10 Fantasy Movies I Wish I Could Forget, Just So I Could Watch Them For The First Time Again

I’ve lost count of how many times I have watched my favorite fantasy movies, but I wish I could wipe them entirely from my mind for a fresh perspective. I saw many of these for the first time as a young child, so I can’t remember that feeling of new wonder. The twists and turns feel commonplace, so it’s difficult to appreciate them as intended. However, if I forgot the magical characters and stories of these marvelous fantasy movies, I could again experience that feeling of watching a favorite film for the very first time.

Fantasy movies can come in all shapes and sizes. There’s traditional high fantasy, like The Lord of the Rings, or installments like Avengers: Endgame that take a far more modern approach. The primary requirement of the genre is magic. These movies must feature the fantastical qualities of the unknown—inspiring audiences’ imaginations to think far beyond what is possible in our world. Fantasy movies can be frightening, inspiring, funny, and everything in between. My favorite fantasy movies cover all these bases, but the impact has lessened with dozens of rewatches.

10

Spirited Away

Release Year: 2001

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Spirited Away

PG

Animation

Family

Fantasy

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10/10

16

9.7/10

Release Date

July 20, 2001

Runtime

125 minutes

Director

Hayao Miyazaki

Writers

Hayao Miyazaki

Cast

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  • Cast Placeholder Image

    Rumi Hiiragi

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    Miyu Irino

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Studio Ghibli’s Spirited Away is a masterpiece for a variety of reasons. The art is, of course, impeccable and easily inspires the perfect sense of whimsy that any great fantasy movie needs. Then, there is the story itself, which is light, charming, and thoroughly magical. No matter how many times I watch Spirited Away, it always sets me at ease, but after all these years, I’m no longer blown away.

Spirited Away is a wonderfully weird movie. When I watched it for the first time, I remember grappling with the plot. Once Chihiro’s story came to a close, I was still confused about the details, so the experience extended beyond the ending as I attempted to work it all out. These days, I have a thorough understanding of what Spirited Away means to me, but I would love to start that entire process over again.

9

The Princess Bride

Release Year: 1987

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The Princess Bride

PG

Fantasy

Family

Adventure

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10/10

12

9.3/10

Release Date

October 9, 1987

Runtime

98 minutes

Director

Rob Reiner

Writers

William Goldman

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    Mandy Patinkin

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    Chris Sarandon

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The Princess Bride pokes fun at the fantasy fairytale genre as a whole, but it does so in a way that makes it feel more like a comical homage than parody. Everything about the 1987 movie is ridiculous, but you end up swept away by the action, adventure, and romance all the same. Just like the little boy hearing the story from his grandfather, I am always sucked into The Princess Bride more than I ever expect.

Still, some aspects of this film will never hit the same way they did the first time. The Princess Pride throws its twists and turns into audiences’ faces and makes minimal effort to explain why certain things happen. Everything is shocking and funny because it makes almost no sense, and this takes new audiences off guard in a way it no longer can for veteran viewers.

8

The Wizard Of Oz

Release Year: 1939

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The Wizard of Oz

Platformer

Released

September, 1993

Developer(s)

Manley & Associates

Publisher(s)

SETA Corporation

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The Wizard of Oz was released in 1939 and has remained a classic for decades. It’s lovely, charming, and nostalgic, and even modern children are sure to enjoy the adventure and whimsy. However, after all these years, it’s simply too easy to take the story for granted. We know the lines and understand how everything works out in the end.

I’d love to see the moment that Dorothy’s world suddenly transitions to color or feel the thrill of the Wicked Witch’s frightening evil as something entirely new.

For precisely this reason, I would love just to erase The Wizard of Oz from my brain and start over. Like many others, I can’t remember seeing this movie for the first time. I’d love to see the moment that Dorothy’s world suddenly transitions to color or feel the thrill of the Wicked Witch’s frightening evil as something entirely new.

7

Pirates Of The Caribbean: The Curse Of The Black Pearl

Release Year: 2003

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Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl

PG-13

Action

Adventure

Fantasy

ScreenRant logo

9/10

21

8.9/10

Release Date

July 9, 2003

Runtime

143 Minutes

Director

Gore Verbinski

Writers

Ted Elliott, Terry Rossio, Stuart Beattie, Jay Wolpert

Sequel(s)

Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest, Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End, Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales

Cast

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Franchise(s)

Pirates of the Caribbean

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Unlike with The Wizard of Oz, I remember seeing Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl for the first time. Like other viewers of all ages, I was instantly struck by Johnny Depp’s Jack Sparrow character. He was funny and exciting, and he made me dream of becoming a pirate myself (at the age of 10). After all these years, however, the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise has come to mean something different.

Though I still enjoy the Pirates of the Caribbean movies, the formula has become rather repetitive over the years. Jack Sparrow’s quirkiness has been duplicated repeatedly, to the point that even his spontaneity has become predictable. I miss not knowing what these outrageous pirate characters will do next. Curse of the Black Pearl remains the very best of the franchise, and watching it with fresh eyes would be quite the experience.

6

The NeverEnding Story

Release Year: 1984

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The Neverending Story

PG

Fantasy

Family

Adventure

Drama

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8/10

6.5/10

Release Date

July 20, 1984

Runtime

94 minutes

Director

Wolfgang Petersen

Writers

Herman Weigel, Wolfgang Petersen

Cast

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    Patricia Hayes

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    Noah Hathaway

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Whenever I think of 1980s fantasy movies, The NeverEnding Story is the first to come to mind. It captured all the staples, especially in the way of crude special effects and a spectacularly synthy soundtrack. I enjoy rewatching The NeverEnding Story for nostalgia and whimsy, but I regret that I didn’t fully appreciate this movie when I watched it for the first time as a child.

A composite image of Atreyu standing with his horse in front of Atreyu flying on Falkor in The Neverending Story

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The NeverEnding Story was over my head when I first watched it. I didn’t understand that the Nothing represented the destruction of creativity or that the titular “never-ending story” detailed the art of storytelling itself. If I were to watch The NeverEnding Story for the first time today, it would resonate with me on a level that is difficult to duplicate when the material has become so familiar.

5

Shrek

Release Year: 2001

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Shrek

PG

Animation

Comedy

Fantasy

Adventure

Family

ScreenRant logo

8/10

13

8.5/10

Release Date

May 18, 2001

Runtime

90 minutes

Director

Andrew Adamson, Vicky Jenson

Writers

J.M. Barrie, Carlo Collodi, William Steig, Terry Rossio, Joe Stillman, Ted Elliott, Roger S.H. Schulman

Producers

Aron Warner, David Lipman, Jeffrey Katzenberg, John H. Williams, Penney Finkelman Cox

Cast

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    Mike Myers

    Shrek / Blind Mouse (voice)

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    Eddie Murphy

    Donkey (voice)

Sequel(s)

Shrek 2, Shrek the Third, Shrek Forever After

Franchise(s)

Shrek

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Shrek is another movie from my childhood that has since evolved into a massive franchise. These movies are, of course, hilarious. Children appreciate Shrek because the humor is overtly scandalous, and adults enjoy the film because of the endless innuendos. However, that very first Shrek movie is far more impactful than its successors because of what it did to the fairytale genre.

Dozens of movies have done this since, but I’d love to watch Shrek start this trend for the first time while I can fully appreciate the comedic revolution it inspired.

When Shrek was released in 2001, Disney’s fairytale movies were still at the forefront of the genre. Young audiences would watch Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella, The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, and much much more. Shrek came bursting into the scene to flip the tropes of these fairytale classics on their heads. Dozens of movies have done this since, but I’d love to watch Shrek start this trend for the first time while I can fully appreciate the comedic revolution it inspired.

4

Pan’s Labyrinth

Release Year: 2007

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Pan’s Labyrinth

R

War

Drama

Fantasy

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10/10

10/10

Release Date

January 19, 2007

Runtime

118 minutes

Director

Guillermo del Toro

Writers

Guillermo del Toro

Cast

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Pan’s Labyrinth is a massive shift from the lighter-hearted side of the fantasy genre. This movie is undeniably dark and twisted. Its themes revolve around the ugliest aspects of humanity, and it uses magic and whimsy to communicate this in the most gritty and shocking ways. It’s precisely this that makes Pan’s Labyrinth so impactful to watch the first time. It’s unsettling, but repeated rewatches somewhat lessen this fact.

I love the feel of a dark fantasy, and this has made Pan’s Labyrinth one of my favorite movies within the genre to rewatch. However, these days, I find that the sharp shocks of the film have been rounded off a bit. Those disturbing sensations that a first-watch elicits can never be duplicated, and it’s for precisely this reason that I desperately wish I could watch Pan’s Labyrinth again for the very first time.

3

The Sixth Sense

Release Year: 1999

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The Sixth Sense

PG-13

Thriller

Drama

Horror

Mystery

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8/10

31

9/10

Release Date

August 6, 1999

Runtime

107 minutes

Director

M. Night Shyamalan

Writers

M. Night Shyamalan

Cast

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    Bruce Willis

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    Toni Collette

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M. Night Shyamalan’s The Sixth Sense features one of Hollywood’s most famous plot twists. This naturally means it has been quoted and parodied to no end, ultimately dampening the overall effect of the movie’s big reveal. It’s rare to find someone who doesn’t know the big secret of The Sixth Sense, even if they haven’t seen the movie before.

The Sixth Sense isn’t a traditional fantasy, but the supernatural elements of the big twist are precisely what I would love to experience again for the first time. In a world where just about everyone knows the truth about Bruce Willis’ character, it would be a thrill to go into this movie with absolutely no idea how everything would work out. Then, it would be a treat to give this movie a second watch for the first time since this is another experience all its own.

2

Avengers: Endgame

Release Year: 2019

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Avengers: Endgame

PG-13

Adventure

Action

Sci-Fi

Superhero

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9/10

201

9.2/10

Release Date

April 26, 2019

Runtime

181 Minutes

Director

Anthony Russo, Joe Russo

Writers

Keith Giffen, Stan Lee, Larry Lieber, Don Heck, Jim Starlin, Joe Simon, Steve Englehart, Jack Kirby, Steve Gan, Bill Mantlo, Stephen McFeely, Christopher Markus

Cast

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  • Headshot Of Robert Downey Jr. In The 10th Annual Breakthrough Prize Ceremony

    Robert Downey Jr.

    Tony Stark / Iron Man

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    Chris Evans

    Steve Rogers / Captain America

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The Avengers movie franchise took the world by storm, and there was a great deal of hype surrounding Endgame, especially. After the cliffhanger of Avengers: Infinity War, it felt as if the entire world was waiting for the follow-up movie to hit theaters. It was almost a sacred experience, as fans came together in a solemn vow not to reveal those big spoilers. Of course, a handful of years later, this experience is a distant memory.

I would love to relive watching the devastating ending of Avengers: Endgame all over again, but that’s only the beginning. This peak time for the MCU was a special experience in a variety of ways. It was just as fun to hear the reactions of those in the theater around us, and this is something I haven’t experienced since. There’s something special about a community coming together to enjoy a fantastical story for the first time.

1

The Lord Of The Rings: The Fellowship Of The Rings

Release Year: 2001

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The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring

PG-13

Action

Fantasy

Adventure

ScreenRant logo

10/10

76

9.4/10

Release Date

December 19, 2001

Runtime

178 Minutes

Director

Peter Jackson

Writers

Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens, Peter Jackson

Prequel(s)

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies

Cast

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  • Headshot Of Elijah Wood

    Elijah Wood

  • Headshot Of Ian McKellen In The USA Rights Only

    Ian McKellen

Sequel(s)

The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King

Franchise(s)

The Lord of the Rings

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The Lord of the Rings is the epitome of great fantasy, and The Fellowship of the Ring holds a special place in this regard. This is one of the few fantasy book-to-screen adaptations I watched before reading the source material, and it was, in a sense, my intro to the high fantasy genre. When I first watched The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, I was instantly hooked. Like many others, I became a lifelong Tolkien nut from that point forward.

All these years and a deep dive into Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings books (and beyond), I desperately wish I could experience The Fellowship of the Ring again for the first time. This movie established the on-screen feel of Middle-earth, and Peter Jackson’s vision for Tolkien’s fantasy world has proven itself perfect. Seeing this on screen for the first time, knowing what it means for the fantasy genre, would be a wholly unique experience.