Time Out London 50 Best Fantasy Movies

Time Out London 50 Best Fantasy Movies's icon

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If film is the ultimate escapist medium then fantasy is its purest, most dreamlike expression, sweeping the viewer away to distant lands and exploring dizzying imaginative concepts far removed from our humdrum reality. Too often dismissed as a genre for nerds, in the past decade fantasy has thundered into the mainstream courtesy of Peter Jackson’s ‘Lord of the Rings’ trilogy. But as our list proves, great fantasy movies have been around since the birth of cinema, spanning sword and sorcery, romance, animation, action and more – here are 50 of the best.

* 51 Movies because Die Nibelungen is listed here as two separate films

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  1. 1 new

    The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring

    2001, in 31 top lists Check
  2. 19 new

    The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers

    2002, in 26 top lists Check
  3. 10 new

    Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

    2004, in 9 top lists Check
  4. 14 new

    The Wizard of Oz

    1939, in 37 top lists Check
  5. 9 new

    Groundhog Day

    1993, in 23 top lists Check
  6. 15 new

    Edward Scissorhands

    1990, in 10 top lists Check
  7. 45 new

    El laberinto del fauno

    2006 — a.k.a. Pan's Labyrinth, in 33 top lists Check
  8. 4 new

    Sen to Chihiro no kamikakushi

    2001 — a.k.a. Spirited Away, in 39 top lists Check
  9. 20 new

    Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory

    1971, in 8 top lists Check
  10. 39 new

    Who Framed Roger Rabbit

    1988, in 16 top lists Check
  11. 33 new

    The Princess Bride

    1987, in 19 top lists Check
  12. 51 new

    Thor

    2011, in 2 top lists Check
  13. 12 new

    Being John Malkovich

    1999, in 14 top lists Check
  14. 38 new

    Mononoke-hime

    1997 — a.k.a. Princess Mononoke, in 18 top lists Check
  15. 8 new

    Tonari no Totoro

    1988 — a.k.a. My Neighbor Totoro, in 23 top lists Check
  16. 40 new

    Big

    1988, in 7 top lists Check
  17. 21 new

    Wo hu cang long

    2000 — a.k.a. Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, in 27 top lists Check
  18. 2 new

    King Kong

    1933, in 26 top lists Check
  19. 43 new

    The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou

    2004, in 4 top lists Check
  20. 16 new

    Hellboy II: The Golden Army

    2008, in 1 top list Check
  21. 46 new

    13 Going on 30

    2004, in 1 top list Check
  22. 26 new

    Labyrinth

    1986, in 4 top lists Check
  23. 47 new

    Big Trouble in Little China

    1986, in 3 top lists Check
  24. 30 new

    The Fall

    2006, in 6 top lists Check
  25. 29 new

    Pleasantville

    1998, in 0 top lists Check
  26. 41 new

    The Neverending Story

    1984 — a.k.a. The NeverEnding Story, in 2 top lists Check
  27. 24 new

    Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey

    1991, in 1 top list Check
  28. 34 new

    Conan the Barbarian

    1982, in 4 top lists Check
  29. 35 new

    Highlander

    1986, in 2 top lists Check
  30. 18 new

    Der Himmel über Berlin

    1987 — a.k.a. Wings of Desire, in 21 top lists Check
  31. 50 new

    Time Bandits

    1981, in 4 top lists Check
  32. 44 new

    The Purple Rose of Cairo

    1985, in 7 top lists Check
  33. 11 new

    The Red Shoes

    1948, in 27 top lists Check
  34. 5 new

    La belle et la bête

    1946 — a.k.a. Beauty and the Beast, in 26 top lists Check
  35. 32 new

    The Secret of NIMH

    1982, in 2 top lists Check
  36. 22 new

    Le charme discret de la bourgeoisie

    1972 — a.k.a. The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie, in 21 top lists Check
  37. 23 new

    The Adventures of Baron Munchausen

    1988, in 2 top lists Check
  38. 13 new

    Excalibur

    1981, in 3 top lists Check
  39. 6 new

    The Dark Crystal

    1982, in 1 top list Check
  40. 3 new

    Ugetsu monogatari

    1953 — a.k.a. Ugetsu, in 25 top lists Check
  41. 7 new

    A Matter of Life and Death

    1946, in 22 top lists Check
  42. 31 new

    La montaña sagrada

    1973 — a.k.a. The Holy Mountain, in 9 top lists Check
  43. 36 new

    Jason and the Argonauts

    1963, in 6 top lists Check
  44. 17 new

    Loong Boonmee raleuk chat

    2010 — a.k.a. Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives, in 13 top lists Check
  45. 48 new

    The Thief of Bagdad

    1940, in 13 top lists Check
  46. 42 new

    Orlando

    1992, in 7 top lists Check
  47. 49 new

    Lost Horizon

    1937, in 6 top lists Check
  48. 25 new

    Céline et Julie vont en bateau: Phantom Ladies...

    1974 — a.k.a. Celine and Julie Go Boating, in 11 top lists Check
  49. 27 new

    Die Nibelungen: Siegfried

    1924, in 13 top lists Check
  50. 28 new

    Die Nibelungen: Kriemhilds Rache

    1924 — a.k.a. Die Nibelungen: Kriemhild's Revenge, in 13 top lists Check
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Last updated on Jun 8, 2015 by SanderO; source