The Fantasy Genre Ella Bunce

1. The Fantasy GenreElla Bunce

2. Conventions of fantasy • The fantasy genre usually involves elements such as magic, supernatural • events, make-believe creatures, exotic fantasy worlds, magic, myth, wonder, escapism, and the extraordinary (Gandalf the Wizard in • LOTR, talking animals in Narnia and Golden Compass • etc.)In fantasy films, the hero often undergoes some kind of • mystical experience and must ask for assistance from powerful, • superhuman forces (Ofelia’s tests in Pan’s Labyrinth) • Events are unlikely to occur in real life • Princes or princesses (Ofelia, the four siblings in Narnia) • Odd phenomena, physical aberrations, and incredible characters (sometimes monstrous characters that represent the divine or evil spirits, or fabulous magicians and sorcerers) are incorporated • into fantasy films, and often overlap with supernatural, sci-fi and horror(Monsters and evil wizards in LOTR and the creatures in Labyrinth)

3. They are often inspired or taken, however remotely, from myth or legend. They fill us • with a marvellous sense of awe and touch off deep primal • emotions (The faun myth in Pan’s Labyrinth, the scientific theory • of parallel universes in Golden Compass, dwarves, elves and • trolls in LOTR, witches in Golden • Compass etc.) • Categorizing a movie as fantasy may • thus require an examination of the themes, • narrative approach and other structural elements of the film • The fantasy worlds are often entered by some kind of magical • portal or through a barrier (the outline of a door that Ofelia • draws In Pan’s Labyrinth or the wardrobe in Narnia, the • Use of the book in Inkheart, the bridge in The Bridge to • Terabithia)

4. Defining fantasy Some films are in the grey area as far as fantasy is concerned for example Walt Disney's 1937 classic Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs is difficult to categorize. The film features a medieval setting, dwarven characters, a witch, the use of sorcery, a magical mirror and other tropes common to fantasy. However many fans of the genre do not believe such movies qualify as fantasy, placing them in instead in a separate fairy tale genre. Also the 1976 Freaky Friday which involves a mother and daughter magically switch bodies, which convention wise could place it in the fantasy genre but is not considered as such because the magic is only a gimmick and plays no other part than to set up the rest of the film. Films that are considered true fantasy are often permeated the entire way through with magic and myth. They do, like all films, contain other genres and elements but their core the most important aspect is the fantasy i.e. a make believe world, mythical creatures, magic etc.

5. Examples of fantasy • Pan’s Labyrinth, 2006,Guillermo del Toro • Genres: Drama, Fantasy, War, Fairytale • In the fascist Spain of 1944, the bookish young stepdaughter of • a sadistic army officer escapes into an eerie but captivating • fantasy world. • The Lord of the Rings Trilogy, 2001-2003, Peter Jackson • Genres: Action, Adventure, Drama, Fantasy • In a small village in the Shire a young Hobbit named Frodo has been entrusted with an ancient Ring. Now he must embark on an Epic quest to the Cracks of Doom in order to destroy it. • Alice In Wonderland, 2010, Tim Burton • Genres: Adventure, Family, Fantasy • 19-year-old Alice returns to the magical world from her • childhood adventure, where she reunites with her old friends • and learns of her true destiny: to end the Red Queen's reign of • terror.

6. The Golden Compass, 2007, Chris Weitz • Genres: Adventure Family, Fantasy • In a parallel universe, young Lyra Belacqua journeys to the far North to save her best friend and other kidnapped children from terrible experiments by a mysterious organization. • Stardust, 2007, Matthew Vaughn • Genres: Adventure, Comedy, Family, Fantasy • In a countryside town bordering on a magical land, a young man makes a promise to his beloved that he'll retrieve a fallen star by venturing into the magical realm. • The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch And The Wardrobe, 2005, Andrew Adamson • Genres: Adventure, Family, Fantasy • Four kids travel through a wardrobe to the land of Narnia and • learn of their destiny to free it with the guidance of a mystical • lion.

7. Pan’s Labyrinth • Pans Labyrinth opens with a fairy-tale which tells the story of a princess of the underworld. She becomes curious about our world and when she leaves the underworld she forgets about her life there and so she grows old and dies as a mortal however the king believes that her spirit will come back to the underworld someday. This is typical of how fantasy and fairy-tale films start with a narrated story involving another world, an old book or object, prince or princess. • to set up the film. Another example of this is • each of the Shrek films. The overall tone is not • typical of most Hollywood fantasy Which are • usually light in tone (again for example Shrek • (2001-2010), sleeping beauty or Narnia). • Pan’s Labyrinth however is much darker and • closer to original medieval fantasy and fairy- • tales in tone and themes, like for example the • recent Red Riding Hood (2011, Catherine Hardwick). • Pan’s Labyrinth opening: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lMnp-XmMiEg

8. The film appears to have religious influences and Del Toro has said that he considers Pan's Labyrinth "a truly profane film (not devoted to holy or religious purposes), a layman's riff on Catholic dogma", but his friend Alejandro González Iñárritu described it as "a truly Catholic film". Religious themes seem to be common in the other fantasy films that I have looked at (The Golden Compass and The Lord of the Rings). The character of the faun is mysterious and gives both the impression of rustworthiness and of someone never to confide in. He also fulfils the purpose of A guide to Ophelia through her tasks and someone to test her in her final task of offering her brothers blood (an innocent) to open the portal into the underworld. The typical character of a guide To the hero who often undergoes a mystical experience (Ofelia’s tests) and must ask for assistance from powerful, wise, superhuman forces. This is also seen in films like The Lord of the Rings with Gandalf. Ofelia meets the Faun: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zBDR2COO3So

9. Pan’s Labyrinth also the rule of three common in fairy-tale and the notion of tasks that the hero has to overcome (Frodo’s task to destroy the ring in the Lord of the Rings or Lyra’s task to rescue her friend), often seen in fantasy. • The idea of temptation (the food) seen in this clip links to religious themes and fantasy theme (the temptation of the Ring in The Lord of the Rings, or the notion of Dust in The Golden Compass). Old books are also often seen in fantasy (see also The Lord of the Rings). • The monster in this scene is also typical, like the faun, fairies and • giant toad, of fantasy as almost all fantasies have mythical (faun, • the pale man) or entirely made up, magical creatures. The faun is • a rustic forest god or place-spirit (genii) of Roman mythology • often associated with Greek satyrs and the Greek god Pan. • The ending of the film brings forth the fantasy world and we see it for the first time, the recurring theme of three is repeated (the three thrones). The colour tones in the fantasy world are warm, rich colours (red and gold) opposed to the cold blues and greens of the real world. • The Pale Man (8:20): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ANMKxVmt4so

10. The Golden Compass • The Golden compass also has religious themes, • namely the rejection of religion and the abuse of • power in a fictionalised version of the Church (The • Magisterium). The religion is in this case • something familiar that audiences can relate to in • a fantasy world. Familiarity with certain things is • something important in fantasy films because they give the audience something to latch on to. The alethiometer is a typically magical and unexplained object often seen in fantasy. • The Golden compass also has the typical convention of ‘the chosen one’ (Lyra) meaning someone who has abilities or skills (Lyra’s ability to read the alethiometer) that others don’t or have a supreme or prophesised purpose that • somehow determines • something very important like the fate of the world • like in the Harry Potter films (neither can live while • the other survives).

11. The Character is Mrs Coulter is similar to that of the Faun in Pan’s Labyrinth and Saruman in The Lord of the Rings. They all initially seem good, helpful and trustworthy, at least to the hero if not the audience like in The Golden Compass, but they are then revealed to (Saruman and Mrs Coulter) or appear to (The Faun) have tricked the characters, have a hidden motive or be entirely evil and untrustworthy. These characters are often anther obstacle that the hero of a fantasy have to overcome although it is not exclusively a convention of fantasy. Mrs coulter initially appears to Lyra as someone sweet and who understands her need to rebel (the idea Of obedience and disobedience links to Pan’s Labyrinth and the eating of the apple in the garden of Eden i.e. original sin and Dust). This is typical of characters in fantasy who are not what they seem. Dust links to the Original Sin and therefore religious themes but it also links to temptations that typical heroes have to resist. Lyra has wiser and stronger characters to guide her i.e. Iorek Byrnison, Serafina Pekkala, but ultimately she fulfils her goal without large amounts of assistance and does things her own way (disobedience against Iorek).

12. The Golden compass also has magical creature for examples; Daemons (representations of the human soul outside of their • bodies), talking bears, spy bugs, witches etc. • This is definitely • something that is key • In most fantasy films. • Other examples are • the talking rabbit in Alice in Wonderland, the monsters in The Lord of the Rings, the talking animals in Narnia and the faun and other creatures in Pan’s Labyrinth… • Lyrameets Mrs Coulter: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9bawWojToLc • Mrs Coulter explains the Magisterium to Lyra: ttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o-FvGjEw-ss&feature=related • The magisterium is an example if something sinister that Mrs Coulter tries to seem sweet, innocent, and a good thing to Lyra. She tries to tell her that obedience is a good thing. Obedience is another theme reflected in Pan’s Labyrinth, namely in Ophelia's disobedience in various ways.

13. The Lord of the Rings • The Lord of the Rings is a typical fantasy film; it’s set in • a fantasy world, it has monsters, dwarves, elves, other • magical creatures, magic, wizards, magical objects etc. the • ring represents themes, of corruption and ultimate power • common in fantasy, the audience doesn’t know how it • works but know that it is magical • and dangerous and corrupts the • hero (Frodo). • Gollum is a twisted, once hobbit, fantasy, character who represents what the hero could become. Gandalf • plays the part of the wise, powerful, magical and superhuman wizard who guides the heroes through their quests. The quest is also something typical of fantasy films, what is different about Lord of the Rings is that there isn't one hero and one quest.

14. The Lord of the Rings also has elements of horror; the Nazgul, Ringwraiths, the main villain of Sauron is a disembodied, essentially hidden enemy. The Ringwraiths are essentially some type of ghost with no substance but are defined by their shape And have no will of their own. This is typical of minions seen in fantasy that serve a more powerful being. Another magical object seen in the lord of the rings are the lost seeing stones and Galadriel's mirror. These objects always tell the truth but encourage someone to draw the wrong conclusion. The Elves in this films are ethereal, angelic and fairy-like magical beings and in the case of Galadriel sometimes sinister. This theme of things not being as they seem is very common in fantasy but also other genres such as fairy-tale, thriller and horror. Visions of the future are also included in LOTR (typical of fantasy): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aYrYRC2gJ9E