The medium of film is unlike any other. The viewer can be taken to incredible, new worlds that could never exist outside of the theater, and experience tales of wonder that stay with them for the rest of their lives. As cliched as it sounds, cinema really is magical, and given the fact that it was actually invented as a magic trick, I mean that literally and figuratively.
With this list I want to pay tribute to those extremely rare types of movies that give you a sense of amazement and offer you something you’ll never forget in a way that only movies can do. The criteria was incredibly simple: if a film wowed me when I first saw it and continues to give me a lasting sense of wonder, then it gets a spot. Because of this, not every entry on my list is about magic in particular but, as you read on, I’m sure you’ll agree with me that they’re all magical in their own way.
10. Alien
Who said a film has to be happy to be magical? Alien is the ultimate example of this because it features all of the wonders that sci-fi has to offer while also featuring a monster that you can’t help but be amazed by. The Xenomorph keeps you guessing all the way until Ripley launches it into space in the finale. It’s the perfect movie monster, since you can never fully understand it yet you’re completely enthralled by its constant evolution throughout the movie.
No one can claim that Alien didn’t make them think; whether they enjoyed it or not is arbitrary. The film does what all the best sci-fi does and presents a universe outside of Earth that’s just waiting to be explored, whether what you find is for better or worse. In Alien it just happens to be for the worst, but that doesn’t stop it from being a beautiful, bleak commentary on curiosity that’s filled with incredible symbolism.
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15 Comments
A real quality article Dolan, so glad you picked some horror/Sci-fi films as well as kids movies.
What is with 2001 being number 1 in every article now?
Thank you i though i was the only one noticing it
I knew there would be a little backlash to 2001 at #1 but I couldn’t not include it. It’s one of my favorite movies and I really feel it deserves the #1 spot
I definitely agree with Toy Story, it’s brilliant. Personally though, I can’t stand Alice in Wonderland, to me its a annoying child going to a weird place with charaters that literally are just there to be crazy. I like Burton’s version though. Anyway, going on a bit here. Nice article to read though.
Why does Harry Potter, a series where the first half was great and the second half pointless make the list, but Lord of the Rings, possibly the single greatest creation of a world in cinema, doesn’t?
I actually replaced Lord of the Rings on the list with Pan’s Labyrinth. I wanted to have one fantasy film from this decade and Pan’s edged out Lord of the Rings since I find it to be the better movie. Lord of the Rings is great but Pan’s accomplishes just as much but in 2 hours instead of 10
Star Wars. That is all.
Star Wars was on the list but I replaced it with either Toy Story or Eternal Sunshine, can’t remember which one. I like Star Wars but I just find the other 10 films on here to be better, it’s all opinion
2001 A Space Odyssey has reservations for the end of every one of these lists…. It was cool to watch and Hal was great but…. It was not the DEFINING movie…. I wasn’t crazy about the wizard of oz but how come that got no love… That movei was made to be on a list like this… How about the fellowship of the ring? The scale of that movie and the way it made Middle Earth feel like a real place… I remember seeing that as a kid and it blowing everyone away.
No love for Oz? The Wizard of Oz got #2 and I greatly admire that movie. I had to give 2001 #1 because it’s inspired more wonder in me than any other film I’ve ever seen and it captivates me on every viewing. Lord of the Rings was on here but I replaced it for Pan’s Labyrinth
Oh and F!@king Fantasia!!!!
Ok I must have missed the wizard of oz page… I see it now, my bad… HOW IS IT NOT 1 THOUGH?!?!?!
Haha, I don’t know. Just couldn’t bring myself to give it #1 out of personal opinion. 2001 means so much to me and my love for Stanley Kubrick forbade me from giving it anything less than #1
Surprised not to see Willy Wonka And The Chocolate Factory on here. “Don’t forget what happened to the man who got everything he ever wanted. He lived happily ever after.”