Fantasies to stream
By Tymon Smith
The Lord of the Rings trilogy Amazon Prime Peter Jackson’s epic adaptation of JRR Tolkien’s magnum opus of Middle-earth novels still stands as a magnificent, imaginative achievement two decades on. It put New Zealand on the map as a filmmaking location and set the benchmark for how we think about hobbits, orcs, elves and the epic final battle to save their beloved Middle-earth. American Gods
Amazon Prime Video
Neil Gaiman is an acknowledged modern master of Gothic fantasy and the longawaited adaptation of his groundbreaking Sandman series is now enjoying plenty of deserved acclaim on Netflix. This earlier smallscreen adaptation of his other gods and men fantasy comic series is a less sombre, but equally impressive affair. Starring the irrepressibly insouciant Ian McShane, it’s a dark, gory, sexy fantasy for adults that has plenty of black humour and memorably realised characters and confrontations.
Game of Thrones Showmax If Jackson’s trilogy showed it was possible to profitably and critically break down the barriers between diehard fantasy fans and general audiences, then HBO’s adaptation of George RR Martin’s ‘A Song of Fire and Ice’ books showed it was possible to go further with this much darker, more violent and pessimistic vision of the ruthless world of the seven kingdoms. A place where no one can be trusted, sexual taboos are there to be broken and she who has dragons seems most likely to ascend to the iron throne.
Studio Ghibli Netflix Japanese animation master Hayao Miyazaki’s studio has, for almost 40 years, produced some of the most intriguing, delightful and singularly strange creations. They mix painstakingly created everyday environments with dreamlike spirits, magical creatures and otherworldly oddities. Type ‘Studio Ghibli’ into the Netflix search bar and you’ll find a wide variety of some of the company’s most endearing and beloved creations, including the groundbreaking ‘My Neighbour Totoro’, the Oscar-winning ‘Spirited Away’ and the epic adventure ‘Howl’s Moving Castle’.
Star Wars Disney + The most popular and absorbing fantasy world-building of the modern era began with George Lucas’s game-changing and blockbusting ‘Star Wars’ in 1977. Since then it has exploded to include a host of other films, series and spin-offs all set in different eras and parts of the mythic ‘galaxy far, far, away’. There are already more than 180 hours of ‘Star Wars’ content and Disney shows no signs of slowing down as more and more shows and films are scheduled to keep the franchise barrelling into the popular consciousness of generations to come.