genres live on and will be a source of nostalgia for future generations leaving the door wide open for countless new ways to tell the story. ( And the advantage of this genre is that there really is no rules or limits ...)
Maybe I am feeling downright nostalgic, but I always loved fantasy films. And yes, the special effects do have a certain cheesiness to them now but you go to love a flying white dragon and a random non denominational Indian. These stories didn’t rely on groovy special effects, they had heart and character . Sure there were a few duds, but these films gave us a glimpse of brilliance that perhaps Harry Potter and lord of the Rings have given us. ( Click here to see my take on the Deathly Hallows film and what's in store for the franchise)
Neverending Story
The one film that actually got me proud to be a book worm ( although I was a bit annoyed by the fact that I wasn’t the one who got to be part of never land)Who could forget the flying dragon? The weird princess “ Bastian, Please Bastian…”
And that punk Atreyu, oh yeah and the rock person. And what is more scary than A film whose main villain is a vast plane of nothingness? Who can combat THAT?
I still had a hard time believing that everyone just revived in the end though.
The Last Unicorn
Yes this was a cartoon, but seriously should be made into a film. The only film I could truly compare this to is perhaps “ Everlasting” with Claire Danes. A beautiful unicorn is immortal, and comes to realize she is the last of her kind. A series of adventures ensues and a magician accidentally makes her human , which serves as a good disguise to enter into the evil greedy king’s lair who with the help of a Red Bull ( yes Red Bull) forces the unicorns to stay imprisoned into sea. The unicorn, though, becomes entangled with the prince who falls in love with her. This makes her become more and more human and cause her to forget who she really is. It is a very bittersweet story because although she saves the unicorns she is never truly human ever again.
Dark Crystal
Perhaps one of the most incredible puppet movies that Jim Henson made, unfortunately was way ahead of it’s time. The plot itself is really complicated and involves dual nature of the soul and the material but basically there was once a crystal which broke in two, and there are these beings who became split, one were good the other bad.
HMmmm hmmmm hmmm, the film opens with an ailing " evil" creature and queen, as well as an ailing" good"master. The evil queen is dying and the remaining creatures want the throne and the power of the dark crystal. The master has a boy from an extinguising race and has a special destiny.The boy, who is under the master’s care is told to find the crystal and make it whole again.
And yes the crystal is used to drain human souls and make them slaves. Really weird but great scenes. Good music and scenery too.
Legend
Young [B] Tom Cruise[/B] in a skirt? Seriously. Two young lovers play in meadow and decide to touch an immortal unicorn, which leaves it tainted and to become exposed. One of the unicorns tragically dies and leaves the world in half darkness, the second one is imprisioned along with the girl. Both become seduced by darkness and this devil guy. Great makeup, and some of the scenes look a little like Mordor.
Splash
Although technically not considered a “ fantasy” film, this film intelligently uses real life motifs to incorporate the fantastical element into the real world. However the real story is the pure love between a young mermaid and a kind of goofy guy played by Tom Hanks.
These are just some examples, tragically in the nineties these fantasy films disappeared. Thanks to Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter and other greats these fantasy genres live on and will be a source of nostalgia for future generations leaving the door wide open for countless new ways to tell the story. ( And the advantage of this genre is that there really is no rules or limits ...)
