It can be easy to hate on fantasy, lumping even the best in with the myriad failures that inevitably pop up in a genre as open to interpretation as this one. And it’s also easy to forget that fantasy productions aren’t all high fantasy, or sword and sorcery. Some of the best fantasies are period dramas, or those that walk the line between fantasy and horror, particularly gothic horror or sci-fi.
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So if you’re looking for some potentially obscure entries that more than lived up to the hype, we’ve got the list for you! It’s full of genre-blending and bending films that deserve to remind the world that they are, in fact, fantasy—and incredible fantasy, at that. And while The Lord of the Rings films are some of the best of all time, you won’t be finding them on this list (it would be unfair to take up three whole spots). So read on to see which movies made the cut.
5) Princess Mononoke
An absolute classic from Studio Ghibli, Princess Mononoke is one of the most beautifully animated films of all time. Not only a fantasy, but a period drama, the film is set in the Muromachi period of Japanese history and follows a young Emishi prince named Ashitaka as he journeys west of his home to cure himself of a terrible curse. He finds himself embroiled in the conflict between the gods of the forest and a nearby town, as well as the feud between the imposing Lady Eboshi, the town’s leader, and San, a human girl raised by wolves. It’s evocative and tense, highlighting the lessons that even in death there’s life, that we’re all part of a greater cycle, and that we all have a duty to be good stewards of the earth. The voice acting performances by Claire Danes as San and Billy Crudup as Ashitaki are hands down among the best, and add a layer of depth and grounding to the film.
4) Underworld
Underworld is a perfect example of a film that straddles the line between horror and urban fantasy, and the franchise’s first film is truly one of the best and most underrated movies of all time. Almost single-handedly, Underworld revived the monster genre, drawing audiences back to the dark world of vampires and werewolves with a story centered on a vampire named Selene, who finds herself caught in the eternal war between the two factions. Believing that she was left orphaned by Lycans, Selene dedicates herself wholeheartedly to the cause of eradicating them—until she discovers the truth about the conflict as she does everything she can to save the human doctor caught between the two groups. It has the feel of what we might expect from Vampire: The Masquerade if it ever came to the big screen, with intense violence, beautiful cinematography, and a subtly simmering romance that aches with tension.
3) Stardust
Based on the novel of the same name, Stardust is one of the rare movies that can say it’s better than the book. The film stars Charlie Cox and Clare Danes alongside Robert De Niro and Michelle Pfeiffer, and centers on the adventure of a young man who attempts to capture a falling star as a gift for the girl he believes that he loves. A wrench is thrown into his plans when he realizes the star is, in fact, a woman, and he’s not the only one searching for her—a group of witches, as well as the calculating, cruel sons of the dying king, are also searching for the star for their own nefarious purposes. The two set off on a perilous adventure back to his village, encountering all sorts of chaos along the way. It’s a fun, whimsical, and campy film, with a surprisingly cozy aesthetic and fantastical narrative, the kind of movie that we desperately need more of.
2) The Mummy
While it’s easy to categorize The Mummy as just another action flick, there really is something so fantastical about it—whether it’s the mythology edge, the dark magic, the swashbuckling romance, or the literal mummies coming to life. Set in the Saharan desert in 1925, the film centers on treasure hunters and seekers of knowledge as they attempt to find the long-lost Book of the Dead. As the group and rival treasure hunters stumble upon an ancient, hidden tomb, they accidentally release a 3,000-year-old vengeful reincarnation of an Egyptian priest who was sentenced to an eternity as one of the living dead for the sin of loving the Pharaoh’s mistress. It’s a movie that has everything, and while it’s certainly campy, it’s also wildly entertaining and heartfelt. And great news for fans, the newest addition to the franchise has officially been confirmed!
1) Crimson Peak
While Crimson Peak is definitely more of a gothic horror film, it has an inherent fantastical edge that allows it to genre blend and bend to its heart’s content. The film centers around a young woman named Edith, who, after marrying the charming and seductive Sir Thomas Sharpe, moves into his remote gothic mansion in the English countryside. As she learns to communicate with the dead that roam the halls, Edith attempts to solve the mystery behind the ghostly visions haunting her new home. But nothing is what it seems, and Edith learns that the real monsters may be those she now calls family. With a story like that, the fact that Crimson Peak never got the hype or the flowers that it deserved is nothing short of a cinematic sin. It’s a love story, a horror story, a story of what happens when the past never stops chasing the present, and it asks us what we’re willing to sacrifice to have a future. The performances by the entire cast, especially Jessica Chastain and Tom Hiddleston, are nothing short of incredible, and, like all Guillermo del Toro films, it’s both haunting and heartbreaking—an iconic work of art.
What is your favorite fantasy movie? Let us know in the comments. And don’t forget to head over to the ComicBook forum to see what other fantasy fans are saying.
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Image Courtesy of Ufotable
