The History of Fantasy

FilmsZain Tahir

Fantasy film’s were not so popular until the 1980s. This was because it wasn’t till then that high tech filming techniques were used. Fantasy films were best portrayed in the style of animation or musical’s. New technology has caused a wider audience, making Fantasy films one of the most popular films today.

1900’s - 1920’s This period of time was known as the silent era. The first fantasy film’s were created by the french film pioneer George Melies. The most famed was 1902s ‘A Trip to the Moon’. Between 1918 - 1926 was the golden era of silent films in which the most acclaimed fantasy movies were Douglas Fairbanks' The Thief of Bagdad (1924), Destiny 1921 and Phantom (1922). These films were highly dependant on costume and makeup to display the fantasy conventions as there wasn’t the technology that is available today. They were also silent and so the fantasy aspect had to be exaggerated, this is why the genre was not as popular as we know it is in our day and age.

1930’sIn this decade sound films were born, the best examples of fantasy films are 1939’s The Wizard of Oz and Walt Disney’s ‘Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs’. The technology although upgraded to sound was not so high to create what we know as fantasy movies today, although it was done in form of animation and musical’s. Universal studio;s combined horror with fantasy to create ‘The Mummy’

1940’sFantasy films were mostly in full colour by now, some of the most famous in this era were the Thief of Bagdad (1940), and The Jungle Book (1942). Another is Jean Cocteau’s Beauty and the Beast (1946) which was acclaimed for presenting the fantastic elements and breaking boundaries of the fairy tale genre in film. The genre still lacked in visual effects and was highly dependant on costume. Though the film industry was introduced to green screen.

1950’s As technology improved there was now colour, wide screen experiences and scope. In the 1950’s Walt Disney produced four major fantasy movies in animation; Cinderella (1950), Alice in wonderland (1951), Peter Pan (1953), and Sleeping Beauty (1959). A few other major fantasy films included; Jean Cocteau’s Orphic trilogy, and Scrooge an adaptation of Charles Dicken’s A Christmas Carol.

1960’sTechnology improves further and surreal elements are displayed with more effectively. Walt Disney’s major live action film ‘Mary Poppins’ was released which was applauded for it’s mixture of live action and animation footage. HarryHausen’s masterwork in stop motion for his film Jason and the argonauts (1963) was especially awarded. Another film was ‘Chitty Chitty bang bang’ scripted by Roald Dahl’. Even though technology improved the visuals were not as realistic as we see them today. Drawn animation was still highly dependent on.

1970’s Restrictions on what was allowed to be shown on screen were loosened and so more was able to be shown in terms of violence, sex, nudity etc. although it didn't have much of a effect on Fantasy films it did mean they had competition. Roald Dahl’s famous novel were recreated as a film; Willy Wonka and the chocolate factory, and bedknobs and broomsticks was another to follow the footsteps of Mary Poppins. Also following the style of Mary Poppins was Disney’s Pete’s Dragon. Again these films were costume and animation heavy. Towards the end of the 70’s we were introduced to CGI which was used more in Fantasy films in the 80’s.

1980’s In the 80’s technology upgraded more than it did in the other decades, filmmakers started to portray surreal imagery with the use of CGI and computer after effects. The fantasy genre became immensely popular with titles such as Clash of the titans, and Fire and Ice, which was when the swords and sorcery style of fantasy began to rise to fame. There was also a huge strike of interest for fairytale like fantasy films such as The Princess bride. The 80’s was the beginning for a new era for fantasy films.

1990’sFantasy films became extremely popular due to the modern twists and effects. CGI advanced and filmmakers could present surreal images without them looking cheesy. Advanced IT also helped the genre become famous. Walt Disney studios carried out shelved projects such as ‘The Little Mermaid’ and most importantly the film that broke the barriers of animation ‘Beauty and the Beast’ which incorporated 3d animation with 2d drawings. Live action fantasy films included: Edward scissorhands, Jurassic Park, Jumanji and a spin off version of PeterPan ‘Hook’. The films created in this genre were mixed with other genres to create hybrids. For example Jurassic park was a fantasy/sci-fi. Universal studios also released another film ‘The Mummy’ a loose remake of the 1932. The Film is a great example of how technology has advanced. CGI plays an important role, it brings the mummy to life.

2000’s Following from the 90’s came a huge success in fantasy films. Mainly because of ongoing development to technology, CGI was improved which gave way for fantastic elements to be explored further. In the 2000’s came films such as; Harry Potter, Pirates of the Caribbean, and The Haunted Mansion. These films had to be more realistic to the eye. Harry Potter was heavily dependant on special effects to create the illusion of witchcraft and wizardry. The Haunted Mansion dealt with ghosts and spirits which were created with CGI. The success of these films gave Walt Disney Studios an idea to recreate the classics in live action form.

2010’s

The main fantasy films being an audience in the current era,I would say are the Walt Disney live action remakes. Using the surreal elements Walt Disney used in his animation and modernising them to suit an audience of our time. It all started in 2010 with the release of Alice in Wonderland. After the success and praise the film gained, Disney decided to recreate more of their disney classics. Sleeping Beauty, was retold in the perspective of Maleficent. Cinderella was the next to get the live action treatment, followed by The Jungle Book. The films portray fantastic elements flawlessly, and link to modern society at the same time. Remakes gave the genre a wider audience, adults that would have watched the film as children would want to watch the film to relive the magic.

In the future Technology is catching up with the ideas portrayed in fantasy films, the best example for an upcoming feature is the live action remake of Beauty and the Beast. An enchanting castle is recreated in CGI, not only that but a Beast as well. Finance also has a huge impact on the success of the film, there is more money to spend on production and so the cinematography is almost perfect. Beauty and the Beast has had a huge budget and a huge amount of effort on production. A few years ago Disney would not have been able to create talking objects that look as real as they do now, and a Beast that looks as close to the original as possible.

Most Fantasy films have a sub-genre, For example Star Wars is a Fantasy/Sci-Fi, or Pirates of the Caribbean which is a Fantasy/adventure. When creating my own film i would also use a hybrid. I would use fantasy and horror which I feel like is a successful combination. Movies like; The Mummy, and The Haunted Mansion are my inspiration for this idea. Horror Movies are based on stories from gothic writers. After the silent era did we hear ‘screams’ in horror films. To begin with there were classics like ‘Dracula’. Living in the 21st century hearing the word horror the first thing we’d think of is Saw, or Halloween. The horror ele- ment in my film will be more to do with ghosts than gore and blood. It will be spine chilling and creepy if anything.