Ulryk Posted August 1, 2003 Report Share Posted August 1, 2003 Pirates of the Caribbean age of reason, pirates, cannons, and higher tech than typical medieval fantasy. With the undead and the curse though it actually makes for a good low fantasy swashbuckling setting. And it's a really fun movie if you can get past Depp's eye shadow. Dungeons and Dragons...... ... BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!! ok, I couldn't keep a straight face. This movie shows you how to have all the right elements and still do it completely wrong. Come on, with everything else wrong with it I think they could have left out the intimidating captain of the wizard's guard wearing blue metallic lipstick... I wonder how many times his torture victims die from laughter as opposed to the torture? Ulryk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Hopcroft Posted August 11, 2003 Report Share Posted August 11, 2003 I have had a lot of fun with B-grade fantasy movies over the years. I don't know if it's been mentioned yet, but Roger Corman's "The Raven", withVincent price and Boris Karloff, has a lot of funny stuff in it and also has a great climactic wizard's duel -- for the effects he had at his disposal in 1963 with no budget, Corman did a materful job. Someone mentioned "Sword of the Valiant". I wish I could see that again -- I really enjoyed it when I first saw it on TV (the only time I've ever seen it). Slayers: the Motion Picutre is a Japanese animation with two powerful sorceresses wreaking havoc on a resort island. Clearly inspired by someone's AD&D campaign, the characters are a hoot. The TV series is even better, and the OVAs (original Video Animation) are hilarious. "Wait a minute -- your mirror-oppoosites are shy, demure pacifists! That means the orignals must be -- oh bleep!" Record of Lodoss Wars is a classic D&D campaign brought to life -- literally. Pirotess the Dark Elf is a great character. And Shakespeare is a great source for fantasy campaigns. Franco Zeferelli's Hamlet with Mel Gibson is extremely inspirational, as is just about any version of "that Scottish play". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pinecone Posted August 11, 2003 Report Share Posted August 11, 2003 I remember a lou firigno version of sinbad where lou was actually not terrible...Hawk rules, I always recomend the various "spagetti fantasys", just for the breasts if for nothing else Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Catseye Posted August 11, 2003 Report Share Posted August 11, 2003 Someones already mentioned Ladyhawke, right? More then just fantasy, to me thats the essence of a fairy-tale movie. Actually though the only magic in it is the curse thats ets it all in motion... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Diamond Spear Posted August 11, 2003 Report Share Posted August 11, 2003 I CAN'T BELIEVE.... That NOBODY in 9 PAGES has mentioned "The Neverending Story"!!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Catseye Posted August 11, 2003 Report Share Posted August 11, 2003 ... or its neverending sequels (Seriously NES was kind of fun, but the sequels got pretty old by NES3.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Hopcroft Posted October 7, 2004 Report Share Posted October 7, 2004 Re: Good Fantasy Movies The first couple of Inu-Yasha feature films are coming out on DVD. I want to see them, as the TV series is one of the most popular fantasy animations that American TV has ever shown 9and itt;'s even more popular in its natvie Japan). When a half-demon is one of the GOOD guys, you know you're in trouble. Add a lecherous monk, a girl from the 21st century, a demon-hunter with a whopping great boomerang, and a little kid who happens to be a shape-shifting fox --- but while there are comic elements as you would expect from Rumiko takahashi, the series in general is deadly serious with very high stakes for the characters and some really great villains. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
psm Posted October 7, 2004 Report Share Posted October 7, 2004 Re: Good Fantasy Movies Not to be an idiot but what is the definition of "fantasy"? The only reason I'm asking is because some of the movies suggested I would never consider part of that genre. And I still can't believe nobody mentioned Gymkata:) Okay, it's not that hard to believe. Other movies: The Sword in the Stone Blood of Heroes Sword and the Sorcerer (Lee Horsley's finest movie) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nyrath Posted October 7, 2004 Report Share Posted October 7, 2004 Re: Good Fantasy Movies I've always been amused at "The Beastmaster". I wanted to do a Heros write-up on the way the evil priests made monsters: take a strong man, strap on gloves with lots of spikes, drop a green-glowing cursed leech into his ear, strap on the helmet then run. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mutant for Hire Posted October 7, 2004 Report Share Posted October 7, 2004 Re: Good Fantasy Movies I liked a couple of Terry Gilliam movies that aren't mentioned, though technically one of them isn't really much of a fantasy as magical realism: The Fisher King The Adventures of Baron Munchausen The Fisher King really isn't fantasy, but somehow the idea of a quest for the Holy Grail in New York somehow appeals to me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
proditor Posted October 7, 2004 Report Share Posted October 7, 2004 Re: Good Fantasy Movies Dunno if this got mentioned, but I remember a movie of Gawain and the Green Knight from my youth (Probably at least 20+ years) that was pretty good.... Urgh...so I forgot the name, it was actually Sword of the Valiant, which I have seen pop up here. Anyway, to echo some previous posts, yes Hawk the Slayer was every Monty Haul game I was in from age 11 to say 25. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThothAmon Posted October 12, 2004 Report Share Posted October 12, 2004 Re: Good Fantasy Movies A quick blast of stuff that may not have been mentioned yet: Excalibur - the finest Arthurian flick of all The Shogun Assassin series (AKA Lone Wolf and Cub / Baby Cart) - stunning Japanese live action with sweet visuals and a seriously badass hero Xu (or Zu) Warriors - Chinese medieval fantasy of the best kind Captain Kronos: Vampire Hunter - a crossover medieval Hammer Horror / fantasy flick that does some intriguing stuff with 'different' vampires The Water Margin - long running TV series set in medieval China featuring 9 dozen ancient heroes accidentally released by the evil Kow Chou - tons of character ideas, knockabout action and lots of sage wisdom Chinese Ghost Story - just watch it - trust me Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NuSoardGraphite Posted October 12, 2004 Report Share Posted October 12, 2004 Re: Good Fantasy Movies Dunno if this got mentioned, but I remember a movie of Gawain and the Green Knight from my youth (Probably at least 20+ years) that was pretty good.... Urgh...so I forgot the name, it was actually Sword of the Valiant, which I have seen pop up here. Yep. Sword of the Valiant! Sean Connery as The Green Knight. Good stuff if you don't mind the cheesiness of its "B" flavor. Anyway, to echo some previous posts, yes Hawk the Slayer was every Monty Haul game I was in from age 11 to say 25. Good ole Hawk the Slayer... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OddHat Posted October 12, 2004 Report Share Posted October 12, 2004 Re: Good Fantasy Movies Stephen Chow's Chinese Odessey 1&2. Just watch it. You have never seen Fantasy Super-Heroes done so well. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0112778/ http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0114996/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Markdoc Posted October 13, 2004 Report Share Posted October 13, 2004 Re: Good Fantasy Movies Stephen Chow's Chinese Odessey 1&2. Just watch it. You have never seen Fantasy Super-Heroes done so well. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0112778/ http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0114996/ or, indeed, more bizarrely. These are among two of the strangest chinese movies I've seen, and that's saying something. Two slightly (but only slightly) more coherent fantasy superhero movies frm HK are Seven Strings Demon and Green Snake. cheers, Mark Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OddHat Posted October 13, 2004 Report Share Posted October 13, 2004 Re: Good Fantasy Movies or, indeed, more bizarrely. These are among two of the strangest chinese movies I've seen, and that's saying something. Two slightly (but only slightly) more coherent fantasy superhero movies frm HK are Seven Strings Demon and Green Snake. cheers, Mark I concede their strangeness, I just don't have a problem with it. It helps to watch them back-to-back; time-travel and reincarnation are hard enough to do well even without shape-changers, ghosts, gods, demons, and armies of animal men. Seven Strings Demon and Green Snake are also good. Royal Tramp 1 & 2 are very good Chinese period comedies with super-hero level Wuxia Kung Fu and some magic, but aren't really fantasy films as such. Encounters of the Spooky Kind is fair, with an interesting wizard's battle. Never liked Zu, despite all the good press it gets. Kung Fu Cult Master with Jet Li is actually really good material for an over the top Wuxia Super-Hero Fantasy game, complete with magic-swords, Green Bat Style Vampire Kung-Fu, and energy blast throwing Kung-Fu masters. Unfortunately the second film in the series never got made, which left most of the plot lines unresolved. Some fun modern Wuxias as well, but that may get away from the fantasy movie category a bit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Markdoc Posted October 14, 2004 Report Share Posted October 14, 2004 Re: Good Fantasy Movies Never liked Zu, despite all the good press it gets. Kung Fu Cult Master with Jet Li is actually really good material for an over the top Wuxia Super-Hero Fantasy game, complete with magic-swords, Green Bat Style Vampire Kung-Fu, and energy blast throwing Kung-Fu masters. Unfortunately the second film in the series never got made, which left most of the plot lines unresolved. I agree the ending of Zu is lame, but it just had so much good stuff in it that I like it anyway: what's not to like about the Temple of Scary Things in Pots, or the Masters of Evil? I did a homage to them in my Sengoku-era campaign, including the monk with the staff of lightning. Kung Fu Cult Master is great: I showed it to some friends who had never seen a wuxia film before and they had rollicking time (once they got over their initial "Hey! That guy can fly!" reaction). cheers, Mark Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NuSoardGraphite Posted October 15, 2004 Report Share Posted October 15, 2004 Re: Good Fantasy Movies A (short) list of decent to good Wuxia fantasy: Kung Fu Cult Master (described above) Legend of Heavenly Maiden: Dragon Chronicles (whew!) --A Shaolin monk gets caught up in a war between gods and immortals. Good stuff. The Swordsman, Swordsman II, The East is Red --Great movies from Ching Siu Tung, the fight choreographer of Hero. Most especially Swordsman II which has all kinds of super-powered fantasy goodness found within. Deadful Melody --A family is butchered to find a magical Lute and the secret of the "8 Dragon Notes"...a spellsong that when played can destroy anything. The brother and Sister survive, but each are unaware that the other survived. The Brother is trained as a bounty-hunter (by one of his father's killers nonetheless!) and the sister (who escaped with the magic Lute and the secret to the 8 notes) embarks on a quest for vengance. Great fantasy elements in this film. The sister uses the magic lute like a crossbow, pulling back the strings and releasing them to fire energy bolts! Good stuff!!! Butterfly and Sword --Another good flick from fight master Ching. Some cool moves in this one. The Storm Riders --If you haven't seen this, GO RENT IT NOW! Warning: Find the original chinese version as the english dub has been horribly butchered and is missing about 20 minutes of footage. The Legend of Zu --Sequel to the cult classic Zu: Warriors of the Magic Mountain mentioned above. A perfect example of Gods and Immortals battling. Some great CG imagery in this film. Simply beautiful. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OddHat Posted October 15, 2004 Report Share Posted October 15, 2004 Re: Good Fantasy Movies For those looking for these films in the original Chinese versions with English subtitles, I've had great luck with Layoyo. They ship out of Hong Kong, and even with shipping costs the prices tend to be lower than purchassing from any of the US or UK suppliers I've found, so long as the order includes 3 or more DVDs or VCDs. The site is available in English. You may need a region free DVD player for some of the newer DVDs, but that's worth investing in anyway. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Markdoc Posted October 15, 2004 Report Share Posted October 15, 2004 Re: Good Fantasy Movies Just to avoid confusion - Dreadful Melody is the same film as Seven String Demon: just a different title. To the list, I'd also add Bride with the White Hair: a betrayed female martial artist comes back from the dead to avenge her clan's destruction. A Chinese Ghost Story: (can really only recommend #1, but it absolutely kicks butt!) in which a timid tax colector and a Taoist priest try to save a soul from the clutches of the evil tree demon. These (like the others) are high fantasy, wizards and flying warrior movies, not more "classic" wire-fu movies like Wing Chun. cheers, Mark Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frenchman Posted October 15, 2004 Report Share Posted October 15, 2004 Re: Good Fantasy Movies By far the funniest fantasy-style film I've ever seen is a French film called Les Visiteurs. Hollywood did a remake of it in english called Just Visiting, but even though they got the same actors, they managed to make it complete crap. Also, slightly off topic, there is a movie called Shaolin Soccer, which, while not being fantasy per se (certainly is fantastical), will give you a lot of great ideas for monk-type characters in any setting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OddHat Posted October 15, 2004 Report Share Posted October 15, 2004 Re: Good Fantasy Movies By far the funniest fantasy-style film I've ever seen is a French film called Les Visiteurs. Hollywood did a remake of it in english called Just Visiting, but even though they got the same actors, they managed to make it complete crap. Also, slightly off topic, there is a movie called Shaolin Soccer, which, while not being fantasy per se (certainly is fantastical), will give you a lot of great ideas for monk-type characters in any setting. Both are very good films. Shaolin Soccer is another Stephen Chow film. The man likes his wuxia and CGI. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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