The San Francisco Chronicle published a list of must-see fantasy films, in honour of the launch of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1. They are organised by the percentage of critics who had rated the film positively in reviews listed at Rotten Tomatoes. Only one Harry Potter film makes it in to their list of the top ten fantasy movies ever:
- The Wizard of Oz (1939)
- The Lord of the Rings:The Two Towers (2002)
- The Princess Bride (1987)
- Time Bandits (1981)
- Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1974)
- The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)
- The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)
- Ever After, A Cinderella Story (1998)
- Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004)
- The Adventures of Baron Munchausen (1989)
Why choose fantasy and science fiction as the basis for their list at all? Is the genre of a movie such an audience tempter, or are there more complex factors at work here? The Harry Potter stories are also school stories and action adventure movies, aren't they? Or good old fashioned 'family entertainment', once a major movie marketing term.
Empire Magazine Top Ten Movies
Empire Magazine's list of top ten best movies ever, voted for in 2008, seems somewhat light on the fantasy genre and 'family entertainment', although crime and action adventure are well represented, and there is one musical.
- The Godfather (1972)
- Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)
- Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
- The Shawshank Redemption (1994)
- Jaws (1975)
- Goodfellas (1990)
- Apocalypse Now (1979)
- Singin' In the Rain (1952)
- Pulp Fiction (1994)
- Fight Club (1999)
This is only a fraction of the survey results, which list the top five hundred movies, voted for by 10,000 Empire Magazine readers, 150 of 'Hollywood's finest', and 50 key film critics. Fifteen fantasy/science fiction films feature in the top fifty.
Empire Magazine Top Fantasy and Science Fiction Movies
The top fantasy/science fiction movies in the top fifty, with their Empire overall rankings, are:
- (3) Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
- (15) The Dark Knight (2007)
- (16) 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)
- (20) Blade Runner (1982)
- (22) Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope (1977)
- (23) Back to the Future (1985)
- (24) The Lord of the Rings: the Fellowship of the Ring (2001)
- (30) Aliens (1986)
- (33) Alien (1979)
- (34) The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)
- (35) Terminator 2: Judgement Day (1992)
- (37) A Clockwork Orange (1971)
- (39) The Matrix (1999)
- (47) E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial (1982)
- (49) Evil Dead 2 (1987)
It is interesting that the same two of the three Lord of the Rings films feature in both critics/fan choice fantasy lists, leaving The Lord of the Rings: the Twin Towers out of top ranking. Notably, no Harry Potter movies made it into the top fifty, but if Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) wades in as fantasy rather than action adventure in your definition, then it features at number two on Empire Magazine's list.
The Top Twenty Box Office Grossing Movies by 2010
- Avatar (2009)
- Titanic (1997)
- The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)
- Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (2006)
- Toy Story 2 (2010)
- Alice in Wonderland (2010)
- The Dark Knight (2008)
- Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (2001)
- Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End (2007)
- Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2007)
- Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2009)
- Star Wars Episode 1:The Phantom Menace (1999)
- The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002)
- Jurassic Park (1993)
- Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005)
- Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs (2009)
- Spider-Man 3 (2007)
- Shrek 2 (2004)
- Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002)
- Finding Nemo (2003)
Internet Movie Database demonstrates that fantasy certainly is the movie-goers choice genre and family entertainment, (so long as it is also action adventure). Twenty per cent of the list are animation films, and twenty-five per cent are Harry Potter movies.
It is worth considering whether the family factor, which always sells three or four seats rather than one, is the bonus factor, or whether this particular type of movie lends itself to highly visual promotion and marketing. Overwhelmingly, these movies were marketed by their seriality, as sequel or prequel. What does a one-off creative venture, a new movie release, have to do to join this elite company and become one of the top ten movies?
Topics touched on in this article are further explored in Val Williamson's articles on Key Concepts of the Action Adventure Blockbuster Movie, Marketing and Distribution of a New Film, Uses and Gratifications of Genre, Is Genre Essential to Film Success? and Filmmaking Benefits From Bestsellers Like Harry Potter & Twilight
Valerie Williamson - Dr. Val Williamson is a freelance journalist and academic specialising in historical and popular culture topics.
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