Fantasy
A fantasy film is a film that includes non-real elements, such as make-believe characters, supernatural occurrences, and magical characteristics. They are very broad, for they not only have the potential to overlap with other genres, but they also contain the life lessons needed to appeal to both children and adults. Deriving from the fantasy literary genre, the fantasy genre has become one of the most popular and successful genres in the movie industry today. They first began to emerge in the 1920s with films such as The Thief of Bagdad by Douglas Fairbanks and Die Nibelungen by Fritz Lang. However, it wasn't until sound films came out that the first major fantasy film was developed in 1939, called The Wizard of Oz. Not only did this film strengthen the popularity of the fantasy genre, but it also was the first film to ever include both black and white and colored real-life scenes. Other animated films, such as Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs(1937) and The Jungle Book(1942), also helped the fantasy genre gain popularity.
In the 1940s and the 1950s, other successful fantasy films began to emerge around the world, such as It's a Wonderful Life and a Christmas Carol, along with other animated features such as Beauty and the Beast, Alice in Wonderland, Sadko, and Sampo. In the 1960s and the 1970s, animated films began to overlap with other genres, such as musical film genres, horror, action, and adventure.
Some of the greatest fantasy films were created in the 1990s and the 2000s, such as Edward Scissorhands. This movie, which stars Johnny Depp, is about a man who was created in a laboratory with scissors in place of his hands. The Sixth Sense, starring Bruce Willis, is about a boy who sees dead people. The film can also be considered both a thriller and a horror film. This is as perfect example of a fantasy film that can cross over into other genres. In the 2000s, more and more fantasy films began to develop from novels that had already been written, such as Big Fish, Bridge to Terabithia, The Chronicles of Narnia, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Eragon, Harry Potter, Nanny McPhee, and Twilight. The Harry Potter films have actually been one of the highest engrossing films ever in the history of cinema.
One of the greatest modern films made in the fantasy genre is Big Fish, starring Ewan McGregor. In this film, a dying man tells stories about his life - but skews them to add in supernatural, magical, and out of this world events. In this Circus Scene, the main character, Edward, explains that like the saying "time stops when you meet the love of your life", time literally stopped when he first saw the love of his life.
One of the greatest modern films made in the fantasy genre is Big Fish, starring Ewan McGregor. In this film, a dying man tells stories about his life - but skews them to add in supernatural, magical, and out of this world events. In this Circus Scene, the main character, Edward, explains that like the saying "time stops when you meet the love of your life", time literally stopped when he first saw the love of his life.
Through further developments of technology in film, the fantasy genre has also gained its popularity be displaying it's imaginative content in a more convincing way. The special effects of film in general have improved over the years, thus making physically impossible elements of fantasy films more believable for it's target audience. In Eragon, the main character rides on a dragon even though dragons obviously don't exist in reality. Still the audience believes it because, in the context of the film, dragons to exist. The target audience for fantasy cinema can range from early childhood to people of old age. Many Disney film's have elements of magic and imagination, thus appealing to children of any young age. Teens often like fantasy films such as Twilight and Harry Potter, where as young and old adults enjoy fantasy classics such as Big Fish.
