Sci-fi and Fantasy Movies The Best Classic Fantasy Movies, Ranked  

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List Rules Vote up your favorite old fantasy movies released before 1990.

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This list contains information on the best classic fantasy movies, ranked from best to worst by user votes. The best classic fantasy films come in many forms. Some good old fantasy movies follow princesses as they look for love while other good classic fantasy movies feature epic battles. Many of the best classic fantasy films have been beloved for generations.

What films will you find on this top classic fantasy movies released before 1990 list? Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory has to be near the top. Gene Wilder had whimsy to spare as the candy-loving title character in this 1971 movie. Fantastical plot twists and catchy songs helped to make this musical a classic. Ghostbusters is another good movie that includes elements of fantasy.

Movie-goers found a fairytale fit for the big screen in the 1987 film The Princess Bride. Other good classic fantasy films featured on this list include Mary Poppins, The NeverEnding Story, and The Wizard of Oz.

Do you have a favorite classic fantasy film? Give the best movies a thumbs up and please add any good features we may have missed.

list ordered by

1
415 69
The Princess Bride is listed (or ranked) 1 on the list The Best Classic Fantasy Movies, Ranked
Billy Crystal, Robin Wright, André the Giant The Princess Bride is a 1987 American romantic comedy fantasy adventure film directed and co-produced by Rob Reiner. It was adapted by William Goldman from his 1973 novel of the same name. The ...more

2
400 72
Labyrinth is listed (or ranked) 2 on the list The Best Classic Fantasy Movies, Ranked
Jennifer Connelly, David Bowie, Frank Oz Labyrinth is a 1986 British-American musical adventure fantasy film directed by Jim Henson, executive produced by George Lucas and based upon conceptual designs by Brian Froud. The film stars ...more

3
371 73
The NeverEnding Story is listed (or ranked) 3 on the list The Best Classic Fantasy Movies, Ranked
Gerald McRaney, Limahl, Moses Gunn The NeverEnding Story is a 1984 West German epic fantasy film based on the novel of the same name by Michael Ende, about a boy who reads a magical library book that tells a story of a young ...more

4
330 74
Ghostbusters is listed (or ranked) 4 on the list The Best Classic Fantasy Movies, Ranked
Bill Murray, Sigourney Weaver, Dan Aykroyd Ghostbusters is a 1984 American sci-fi-fantasy comedy film, directed and produced by Ivan Reitman and written by Dan Aykroyd and Harold Ramis. The film stars Bill Murray, Aykroyd, and Ramis as ...more

5
328 79
Beetlejuice is listed (or ranked) 5 on the list The Best Classic Fantasy Movies, Ranked
Alec Baldwin, Winona Ryder, Geena Davis Beetlejuice is a 1988 American comedy fantasy film directed by Tim Burton, produced by The Geffen Film Company and distributed by Warner Bros. The plot revolves around a recently deceased young ...more

6
320 78
Willow is listed (or ranked) 6 on the list The Best Classic Fantasy Movies, Ranked
Val Kilmer, Kevin Pollak, Warwick Davis Willow is a 1988 American fantasy film directed by Ron Howard, produced and with a story by George Lucas, and starring Warwick Davis, Val Kilmer, Joanne Whalley, Jean Marsh, and Billy Barty. ...more

7
312 85
The Lord of the Rings is listed (or ranked) 7 on the list The Best Classic Fantasy Movies, Ranked
but chickens double d added John Hurt, Annette Crosbie, Peter Woodthorpe J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings is a 1978 American animated fantasy film directed by Ralph Bakshi. It uses a hybrid of traditional cel animation and rotoscoped live action footage. It is ...more

8
294 79
The Wizard of Oz is listed (or ranked) 8 on the list The Best Classic Fantasy Movies, Ranked
Judy Garland, Margaret Hamilton, Frank Morgan The Wizard of Oz is a 1939 American musical fantasy film produced by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, and the most well-known and commercially successful adaptation based on the 1900 novel The Wonderful ...more

9
242 76
Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Fa... is listed (or ranked) 9 on the list The Best Classic Fantasy Movies, Ranked
Gene Wilder, Jack Albertson, Tim Brooke-Taylor Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory is a 1971 musical fantasy film directed by Mel Stuart, and starring Gene Wilder as Willy Wonka. The film, a film adaptation of the 1964 novel Charlie and ...more

10
207 58
The Sword in the Stone is listed (or ranked) 10 on the list The Best Classic Fantasy Movies, Ranked
but chickens double d added Alan Napier, Sebastian Cabot, Norman Alden The Sword in the Stone is a 1963 American animated musical fantasy comedy film produced by Walt Disney and released to theaters on December 25, 1963 by Buena Vista Distribution. The 18th film in ...more

11
231 75
Who Framed Roger Rabbit is listed (or ranked) 11 on the list The Best Classic Fantasy Movies, Ranked
but chickens double d added Kathleen Turner, Christopher Lloyd, Bob Hoskins Who Framed Roger Rabbit is a 1988 American live-action/animated fantasy-comedy film directed by Robert Zemeckis. The screenplay by Jeffrey Price and Peter S. Seaman is based on Gary K. Wolf's ...more

12
246 86
Mary Poppins is listed (or ranked) 12 on the list The Best Classic Fantasy Movies, Ranked
Julie Andrews, Dick Van Dyke, Elsa Lanchester Mary Poppins is a 1964 American musical fantasy film directed by Robert Stevenson and produced by Walt Disney, with songs written and composed by the Sherman Brothers. The screenplay is by Bill ...more

13
219 71
The Little Mermaid is listed (or ranked) 13 on the list The Best Classic Fantasy Movies, Ranked
Jodi Benson, Christopher Daniel Barnes, Pat Carroll The Little Mermaid is a 1989 American animated musical fantasy film produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and released by Walt Disney Pictures. Based on the Danish fairy tale by Hans ...more

14
241 84
The Dark Crystal is listed (or ranked) 14 on the list The Best Classic Fantasy Movies, Ranked
Jim Henson, Frank Oz, Lisa Maxwell The Dark Crystal is a 1982 American–British fantasy film directed by Jim Henson and Frank Oz. The plot revolves around Jen, an elflike 'Gelfling' on a quest to restore balance to his alien world ...more

15
240 86
Monty Python and the Holy Grai... is listed (or ranked) 15 on the list The Best Classic Fantasy Movies, Ranked
but chickens double d added John Cleese, Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle Monty Python and the Holy Grail is a 1975 British comedy film written and performed by the comedy group of Monty Python, and directed by Gilliam and Jones. It was conceived during the hiatus ...more

16
224 79
Highlander is listed (or ranked) 16 on the list The Best Classic Fantasy Movies, Ranked
Sean Connery, Clancy Brown, Michael Hayes Highlander is a 1986 British-American cult fantasy film directed by Russell Mulcahy and based on a story by Gregory Widen. It stars Christopher Lambert, Sean Connery, Clancy Brown, and Roxanne ...more

17
236 88
Gremlins is listed (or ranked) 17 on the list The Best Classic Fantasy Movies, Ranked
Steven Spielberg, Corey Feldman, Phoebe Cates Gremlins is a 1984 American horror comedy film directed by Joe Dante, released by Warner Bros. The film is about a young man who receives a strange creature called a mogwai as a pet, which then ...more

18
187 64
The Jungle Book is listed (or ranked) 18 on the list The Best Classic Fantasy Movies, Ranked
but chickens double d added Clint Howard, George Sanders, Louis Prima The Jungle Book is a 1967 American animated film produced by Walt Disney Productions. Inspired by the Rudyard Kipling's book of the same name, it is the 19th animated feature in the Walt Disney ...more

19
155 46
Snow White and the Seven Dwarf... is listed (or ranked) 19 on the list The Best Classic Fantasy Movies, Ranked
but chickens double d added Billy Gilbert, Pinto Colvig, Jimmy MacDonald Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs is a 1937 American animated musical fantasy film produced by Walt Disney Productions and released by RKO Radio Pictures. Based on the German fairy tale by the ...more

20
138 39
Peter Pan is listed (or ranked) 20 on the list The Best Classic Fantasy Movies, Ranked
but chickens double d added June Foray, Bobby Driscoll, Heather Angel Peter Pan is a 1953 American animated fantasy-adventure film produced by Walt Disney and based on the play Peter Pan, or The Boy Who Wouldn't Grow Up by J. M. Barrie. It is the 14th film in the ...more

21
162 55
Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stol... is listed (or ranked) 21 on the list The Best Classic Fantasy Movies, Ranked
but chickens double d added Boris Karloff, June Foray, Hal Smith This special is a 1966 American animated television special directed by Chuck Jones. It is based on the eponymous children's book by Dr. Seuss, the story of The Grinch trying to take away ...more

22
141 43
Sleeping Beauty is listed (or ranked) 22 on the list The Best Classic Fantasy Movies, Ranked
but chickens double d added Marvin Miller, Mary Costa, Verna Felton Sleeping Beauty is a 1959 American animated musical fantasy film produced by Walt Disney based on The Sleeping Beauty by Charles Perrault and Little Briar Rose by The Brothers Grimm. The 16th ...more

23
132 38
Cinderella is listed (or ranked) 23 on the list The Best Classic Fantasy Movies, Ranked
but chickens double d added June Foray, Mike Douglas, Verna Felton Cinderella is a 1950 American animated musical fantasy film produced by Walt Disney and released by RKO Radio Pictures. Based on the fairy tale "Cendrillon" by Charles Perrault, it is ...more

24
197 81
Conan the Barbarian is listed (or ranked) 24 on the list The Best Classic Fantasy Movies, Ranked
Arnold Schwarzenegger, James Earl Jones, Max von Sydow Conan the Barbarian is a 1982 sword and sorcery/adventure film directed and co-written by John Milius. It is based on stories by Robert E. Howard, a pulp fiction writer of the 1930s, about the ...more

25
136 42
Alice in Wonderland is listed (or ranked) 25 on the list The Best Classic Fantasy Movies, Ranked
but chickens double d added Ed Wynn, Heather Angel, Sterling Holloway Alice in Wonderland is a 1951 American animated musical fantasy comedy-adventure film produced by Walt Disney Productions and based primarily on Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland ...more