You Don't Know Fantasy Films Unless You've Seen These Movies
- by Ursula Nizalowski
- – on
- in Movies and TV
Compared to Science-Fiction, Fantasy is an endless playground for creativity where anything is possible. However, the realms of imagination can only go so far as the amount of money that’s invested when it comes to films of this genre. In the early days of Hollywood, directors like D.W. Griffith were able to afford enormous sets and elaborate costumes thus making movies like Raoul Walsh’s The Thief of Baghdad possible. But when the Depression hit, the budgets for films grew tighter despite some exceptions. Then while sci-fi films flourished in the 1950s and 60s, fantasy ones were scarcer.
It wasn’t until the 1980s that we got Conan the Barbarian, a high-budget fantasy epic which spawned a number of similar movies that grew gradually cheaper and dumber. Then at the turn of the millennium, an ambitious New Zealand director decided he wanted to make a trilogy of movies based on a book series known as The Lord of the Rings. Despite the enormous gamble, it paid off big time surpassing all the fantasy films before as other fantasy novels got their film adaptations. While some like the Harry Potter films proved to be very successful, others like Eragon weren't. So if you’re a big fan of fantasy flicks, then take this quiz and find out how many you know about!
Which movie set into motion a quest to destroy an object of power?
In the Second Age, a powerful object was forged inside an active volcano by the dark lord of a barren land who used it to take control of similar objects which corrupted certain individuals to his side. As a result of this, an alliance between Elves and Men was created to stop this lord in his conquest for power over the entire realm. But even when the dark lord was defeated, his soul still lingered unless the object of his making was destroyed as well. Yet for all who possessed it, this object brought nothing but tragedy and misery.
Which movie introduced a school for the magically gifted?
Orphaned since he was an infant, a boy is forced to live with his aunt uncle and cousin who are all unnecessarily mean to him. Then one day, a strange thing occurs followed by a series of letters addressed to him which his relatives immediately destroy. But as more letters keep coming in, the boy and his relatives head for an isolated house just as the boy’s eleventh birthday rolls around. This time, a giant man arrives at the house to deliver the letter in person to the boy.
Which movie involved a cursed treasure?
A young girl named Elizabeth is sailing with her father who’s become the Governor of an area in Central America, when she meets a boy named Will who survived an attack by pirates. Noticing an unusual medallion around his neck, Elizabeth takes it from him while he’s unconscious fearing he might be labeled a pirate. Many years later, Elizabeth’s grown up into a beautiful young woman while Will has become a blacksmith. As Elizabeth is courted by the ambitious Commodore Norrington, she faints and falls into the water.
Which movie introduced a summer camp for demigods?
While on a class-trip to a museum, a dyslexic young boy gets attacked by a Fury demanding something from him that he doesn’t have. So he’s rescued by his best friend and Latin teacher who explain that he’s a demigod, a human who was born from the union of a God and a mortal. So with this revelation, he and his mother are forced to head for Camp Half-Blood where most demigods are sent to keep them safe from the monsters who could possibly kill them.
Which movie had a stone table in it?
During World War II, four children are sent away by their mother to live with a professor in the English countryside. For a while, they have nothing to do until the youngest sister discovers a large cabinet with winter coats hung inside. When she steps through it, though, the girl ends up in another world and encounters a Faun who takes her to his home. Later, he reveals there’s an evil witch who rules this world in an eternal winter.
Which movie had a young man inherit the powers of Merlin?
Centuries ago, the wizard Merlin had three apprentices named Balthazar Blake, Veronica Gorloisen, and Maxim Horvath. But Horvath betrayed them and sided with Morgana le Fay, Merlin’s dreaded enemy. So Veronica attempted to rip Morgana’s soul from her body, though it ended up possessing her own. To prevent Morgana from taking complete control, Balthazar sealed them both inside a doll-like prison called the Grimhold. Then as Merlin passed away, he gave Balthazar a ring that would indicate his true successor who could defeat Morgana permanently.
Which movie focused on a human and a dragon's bond?
Following the slaying of many dragons and dragon riders, a lone rider known as Galbatorix decided to take over the land of Alagaësia and rule it with an iron fist. Some years later, an elf named Arya steals a blue-colored stone from Galbatorix causing him to send his Shade sorcerer Durza after her. Unfortunately, she manages to transport the stone elsewhere with a magic spell. Meanwhile, a young farm boy is out hunting in the woods early in the morning when he comes across the blue stone and takes it home with him.
Which movie ended in a battle between two Queens?
While attending a party hosted by a lord, a young girl finds herself drawn to an unusual rabbit which she proceeds to follow down a bottomless hole. At its end, she meets a group of strange characters who seem to recognize her from a prophecy foretelling that a girl will slay the Jabberwocky monster thus defeating the evil Red Queen and allow her virtuous sister the White Queen to rightfully ascend the throne as told by a caterpillar who is in the process of becoming a butterfly.
Which movie involved a pair of magic shoes?
After rescuing her dog from a terrible neighbor, a young girl heads to her family farm where everyone is too preoccupied to listen. Later, the neighbor shows up to take the dog to be euthanized for biting her. But the dog escapes and so the girl decides to run away. She comes across a fake fortune teller who tricks her into heading back home. Just then, a tornado appears forcing the girl’s family into the cellar. The girl, unaware of this, goes into the house which gets picked up by the tornado and it transports her to another world.
Which movie had a girl's heart nearly consumed?
A Queen named Eleanor wishes for a special kind of daughter, and gets one at the cost of her life. So in wake of her death, King Magnus attacks the Dark Army and finds a female prisoner in their captivity. Calling herself Ravenna, Magnus becomes entranced and makes her his new wife. But she turns out to be the leader of the Dark Army and kills Magnus during the consummation of their marriage, while his daughter is locked up in a tower. Years later, Queen Ravenna is told eating the girl's heart will make her immortal.
Which movie had a Goblin King as the main antagonist?
While rehearsing a play, teenage girl Sarah Williams suddenly remembers she has to babysit her infant brother Toby and quickly heads home. After getting in trouble with her stepmother, she heads up to her room and notices her favorite teddybear is missing. She finds it with Toby, who keeps crying, and so Sarah picks him up wishing the Goblin King from the play she was practicing for would take him away. When this wish does come true, though, Sarah’s forced to navigate a large maze to bring her brother back before he turns into a goblin himself.
Which movie was about returning a staff to its rightful owner?
Jason Tripitikas is a huge fan of martial arts movies and often goes to the local Chinese pawnshop to get them. But then Jason gets roped into helping some muggers break into the pawnshop to steal money, though they end up shooting the owner forcing him to run while grabbing a gold staff along the way. Then as Jason falls off the roof of the building, he wakes up in a world that resembles ancient China getting into a scuffle with some soldiers though a drunk comes to his rescue using the Drunken Fist technique.
Which movie had a magical nanny in it?
George Banks is a workaholic father who lives on Cherry Tree Lane with his wife Winifred and two children Jane and Michael. However, the children’s nanny decides to leave after the children run away. They are brought back later by a Constable and explain they were chasing a kite which is now broken. Irritated, Banks decides to hire a new nanny who’s strict and disciplinary. The children, however, want a nicer one and write a paper about it. But after Banks tears up the paper, scraps of it leap up the chimney out onto the air above.
Which movie ended with a battle against a skeleton army?
In conquering the kingdom of Thessaly, King Pelias has Thessaly’s king slain along with his children. However, one child manages to escape Pelias and grows up into a young man. Fearing for his own life, Pelias encourages the young man to search for a golden fleece that lies across the sea in another kingdom hoping he will die in the process. So after gathering a crew made up of the world’s greatest heroes including Hercules, the young man and the others set sail encountering all sorts of dangers along the way.
Which movie featured a Giant who befriended a girl?
Orphan girl Sophie is an insomniac who tends to stay up late. At 3:00 AM, aka the Witching Hour, she sees a giant outside the window of her orphanage in London. As a result, the giant captures her and takes her to its home. The reason for this is because no one is allowed to know that giants exist, and she’s also kept hidden inside the giant’s home for fear that the others might try to eat her. Sure enough, the leader of the flesh-eating giants shows up and nearly eats her.
Which movie is told from a book?
With his grandson bed-ridden due to being ill, a grandfather decides to read a story to him. It tells of a young woman named Buttercup who falls in love with a farmhand named Westley, who leaves to seek his fortune but is pronounced dead following a pirate attack on his ship. So Buttercup reluctantly accepts Prince Humperdinck’s hand in marriage, but gets kidnapped by a group of outlaws. She’s then rescued by a masked man claiming to be the Dread Pirate Roberts, who attacked the ship Westley was on.
Which movie focused on a baby girl?
In the land of Tir Asleen, ruled by the sorceress Queen Bavmorda, a prophecy about a child with a certain birthmark who will end Bavmorda’s rule is proclaimed. Fearing this prophecy, Bavmorda imprisons all the women who are pregnant. When a baby girl is born bearing the very birthmark that was foretold, the mother tells the midwife to leave with the baby. After she and the midwife are both killed, the baby is swept down a river to a village of dwarves where she’s taken in by one who is hoping to become a sorcerer.
Which movie involved talking animals?
During the Victorian era, there lived an English doctor who claimed he could talk to animals. It started long ago when his talking parrot Polynesia claimed each animal had their own language, thus prompting him to study them and so he quit treating human patients and instead focused on animal ones. This film was, of course, remade to feature a more popular Eddie Murphy as the lead character. We can't say his name as it would give away the title. Do you recognize it?
Which movie involved a special contest?
Charlie Bucket, a poor kid who delivers newspapers to help support his family consisting of a working mother and two pairs of bed-ridden grandparents, he can barely afford to buy the candy that’s sold at the local candy store where the kids at his school tend to hang out. But then an announcement is made that the famous candy factory in his hometown is going to allow visitors inside but only if they have gold-colored tickets which can be found in a certain brand of candy bars.
Which movie revolved around searching for a missing spell?
As the Blitzkrieg goes underway, three orphaned children are forced to live with a single woman named Eglantine Price. Though they attempt to run away, the children discover that Price is training to be a witch so she can use spells to help the British win the war. Unfortunately, she’s unable to learn the last spell and looks for the professor she studies under. But the professor turns out to be a phony showman, who gives her the book he wrote that has all the spells she’s practiced though the last one is missing.
Which movie made fun of Arthurian legend?
A traveling king and his servant are wandering across the land of Briton to search for worthy knights to be a part of the king’s court. Once they are found, though, none of them actually want to go to the court-in-question. Then God appears before them saying they must find a divine relic to set a positive example in this dark era. So the king and his knights agree to this task going their separate ways to confront various dangers.
Which movie had a Kraken which showed up at the end?
Banished by her own father, a princess and her newborn son are cast into the sea inside a wooden chest. They eventually land on the island of Seriphos, where the mother and her child live in peace. Years later, the child grows up into a strong youth who gets transported from his home to the land of Joppa which is plagued by a curse where the Princess Andromeda must ask every suitor a riddle. If they fail to answer it, they’ll be executed.
Which movie is this?
Following the slaughter of his entire tribe by Thulsa Doom, a young Cimmerian boy and several other children are forced into slavery where they must push a giant wheel to operate a mill. While most of the children die off, the boy survives and is a man by the time he’s taken away to become a gladiator. Does this film premise sound familiar? Fans of the original will recognize it immediately. Then came a remake with none other than Arnold Schwarzenegger. Do you remember the name of the remake?
Which movie involved two beings that were one?
Long ago, a Great Conjunction occurred where three suns aligned themselves with a world occupied by various creatures including the Podlings and Gelflings. Following this event, a crystal was broken and two new races appeared known as the Skeksis and the Mystics. Cruel and ruthless, the Skeksis slaughtered most of the Gelflings in wake of a prophecy stating a Gelfling would end their reign of power. As a result, only two were left: the boy Jen and the girl Kira who were raised separately by the Mystics and Podlings respectively.
Which movie had a white dragon?
While running from some bullies, ten year-old Bastian Bux hides in a bookstore. Inside, one of the books piques his interest though the bookstore’s owner advises him against reading it. But Bastian takes the book anyway, and hides in his school’s attic to read it in peace. It tells the story of a land called Fantasia which is slowly being consumed by The Nothing. On top of that, Fantasia’s Childlike Empress is ill, so a young boy named Atreyu is sent on a quest to find a cure for her.
Which movie revolved around a pair of unicorns?
In a fantasy realm, two unicorns guard the world of light with their magic horns from those who would take it away such as the Lord of Darkness. Meanwhile, the Princess Lili and her forest friend Jack visit the sacred unicorns though Lili scares one off by stroking its mane. This allows a group of Goblins sent by the Lord of Darkness to poison the runaway unicorn and cut off its horn. As a result, the world plunges into a dark winter while Jack and Lili get separated in the process.
Which movie featured a hawk and a wolf?
After escaping from the prisons of Aquila, thief Philippe “The Mouse” Gaston finds his way into a tavern but runs into some city guards sent to capture him. Fortunately, he’s saved by a knight named Etienne of Navarre who is accompanied by a hawk. He enlists Philippe to help him get into Aquila and kill its corrupt Bishop. But as night falls, Philippe is attacked by a would-be murderer as a black wolf saves him while a mysterious woman stands nearby.
Which movie involved a battle between immortals?
In 1536, there lived a Scottish man named Connor of the Macleod Clan. During a battle with an enemy warrior called the Kurgan, he’s wounded but miraculously heals much to his Clan’s amazement. Thinking this is devil’s work, the Clan banish Connor and he becomes a wandering blacksmith. Eventually, he runs into an eccentric man called Juan Sánchez Villa-Lobos Ramírez who explains he and Connor are immortals. They can only be killed via decapitation, and are infertile. But during an event called “The Gathering,” the immortals must kill each other until one is left.
Which movie took place inside an enchanted library?
Richard Tyler is a ten year-old boy who’s afraid of everything and relies on statistics to prove his fears right. This drives everyone around him nuts, including his parents who attempt to build him a treehouse though he’s unconvinced it’ll help him. Then after his father accidentally falls out of the treehouse, he asks Richard to head down to the hardware store to get some extra nails. So reluctantly Richard leaves on his bike, but is forced into a library because of a terrible storm that hits him.
Which movie had a knight slaying dragons out of revenge?
Following the death of a tyrannical English king named Freyne and his son Einon being almost killed by a peasant girl, the knight Bowen and the queen take Einon to a nearby dragon pleading it to save his life. So reluctantly, the dragon gives half of his heart to Einon which instantly heals him. Unfortunately, Einon becomes an even worse king than his father leading Bowen to blame the dragon for it. As a result, Bowen becomes a dragonslayer hunting down almost all of them over a twelve-year span except for one.
Which movie dealt with finding a scepter?
In the land of Yzmir, there live the Mages who rule over it while the non-Mages have fewer rights by comparison. But the young Empress Savina wants to change this unfair dynamic, despite several council members opposing her views including the evil wizard Profion who’s scheming to obtain a scepter that can control Red dragons to overthrow Savina with. Meanwhile, two thieves named Ridley and Snails decide to break into a magic school to steal some things when they are caught red-handed by the Mage Marina.
Which movie had a thief and a prince?
The young Sultan Ahmad is tricked by his Vizier Jaffar to disguise himself as a commoner to get to know his people better. Unfortunately, he gets arrested and becomes acquainted with a thief named Abu. With his help, the two of them flee for the city of Basra where Ahmad falls in love with its Princess. Meanwhile, Jaffar sets his eyes on the Princess as well and travels to Basra on a flying mechanical horse. Impressed, the Sultan of Basra agrees to an arranged marriage between Jaffar and his daughter.
Which movie featured a small human being?
A poor lumberjack named Jonathan is chopping down a tree when a magical being known as the Forest Queen appears. She asks him not to cut down the tree, because birds are nesting in it. When he agrees to, she offers him three wishes. But when Jonathan discusses this with his wife Anne, the two end up using their wishes while bickering over them. As a result, they end up with a bunch of toys for a child they’ve always wanted. Fortunately, their true wish is granted with a tiny young man arrives at their home.
Which movie involved leprechauns?
An aging caretaker in Rathcullen, Ireland, has spent years trying to catch leprechauns that supposedly live nearby though nobody believes him. Then after he’s let go by the lord of the estate he takes care of, a younger man takes his place though he doesn’t want his daughter to know. Then while chasing the lord’s horse, the former caretaker is captured by the leprechauns he spoke of as their king offers to let him stay to avoid telling his daughter the truth though it means he can never go home.
Which movie had a princess turned into a witch?
As the Duchy of Cornwall is celebrating the crowning of its Princess Elaine, a stranger arrives bearing a gift that resembles a music box with a moving jester inside. But as night falls, the jester is transformed into a giant which kidnaps Elaine with the intention of bringing her to the evil wizard Pendragon. But then a farmer named Jack interferes and kills the giant while also rescuing the Princess. To show his gratitude, the King of Cornwall appoints Jack to be his daughter’s protector as Pendragon plots his next scheme.