The Witcher is the most popular thing on TV. At least for the next week or so until everyone forgets about it. Such is the Netflix way. And while it didn’t receive the greatest critical reviews, it seemed to find a devoted audience. Fans of the books and video games seemed to ignore or look past its obvious flaws, indicated by its (perhaps exaggerated) IMDb rating of 8.5/10.
Then again, maybe people are just hungry for the next big fantasy epic. There hasn’t been an original one for a while, and the last big popular one ended in a…not so great manner. Luckily, there are tons of options out there. These are ten movies to watch if you liked The Witcher.
The Lord Of The Rings Trilogy
OK, let’s be serious, most of you have probably seen The Lord of the Rings two thousand times. Even people who don’t typically enjoy high fantasy have seen The Lord of the Rings two thousand times! This trilogy is perhaps the greatest example of high fantasy ever put to screen.
Not only are they fantastic fantasy movies, but they are three of the greatest movies of all time. Period. If you haven’t seen it (first of all, how dare you, secondly, HOW!?), check it out ASAP. You won’t regret it.
Pan’s Labyrinth
Pan’s Labyrinth is a different kind of high fantasy, but no less fascinating. Like The Witcher, Pan’s Labyrinth is meant for more mature audiences, as it uses its fantastical elements to help tell a more mature and grounded story.
At its core, the story revolves around the Spanish Civil War, but it also contains elements of parable, fairy tale, and mythology. It’s arguably Guillermo del Toro’s greatest work, and it’s undeniably a watershed fantasy movie.
The NeverEnding Story
The NeverEnding Story is a little more childish than either The Witcher or Pan’s Labyrinth, but it’s still a classic of the fantasy genre that deserves to be experienced. Like The Witcher, The NeverEnding Story was adapted from a novel. Not that that has anything to do with anything. We’re just sayin'.
Despite being for children, it still tells a surprisingly complex, emotional, and mature story that touches on many classic concepts and ideas of the fantasy genre. Ignore its intended demographic and check it out!
Willow
Willow isn’t one of the more well-known fantasy epics, but it’s still worth checking out if you enjoy state of the art special effects. This one stars Val Kilmer and Warwick Davis, who plays a farmer tasked with protecting a child from a tyrannical queen.
The high fantasy setting is wonderfully imaginative, and the movie contains tons of glorious special effects to ponder and gape at. It’s much like The Witcher in that it was criticized for its writing and story but widely praised for its imagination and visuals.
The Hobbit Trilogy
We know The Hobbit trilogy isn’t well regarded, but if you’re going to watch The Lord of the Rings, you may as well watch its prequel series. In fact, we’d go against the consensus and say that the first two Hobbit movies aren’t particularly terrible. In fact, The Desolation of Smaug is actually quite great!
It’s a little more colorful than its predecessor, and the special effects are certainly worse (damn cheap CGI), but you could certainly do a lot worse in the high fantasy genre.
Conan The Barbarian
Conan the Barbarian is still considered one of Arnold Schwarzenegger’s greatest achievements, and it is the movie that launched him to superstardom. Schwarzenegger stars as the titular Conan, a grieving man who seeks vengeance for the death of his parents in a dark and fantastical world filled with dark magic and sorcery.
It’s very Witcher-y in terms of dark magic, and it retains the same gloomy tone and atmosphere. If you want mature fantasy, seek out Conan the Barbarian. Yeah, it’s a little old, but just go with it.
The Dark Crystal
Speaking of dark fantasy, let’s talk about The Dark Crystal! This movie recently received a boost in popularity and relevance thanks to the Netflix prequel TV series, which we’re sure you checked out. And if you haven’t yet sought out the original movie…what are you waiting for!?
It’s just as wondrous and visually resplendent as its TV companion, and it tells a surprisingly dark tale that is sure to entertain both older kids and adults alike. It’s a sadly overlooked classic of the genre.
Dragonslayer
You’ve probably never heard of Dragonslayer before. But that’s through no fault of its own! The movie was a joint production between Paramount and Disney, and it told a dark (but cliché) story about a young wizard seeking a dangerous dragon.
Because people were expecting traditional Disney fare, Dragonslayer was largely condemned and ignored and was eventually forgotten to time. However, the movie itself is actually quite good and contains some first-rate special effects (for its time). It’s certainly one of the better dragon flicks out there.
The Black Cauldron
The Black Cauldron is another long-forgotten Disney flick that was lambasted for its dark themes and mature story. Yes, the movie is animated, but who says Disney animations are just for kids!? And besides, The Black Cauldron is arguably Disney’s darkest and most mature animated movie, so it plays extremely well with adults and older demographics.
It’s an ambitious technical marvel, and it contains one of the greatest (and scariest) Disney villains in The Horned King. We should stop ignoring this movie, because it truly is brilliant.
Jason And The Argonauts
If you want to watch one of the primitive and influential fantasy epics, you need to seek out Jason and the Argonauts. This movie was released way back in 1963, and it contains some surprisingly…not great special effects.
But this was cutting edge stuff for its time, and it’s mandatory viewing if you want to learn more about the fantasy genre and see where many of its filmmaking and special effects techniques stemmed from. It’s a piece of movie history, and it deserves to be seen by all fantasy lovers and aspiring special effects artists alike.
