5 - The Secret Life of Walter Mitty
Though not an outright fantasy film, The Secret Life of Walter Mitty does fall into this genre from time to time. Directed by and starring Ben Stiller, the film follows the story of Walter Mitty, an average guy who spends most of his time daydreaming about having adventures. His real life is painfully mundane in comparison though, as he works as a negative assets manager at Life Magazine, which is soon to shut down with only one last issue is planned. However, after the negative of the photograph that will be used on the cover of the issue goes missing, Walter, spurred on by his co-worker and long time crush Cheryl, goes on his own real life adventure, from Iceland all the way to the Himalayas. The fantasy element kicks in when Walters vivid imagination takes over, and the imagery in these scenes are pretty beautiful.
Feeling wanderlust? The Secret Life of Walter Mitty will take you on an adventure on BluRay and DVD in April.
4 - 47 Ronin
Though absolutely panned by critics and left limping at the box office, this is really a film that deserved more attention. Starring everyone’s favourite wooden statue, Keanu Reeves, 47 Ronin follows, you guessed it, 47 Ronin as they seek to avenge the death of their master at the hands of an evil shogun. Blending reality with fantasy, 47 Ronin not only contains some epic sword-on-sword action, but also has creatures, monsters and a whole host of Japanese mythology inspired creations. Boasting superb CGI and excellent fight scenes, 47 Ronin is not to be missed, regardless of what the critics may say. File this one alongside John Carter and The Lone Ranger, great films that were unfairly prejudged.
47 Ronin cuts its way onto BluRay and DVD sometime later this year.
3 - The Legend of Hercules
Do you like films that are so bad they're good? Well, if that's your bag then The Legend of Hercules may be your holy grail. The plot completely disregards the actual tale of Hercules, and somehow places him fighting inside of the Colosseum. But don't get your hopes up too much, as even if you're looking for a bucket of blood and gore you'll be hugely disappointed, because there's more blood in the period scene in Carrie than there is here. From the shitty CGI, the awful pacing that feels like you're on a roller coaster while hung-over, to the fact that the films lead actor can't really speak English, The Legend of Hercules is a monumental disaster. But, for those of you like me who love that kind of thing, this film is a thing of beauty.
The Legend of Hercules gets sent to its room with no supper by Zeus and is expected to land on BluRay and DVD in April.
2 - About Time
As the poster says (in massive font!), from the creator of Love Actually, Notting Hill and Four Weddings and a Funeral, comes About Time, a love story that is part science fiction, part fantasy. At the age of 21, Tim Lake is told by his father that all men on his side of the family can travel through time. Though not believing his father at first (I wouldn't, I mean my folks told me Santa Claus doesn't exist. Fools!) he tries out these time travel powers... and it works. The film follows Tim as he uses time travel as a way of creating the perfect relationship with Mary, a girl he met at a bar, by correcting a bad date as it happens and pretending to share her interests. Of course, it all starts to go south, but fear not, real love prevails and the film ends up being sweet, funny, charming and moving at times.
About Time has just landed on BluRay and DVD in time for Valentines Day.
1 - The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
Picking up moments where An Unexpected Journey left off, The Desolation of Smaug, the second entry in this trilogy, gets much darker in tone. Continuing the journey of Bilbo Baggins, Gandalf and the company of Dwarves towards The Lonely Mountain, it's packed full of beautiful imagery, humour, new characters and locations, epic battles and, most importantly, our first look at Smaug the dragon, the self proclaimed “King under the mountain”. It's a vast improvement on the first film too, and ultimately feels more in tone as to how The Lord of the Rings played out. There's also a fantastic sub-plot in which Gandalf decides to investigate the “Necomancer” at Dol Guldur, which leads to a massive revelation that will have huge repercussions not only for the next Hobbit film, but The Lord of the Rings trilogy as well.
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug is expected to burn up the competition on BluRay and DVD in April.
Denis Murphy
