We are all animals m'lady

so. i admit it. i'm not too ashamed of this fact....

i am a sucker for fantasy films. i just can't help myself. some of my earliest film memories is of watching the animated versions of The Hobbit and The Last Unicorn. then came Dark Crystal, Labyrinth and Legend. Even now, i would rather watch a film full of fairy glamour than any other genre.

as a child, i suspect that i wanted to grow up in a world filled with storybook creatures. i wanted a unicorn for a pet for God's sake. and as an adult, i find that my life is a little too realistic. i gladly welcome the opportunity to escape into a land were Westley always rescues Buttercup and Sarah has a Jereth the Goblin King begging for her love and submission (had i been sarah, there would have been no hesitation. david bowie can be my master any old day).

it's just that there is so much to think about every day. now with all this political mumbo jumbo going on it makes me want to slip into my fantasy worlds even more. so what if it is immature to want to always get away from it all. i do my work. i help my customers. sometimes, i even care about my customers, though they make it rather difficult to want to care for them. i go home and walk the dogs, fix dinner, hit the gym and go to bed. why now let a little excitement into my humdrum life and live vicariously through Lily and Jack, or Bilbo, or Cinderella. To live in a world that is wrapped in satin and glitter may be folly but i would much prefer to send myself into Morpheus' arms with the stars in my eyes. tomorrow i will wake and ground my head in reality and let Matt Laurer spin it for me. (speaking of Mr Matt. Homeboy looks hot in some swim trunks, let me tell you.) but i will end my day with swirling dresses and dashing heros.

i know that there are a good many people that will disagree with me (including Himself). they want to see intrigue and suspense. they want to see jackie chan kick some bad guys ass. they want to see some sub-human zombie creature chase bimbos into the woods and kill them. well... have fun with that. when you want me, look for me in the 10th kingdom. the land were chivalry isn't dead quite yet. where the villain is vanquished (despite the fact that he may be totally hot and seductive) and everyone lives happily ever after.

Tat2kittens Top 10 Fantasy Films

10. The Hobbit: this animated adaptation of the first of Tolkin's visits to middle earth is exceptional. gollum really freaked me out as a child but i liked the dragon, Smog. bilbo baggins leads a simple life. that is until Gandolf the wizard enlists his help in adventure that takes bilbo out of his comfort zone. Bilbo learns the strength in friendship and that even the smallest of size may be the bravest of heart.

9. The Last Unicorn: unicorns, magic, red bulls and angela landsbury. what more could you want in a fantasy film. while watching hunters in her forest, a unicorn learns that she is the last of her kind. vowing to find the others, she sets out with two human companions, schmendrick the magician and molly grue. to save the unicorn from being driven into the sea by King Haggard's red bull, schmendrick finally performs true magic but changing the unicorn into a human girl. the king's son falls in love with the mysterious girl causing the the girl to make a choice, stay human or return to her unicorn form. beautiful.

8. The 10th Kingdom: this is was an exquisite mini-series that was aired in the late '90's. it is quite a feet to watch it all in one go as it is 10 hours long but great for a rainy day. virginia and her dad live on the edge of central park. on her way to work as a waitress, virginia hits a dog with her bike that just happens to be the prince of the 3rd kingdom who was turned into a dog but his wicked

stepmother. with a wolf and trolls chasing him he runs through a magic mirror into central park. to help the dog, virginia and her dad travel through the mirror and find that all the fairy stories are all true and all took place within the 9 kingdoms. now they have to stop the wicked step mother from taking over all nine kingdoms by placing an impostor on the throne. all the great grimm fairy tales are touched on and even some mother goose rhymes. it also has an all-star cast. i love it.

7. Harry Potter: it's magical and fantastic. there are so many reasons that one should love these films. number one would be Gary Oldman as Sirius Black. each movie is better than the last and it's fun to watch the kids grow up.

6. Lord of the Rings: what can be said of the Leviathan that is the peter jackson mega-hit Lord of the Rings. Another great rainy day watch. great special FX and acting and costumes and sets and everything. just watch!

5. Dark Crystal: this was the first feature film by Jim Henson that didn't feature his beloved muppets. well... they were muppets, just not The muppets. it was creepy, beautiful, and it had land striders (i totally wanted one for a pet). it was ambitious for the henson company and i think it was more appreciated in video release. as with anything that jim henson touched, i think that it is wonderful. Jen is a gelfling that needs to find the missing shard of the crystal to bring order to his planet. kira is another gelfling that helps jen on his quest. great watch.

4. Legend: you can see from the above picture why i love this film. like jim henson, Tim Curry can do no wrong in my eyes and i think that whether he wears fishnets or bull horns he is a handsome fellow. this is a film that you must get it while you can. i fear that due to tom cruses new friends, you might not be able to find this film much longer. but it is a perfect fairy tale. jack and lily are innocent and in love. jack shows lily the unicorns and she touches one, causing the goblins of darkness to be able to trap the unicorn and steal its horn. this sends the world into darkness and jack, with the help of the fairy folk, must set things right. meanwhile, the lord of darkness has the hots for lily and tries to seduce her. the ultimate battle of good and evil ensues. it's not a long movie but it is a good one.

3. The Princess Bride: name me one girl that didn't let this movie shape her view of love. name me one boy that didn't think that Inigo Montoya wasn't the shizz. i love this movie. oh and by the way, i love this movie. buttercup lives on a farm and westley is the farm boy. they fall in love and he sets sail to find his fortune. buttercup learns that he is killed by the dread pirate roberts and agrees to marry the prince humperdink even though she vows to never love again. while out riding she is kidnapped and that group is pursued by a man in black. the man in black (westley) rescues buttercup only to lose her to humperdink again. but true love does conquer. this is a completely hysterical fantasy romp full of love, adventure, giants, sword fights, mystery, villains heros and cary elews.

2. Labyrinth: david bowie in tight jodhpurs. holy shizz. need i say more. this is another trip to the other side of reality with jim henson. sarah hates babysitting her baby brother so she jokingly asks the goblin king to take the baby away. he does and makes her travel to the center of his labyrinth in 13 hours or her baby brother will become a goblin servant. with the help of some of the inhabitants of the labyrinth sarah learns that life's not fair but good will out. again, it also has david bowie in really tight pants.

1. The Slipper and the Rose: sometimes the disney channel will play this film during christmas but it is not a very popular film. i think it is one of the most beautifully filmed movie musicals ever. it is just the tale of cinderella but you see more of the prince's point of view. richard chamberland plays the prince and he is completely adorable.