5 FANTASY FILMS TO WATCH ON NETFLIX

Fantastic creatures, universes to explore, heroes who must establish their own arc and confront very fearsome villains: the fantasy genre is, undoubtedly, among the most engaging, both in literature and in the audiovisual medium. Not surprisingly, it is also the genre that has given us some of the greatest blockbusters of all time, and one of those in which streaming platforms invest the most. Damsel is no exception, Netflix's brand new fantasy offering starring one of its stars par excellence, Millie Bobby Brown from Stranger Things and Enola Holmes. Directed by the Spaniard Juan Carlos Fresnadillo (28 weeks later), this medieval fantasy that begins in the purest Game of Thrones style presents us with the evolution of the classic trope of the "damsel in distress", Elodie, a warrior heroine locked in the cave of a fire-breathing dragon (dragoness, to be more precise) after discovering that her marriage was all a trap. No Prince Charming, in Damsel it is Elodie who faces the vicissitudes that mark the hero's journey. Precisely on the occasion of the release of this interesting project, we want to recommend 5 other fantasy films to watch on Netflix, stories with atypical heroes and heroines, which will win you over with their original narratives, the care in staging and in the construction of fantastic worlds , into which you can immerse yourself without wanting to leave.

I Kill Giants

I Kill Giants is Walter Anders' interesting debut film , which takes on the contours of a fantasy story to deal with extremely human topics: mourning and the way we deal with it. Based on the graphic novel by Joe Kelly and J.M. Ken Niimura, this fantasy film available on Netflix has as its protagonist Barbara (Madison Wolfe), a pre-adolescent who lives between reality and fantasy, or rather, between the very delicate family situation and the bullying she is a victim of at school, and the fantasies in which she takes refuge, where she is a heroine facing the giants who threaten to destroy the city. Similar to J. A. Bayona's film, A Monster Calls, I Kill Giants uses fantasy as a tool to process complex emotions and to start a journey of self-discovery, acceptance of reality and, finally, maturation. Understanding what is fiction and what is not is part of becoming an adult and this is why we consider I Kill Giants one of the best fantasy proposals for children and teenagers on the platform.

L The Academy of Good and Evil

Among the other fantasy films not to be missed on Netflix is ​​the Academy of Good and Evil, which presents itself as a fairy tale full of moral and philosophical reflections . This film, taken from the first part of Soman Chainani's pentalogy, goes beyond the simple fantastic context to immerse itself in the complexity of the human heart and stands out for its ability to convey profound messages through an engaging plot and well-developed characters. With a mix of fantasy and reflection, The Academy of Good and Evil offers an experience not to be missed for lovers of the fantasy genre.
The plot follows the adventures of best friends Sophie (Sophia Anne Caruso) and Agatha (Sofia Wylie), students at the titular academy, where aspiring heroes and villains from our favorite fairy tales are trained to preserve the balance between good and evil. However, Sophie's dream of becoming a fairytale princess turns into a nightmare when she is sent to the Academy of Evil while her friend Agatha, who does not aspire to a fairytale life, finds herself at the Academy of Evil. Well. Not only will their friendship be at risk, but also the fate of the entire fairytale world.

Kong - Skull Island

Second chapter of the saga of the Monsterverse by Legendary and Warner Bros., this fantasy film directed by Jordan Vogt-Roberts in his second directorial effort convinces mainly for the imposing stage presence of King Kong himself. In focusing everything on its mammoth dimensions, the most feared monster besides Godzilla has also developed a certain ability to adapt to the dangers of nature to further enliven the action sequences. In this journey, the cast is deliberately ridiculed and exploited to make them absorb the Skull Island, the wild kingdom dominated by the most disparate creatures and the class struggle with the gorilla at the top of the food ladder. It was impossible to get on the same level as Peter Jackson's remake, but Vogt-Roberts cleverly played the entertainment card to make the film solid, immediate and entertaining.

Valerian

With Valerian, Luc Besson returns to the refined atmospheres of The Fifth Element and also reclaims the light-hearted, light-hearted tone, full of moments of heart-pounding action. With the duo Dane De Haan and Cara Delevingne, the French director explores a world halfway between potentially actionable science fiction and pure fantasy with a vivid and colorful imagery borrowed from the comics material of Pierre Christin. Note of merit for the subtitle City of a Thousand Planets, a design idea that is still breathtaking today that mixes a myriad of different cultures and species to form a renewed society that aims for progress. Also to be rediscovered for the updated special effects that are well integrated with the actors on stage, an excellent result considering the record multi-million dollar budget in Europe. Elementary in structure but endowed with great inventiveness and originality in its staging, this fantasy film certainly deserves a more in-depth viewing.

The Old Guard

by Agnese Albertini of CinemaSerieTV.it for Filmamo