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The Science Fiction Horror and Fantasy Film Review

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Theme: Imaginary and Magical Lands

Imaginary Lands refers to imaginary and fictional countries and continents that are said to exist within terrestrial realms. This should be differentiated from the topic Films That Take Place in Fantasy Otherworlds about lands that exist in an isolated realm not connected to this or require some portal to visit there.

Imaginary Lands can cover made-up countries that usually populate spy works and assorted stories where it can be too politically sensitive to mention a real country, or countries like Wakanda and Themyscira, the home of Wonder Woman, in assorted comic-book adaptations. More exotic examples include magical lands that exist within terrestrial borders like Oz, Neverland and Lilliput and Brobdignag.

For more detail and an overview of the genre see the Theme Essay Films About Imaginary and Magical Lands.


The 3 Worlds of Gulliver (1960)

5 August 20025 February 2022

Rating: ★★★

Big and Small Adventures

Director: Jack Sher
Actors: Kerwin Mathews, June Thorburn, Lee Patterson, Basil Sydney, …
Category: Fantasy

Atomic Rulers of the World (1965)

6 May 202113 November 2021

Rating: ★

Japanese Superhero Film

Director: Koreyoshi Akasaka, Teruo Ishii, Akira Mitsuwa
Actors: Ken Utsui, Junko Ikeuchi
Category: Science Fiction

Bedknobs and Broomsticks (1971)

4 February 20003 May 2020

Rating: ★★★

Adventures with a Good Witch/Disney Film

Director: Robert Stevenson
Actors: Angela Lansbury, David Tomlinson, Ian Weighill, Roy Snart, …
Category: Fantasy

The BFG (1989)

1 March 20156 November 2020

Rating: ★★★

Animation/Roald Dahl Adaptation/Friendly Giant

Director: Brian Cosgrove
Actors: David Jason, Don Henderson
Category: Fantasy

The BFG (2016)

10 July 201613 April 2025

Rating: ★★★

Roald Dahl Adaptation/Friendly Giant

Director: Steven Spielberg
Actors: Mark Rylance, Ruby Barnhill, Penelope Wilton, Jemaine Clement, …
Category: Fantasy

Black Adam (2022)

3 December 20221 May 2025

Rating: ★★★

Superhero Film

Director: Jaume Collet-Serra
Actors: Dwayne Johnson, Aldis Hodge, Pierce Brosnan, Sarah Shahi, …
Category: Fantasy

Black Panther (2018)

12 May 20184 June 2025

Rating: ★★★

Marvel Comics Superhero

Director: Ryan Coogler
Actors: Chadwick Boseman, Michael B. Jordan, Lupita Nyong'o, Danai Gurira, …
Category: Science Fiction

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (2022)

11 February 20234 June 2025

Rating: ★★

Marvel Comics Superhero

Director: Ryan Coogler
Actors: Letitia Wright, Angela Bassett, Tenoch Huerta Mejia, Lupita Nyong'o, …
Category: Science Fiction

Care Bears Movie 2: A New Generation (1986)

3 June 200119 July 2021

Rating: ★★★

Animation/Cute Talking Bears

Director: Dale Schott
Actors: Pam Hyatt, Cree Summer, Bob Dermer, Alyson Court
Category: Fantasy

The Care Bears Adventure in Wonderland (1987)

19 April 20077 May 2020

Rating: ★★

Animation/Cute Talking Bears

Director: Raymond Jafelice
Actors: Bob Dermer, Dan Hennessey, Colin Fox, Keith Knight, …
Category: Fantasy

The City & The City (2018)

7 December 201815 February 2021

Rating: ★★

Two Cities That Inhabit the Same Geographic Space

Director: Tom Shankland
Actors: David Morrissey, Mandeep Dhillon, Lara Pulver, Maria Schrader, …
Category: Fantasy

Despicable Me 3 (2017)

9 September 201713 August 2024

Rating: ★★

Animation/Comic Travails of a Super-Villain

Director: Kyle Balda, Pierre Coffin, Eric Guillon
Actors: Steve Carell, Kristen Wiig, Trey Parker, Miranda Cosgrove, …
Category: Science Fiction

Doctor Dolittle (1967)

16 December 200129 February 2020

Rating: ★★

Doctor That Can Speak to Animals/Musical

Director: Richard Fleischer, Herbert Ross
Actors: Rex Harrison, Anthony Newley, Samantha Eggar, Geoffrey Holder, …
Category: Fantasy

Dolittle (2020)

29 February 20204 April 2021

Rating: ★★★

Doctor That Can Speak to Animals

Director: Stephen Gaghan
Actors: Robert Downey Jr, Harry Collett, Carmel Laniado, Michael Sheen, …
Category: Fantasy

Erik the Viking (1989)

14 June 200210 June 2025

Rating: ★

Norse Myth Comedy-Adventure

Director: Terry Jones
Actors: Tim Robbins, Imogen Stubbs, John Cleese, Tim McInnerny, …
Category: Fantasy

Fast & Furious 9 (2021)

29 July 202424 December 2024

Rating: ★

Action Film

Director: Justin Lin
Actors: Vin Diesel, Michelle Rodriguez, Tyrese Gibson, Chris Ludacris Bridges, …
Category: Science Fiction

The Gamma People (1956)

31 July 201928 April 2021

Rating: ★★

Soviet Experiments to Create Super-Children

Director: John Gilling
Actors: Paul Douglas, Leslie Phillips, Walter Rilla, Eva Bartok, …
Category: Science Fiction

Gulliver’s Travels (1939)

3 August 20019 December 2024

Rating: ★★★★

Animation/Land of Little People

Director: Dave Fleischer
Category: Fantasy

Gulliver’s Travels (1977)

17 January 200121 August 2020

Rating: ★★½

Land of Little People

Director: Peter Hunt
Actors: Richard Harris, Catherine Schell
Category: Fantasy

Gulliver’s Travels (2010)

13 January 20115 February 2022

Rating: ★★

Land of Little People

Director: Rob Letterman
Actors: Jack Black, Emily Blunt, Jason Segel, Amanda Peet, …
Category: Fantasy

Infinity Pool (2023)

25 February 20232 May 2024

Rating: ★★★½

Executed Clones/Bored Lawless Elites

Director: Brandon Cronenberg
Actors: Alexander SkarsgÃ¥rd, Mia Goth, Cleopatra Coleman, Jalil Lespert, …
Category: Science Fiction

Joker (2012)

19 November 201516 December 2022

Rating: ★★

Bollywood Film/Faked Crop Circles and Alien Visitation

Director: Shirish Kunder
Actors: Akshay Kumar, Sonakshi Sinha
Category: Science Fiction

Legend of the White Horse (1986)

31 May 2023

Rating: 0­

Magical Horse/Dragon

Director: Jerzy Domaradski, Janusz Morgenstern
Actors: Christopher Lloyd, Dee Wallace, Soon-Teck Oh, Christopher Stone, …
Category: Fantasy

Legends of Oz: Dorothy’s Return (2014)

28 September 201522 December 2023

Rating: ★★

Animation/The Wizard of Oz Sequel

Director: Will Finn
Actors: Lea Michele, Martin Short, Oliver Platt, Hugh Dancy, …
Category: Fantasy

Mouse on the Moon (1963)

17 February 200310 January 2025

Rating: ★★★

World’s Smallest Country Launches a Moon Mission

Director: Richard Lester
Actors: Ron Moody, Terry-Thomas, Bernard Cribbins, David Kossoff, …
Category: Science Fiction

The Mouse That Roared (1959)

2 February 199927 May 2023

Rating: ★★

The World’s Smallest Country Invades the USA

Director: Jack Arnold
Actors: Peter Sellers, Jean Seberg, David Kossoff, William Hartnell, …
Category: Fantasy

Outside the Wire (2021)

6 February 202120 November 2024

Rating: ★

Rogue Military Android

Director: Mikael Håfström
Actors: Anthony Mackie, Damson Idris, Emily Beecham, Michael Kelly, …
Category: Science Fiction

Pan (2015)

1 November 201513 April 2025

Rating: ★★

Peter Pan Origin Story

Director: Joe Wright
Actors: Hugh Jackman, Levi Miller, Garrett Hedlund, Rooney Mara, …
Category: Fantasy

Passport to Pimlico (1949)

19 April 200931 January 2025

Rating: ★★★★

London Suburb Becomes a Foreign Country Comedy

Director: Henry Cornelius
Actors: Stanley Holloway, Hermione Baddeley, Raymond Huntley, Barbara Murray, …
Category: Fantasy

Peter Pan (1953)

7 February 199918 April 2025

Rating: ★★★

Disney Animation/Children’s Adventures in a Magic Land

Director: Clyde Geronimi, Wilfred Jackson, Hamilton Luske
Actors: Bobby Driscoll, Kathryn Beaumont, Hans Conreid
Category: Fantasy

Peter Pan (2003)

30 December 20035 May 2023

Rating: ★★

Children’s Adventures in a Magic Land

Director: P.J. Hogan
Actors: Rachel Hurd-Wood, Jeremy Sumpter, Jason Isaacs, Ludivine Sagnier, …
Category: Fantasy

Peter Pan and Wendy (2023)

5 May 202324 May 2025

Rating: ★★½

Disney Remake/Children’s Adventures in a Magic Land

Director: David Lowery
Actors: Ever Anderson, Alexander Molony, Jude Law, Yara Shahidi, …
Category: Fantasy

The Phantom Treehouse (1984)

13 July 20177 July 2021

Rating: ★★

Animation/Boy’s Adventure on a Magic Island

Director: Paul Williams
Category: Fantasy

The Place Promised in Our Early Days (2004)

30 September 202019 April 2024

Rating: ★★★

Anime/Alternate History/Mysterious Tower

Director: Makoto Shinkai
Category: Science Fiction

Pufnstuf (1970)

23 February 20043 May 2023

Rating: ★★★★

Gonzo Children’s Film/Magical Island

Director: Hollingsworth Morse
Actors: Billy Hayes, Jack Wild, Billy Barty, Angelo Rossitto, …
Category: Fantasy

Return to Never Land (2002)

2 April 200618 April 2025

Rating: ★★½

Disney Animation/Peter Pan Sequel

Director: Robin Budd, Donovan Cook
Actors: Corey Burton, Kath Soucie, Jeff Bennett
Category: Fantasy

Return to Oz (1985)

26 December 200021 December 2022

Rating: ★★★½

Wizard of Oz Sequel

Director: Walter Murch
Actors: Fairuza Balk, Nicol Williamson, Jean Marsh, Piper Laurie, …
Category: Fantasy

Strange World (2022)

30 December 202230 December 2022

Rating: ★★

Disney Animation/Lost World Adventure

Director: Don Hall
Actors: Jake Gyllenhaal, Dennis Quaid, Jaboukie Young-White, Gabrielle Union, …
Category: Science Fiction

The Suicide Squad (2021)

14 August 202122 November 2024

Rating: ★★★½

Team-Up of DC Comics Super-Villains

Director: James Gunn
Actors: Margot Robbie, Idris Elba, Joel Kinnaman, John Cena, …
Category: Fantasy

Sword of the Valiant: The Legend of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight (1984)

1 November 200226 August 2021

Rating: ★★

Sword and Sorcery

Director: Stephen Weeks
Actors: Miles O'Keeffe, Sean Connery, Cyrielle Claire, Leigh Lawson, …
Category: Fantasy

Thomas and the Magic Railroad (2000)

21 June 200417 August 2021

Rating: ★

Talking Trains/Children’s Film

Director: Britt Allcroft
Actors: Alec Baldwin, Mara Wilson, Peter Fonda, Russell Means, …
Category: Fantasy

Ultimate Avengers II (2006)

21 September 201014 May 2025

Rating: ★★

Marvel Comics Superhero Team/Animation

Director: Bob Richardson, Will Meugniot, Richard Sebast
Actors: Justin Gross, Marc Worden, Nolan North, Grey DeLisle, …
Category: Science Fiction

Where the Wild Things Are (2009)

2 November 20099 June 2025

Rating: ★★★★

Boy Frolics With Friendly Monsters

Director: Spike Jonze
Actors: Max Records, Catherine Keener, Mark Ruffalo, James Gandolfini, …
Category: Fantasy

The Witches of Oz (2011)

2 June 201426 February 2020

Rating: ★

Wizard of Oz Sequel/Modernisation

Director: Leigh Scott
Actors: Paulie Rojas, Eliza Swenson, Billy Boyd, Lance Henriksen, …
Category: Fantasy

The Wiz (1978)

5 May 200711 January 2025

Rating: ★★

All-Black Musical Wizard of Oz Remake

Director: Sidney Lumet
Actors: Diana Ross, Michael Jackson, Nipsey Russell, Richard Pryor, …
Category: Fantasy

The Wizard of Oz (1910)

4 July 201726 December 2023

Rating: ★★

Silent Adaptation

Director: Otis Turner
Category: Fantasy

Wizard of Oz (1925)

21 April 200811 January 2025

Rating: ★★

Silent Slapstick Adaptation

Director: Larry Semon
Actors: Larry Semon, Dorothy Dwan, Oliver Hardy, Josef Swickard, …
Category: Fantasy

The Wizard of Oz (1939)

4 September 201211 January 2025

Rating: ★★★★

Adventures in a Magical Land

Director: Victor Fleming
Actors: Judy Garland, Margaret Hamilton, Ray Bolger, Bert Lahr, …
Category: Fantasy

Wonder Woman: Bloodlines (2019)

14 October 20197 November 2023

Rating: ★★

Animation/DC Comics Superheroine

Director: Justin Copeland, Sam Liu
Actors: Rosario Dawson, Jeffrey Donovan, Adrienne Moore, Nia Vardalos, …
Category: Fantasy

Wonka (2023)

3 February 202413 April 2024

Rating: ★★

Willy Wonka Origin Story

Director: Paul King
Actors: Timothee Chalamet, Olivia Colman, Hugh Grant, Jim Carter, …
Category: Fantasy

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Contact Moria

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Theme Essays

  • Films About Atlantis
  • Werewolf Films
  • Virtual Reality
  • Imprisonment Thrillers
  • Films Depicting NASA and the Space Program
  • Human Bloodsports and Death Games
  • Animals Attack Films
  • Films About Plague and Pandemic
  • Disaster Movies
  • Steampunk Films
  • Documentaries
  • Films About Halloween
  • Films About Prophecy
  • Magicians and Sorcerers
  • Secret Societies
  • Real-Life People in Fiction
  • Techno-Thrillers
  • Twins in Fantastic Cinema
  • Asylums
  • Possession Films
  • Films About Imaginary and Magical Lands
  • Religion in Fantastic Cinema
  • Romantic Comedies
  • Film Noir
  • Spy Films
  • Jekyll and Hyde Films
  • Films That Make Dubious Claims to Being True Stories
  • Coming of Age Stories in Fantastic Cinema
  • Films About Cryogenics and Suspended Animation
  • Alternate History Films
  • Disturbed Psychology as Portrayed on Film
  • Law Enforcement in Fantastic Cinema
  • Weird Westerns
∧

Copyright Richard Scheib 1999-2025

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