The 40 most popular 1960s fantasy movies, ranked. Click any film for ratings, reviews, trailers, and where to watch.


Mary Poppins
1964 · 2h 19m · US
In turn of the century London, a magical nanny employs music and adventure to help two neglected children become closer to their father.


The Sword in the Stone
1963 · 1h 19m · US
Wart is a young boy who aspires to be a knight's squire. On a hunting trip he falls in on Merlin, a powerful but amnesiac wizard who has plans for him beyond mere squiredom. He starts by trying to give him an education, believing that once one has an education, one can go anywhere. Needless to say, it doesn't quite work out that way.


Jason and the Argonauts
1963 · 1h 44m · US
Jason, a fearless sailor and explorer, returns to his home land of Thessaly after a long voyage to claim his rightful throne. He learns, however, that he must first find the magical Golden Fleece. To do so, he must embark on an epic quest fraught with fantastic monsters and terrible perils.


Chitty Chitty Bang Bang
1968 · 2h 24m · UK
A hapless inventor finally finds success with a flying car, which a dictator from a foreign government sets out to take for himself.


The Time Machine
1960 · 1h 43m · US
A Victorian Englishman travels to the far future and finds that humanity has divided into two hostile species.


Kwaidan
1965 · 3h 3m · JP
Taking its title from an archaic Japanese word meaning "ghost story," this anthology adapts four folk tales. A penniless samurai marries for money with tragic results. A man stranded in a blizzard is saved by Yuki the Snow Maiden, but his rescue comes at a cost. Blind musician Hoichi is forced to perform for an audience of ghosts. An author relates the story of a samurai who sees another warrior's reflection in his teacup.


Abuelita Charlestón
1962 · 1h 43m · ES
A comedy fantasy film involving a love potion.


King Kong vs. Godzilla
1962 · 1h 37m · JP
The advertising director of Pacific Pharmaceuticals, frustrated with the low ratings of their sponsored TV program, seeks a more sensationalist approach. He orders his staff to Faro Island to capture King Kong for exploitation. As Godzilla re-emerges, a media frenzy generates with Pacific looking to capitalize off of the ultimate battle.


The Love Bug
1968 · 1h 48m · US
Down-on-his-luck race car driver Jim Douglas teams up with a little VW Bug that has a mind of its own, not realizing Herbie's worth until a sneaky rival plots to steal him.


Macario
1960 · 1h 31m · MX
Poor, hungry peasant Macario longs for just one good meal on the Day of the Dead. After his wife cooks a turkey for him, he meets three apparitions, the Devil, God, and Death. Each asks him to share his turkey, but he refuses all except Death. In return, Death gives him a bottle of water which will heal any illness. Soon, Macario is more wealthy than the village doctor, which draws the attention of the feared Inquisition.


Faust
1960 · 2h 8m · DE
In 1957 Gustaf Gründgens staged a new production of Goethe's Faust in which he once again played Mephisto, a part he had played since 1932. The brilliant production was a huge success and ran for a couple of years. In 1959 Peter Gorski captured the performance on film in his directorial film debut. Basically it is a registration of the production, but Gorksi did manage to accentuate the details of the acting by using enough medium and close-up shots which give a view on the acting you normally would not able to see in a theater.


Blackbeard's Ghost
1968 · 1h 46m · US
The eponymous wraith returns to Earth to aid his descendant, elderly Emily Stowecroft. The villains want to kick Emily and her friends out of their group home so that they can build a crooked casino. Good guy Steve Walker gets caught in the middle of the squabble after evoking Blackbeard's ghost.


Viy
1967 · 1h 16m · SU
A seminary student on monastery holiday kills an old witch in a remote village. The hag then transforms into a beautiful young woman whose dying wish is for him to watch over her wake for three nights. With terrors occurring and his faith waning, he reads prayers on the overnight watch and tries to survive the supernatural encounters.


Yellow Submarine
1968 · 1h 30m · UK
The wicked Blue Meanies take over Pepperland, eliminating all color and music. As the only survivor, the Lord Admiral escapes in the yellow submarine and journeys to Liverpool to enlist the help of the Beatles.


Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer
1964 · 52m · US
Sam the snowman tells us the story of a young red-nosed reindeer who, after being ousted from the reindeer games because of his glowing nose, teams up with Hermey, an elf who wants to be a dentist, and Yukon Cornelius, the prospector. They run into the Abominable Snowman and find a whole island of misfit toys. Rudolph vows to see if he can get Santa to help the toys, and he goes back to the North Pole on Christmas Eve. But Santa's sleigh is fogged in. But when Santa looks over Rudolph, he gets a very bright idea...


Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster
1964 · 1h 33m · JP
After a meteorite unleashes a three-headed beast upon Tokyo, Mothra tries to unite with Godzilla and Rodan to battle the extraterrestrial threat.


Monday Begins on Saturday
1965 · 1h 3m · SU
Set in a fictional town in northern Russia, where highly classified research in magic occurs, the novel is a satire of Soviet scientific research institutes, complete with an inept administration, a dishonest, show-horse professor, and numerous equipment failures. It offers an idealistic view of the scientific work ethic, as reflected in the title which suggests that the scientists' weekends are nonexistent. (Wikipedia)


That Forward Center Dies at Dawn
1961 · 1h 20m · AR
Cacho Garibaldi is the soccer player of the moment, his goals lead to delirium fans. When an eccentric millionaire named Lupus buys his transfer, he expects to end up on a major team. Instead, he discovers the millionaire's goal in life is to collect the best -not art or stamps- but people.


Cipollino
1961 · 38m · SU
In a world inhabited by anthropomorphic produce, "Cipollino, the Onion Boy" fights the unjust treatment of his fellow vegetable townsfolk by the fruit royalty (Prince Lemon and the overly proud Lord Tomato) in the garden kingdom.


Ebirah, Horror of the Deep
1966 · 1h 27m · JP
Searching for his brother, Ryota stows away on a boat belonging to a criminal alongside two other teenagers. The group shipwrecks on Letchi island and discover the Infant Island natives have been enslaved by a terrorist organization controlling a crustacean monster. Finding a sleeping Godzilla, they decide to awaken him to defeat the terrorists and liberate the natives.


Raja Bersiong
1968 · 1h 48m · MY
Raja Bersiong, the Fanged King, is a cannibal monarch in the Kedah epic literature Hikayat Merong Mahawangsa (HMM). A king with an intense appetite for human blood that over time he grew fangs and began attacking his own people to feast on them.


A Thousand and One Nights
1969 · 2h 10m · JP
Aldin, a vagabond water vendor, embarks of a series of fantastical and tragic misadventures through the Middle East in search of love, fortune, and power.


The Little Shop of Horrors
1960 · 1h 13m · US
Seymour works in a skid row florist shop and is in love with his beautiful co-worker, Audrey. He creates a new plant that not only talks but cannot survive without human flesh and blood.


Son of Godzilla
1967 · 1h 26m · JP
Reporter Goro Maki stumbles upon scientists conducting weather experiments on Sollgel Island in the South Seas. He discovers the island is inhabited by giant mantis and a woman named Saeko who's been cast away since the death of her father. The pair soon find a helpless infant monster that Godzilla must adopt and learn to raise as one of his own.
Gul Bakawali
Gul Bakawali
1963 · 1h 52m · SG
It tells the story about the adventures of Taj and his friend Mubarak in search of the Bakawali Flower to cure the eyes of the King who suddenly went blind when he saw Taj's face. He went through many trials and temptations during the adventure including from a charismatic witch (Princess Jenuh Hati). Finally he met the Bakawali Flower which can only be found in the forbidden garden belonging to Princess Saharazad which is strictly controlled by the fierce Jinn


The Monkey King: Uproar in Heaven
1961 · 1h 54m · CN
Sun Wukong, the King of the Monkeys, sets off on his first adventure to gain a worthy weapon. This earns the attention of the Jade Emperor of Heaven.


Carnival of Souls
1962 · 1h 18m · US
Mary Henry ends up the sole survivor of a fatal car accident through mysterious circumstances. Trying to put the incident behind her, she moves to Utah and takes a job as a church organist. But her fresh start is interrupted by visions of a fiendish man. As the visions begin to occur more frequently, Mary finds herself drawn to the deserted carnival on the outskirts of town. The strangely alluring carnival may hold the secret to her tragic past.


Fantomas vs. Scotland Yard
1967 · 1h 44m · FR
In the third and final episode of the trilogy, Fantômas imposes a head tax on the rich, threatening to kill those who do not comply.


One Million Years B.C.
1966 · 1h 40m · UK
As the Earth wrestles with its agonizing birth, the peoples of this barren and desolate world struggle to survive. Driven by animal instinct they compete against the harsh conditions, their giant predators, and warring tribes. When two people from opposing clans fall in love, existing conventions are shattered forever as each tribe struggles for supremacy and Man embarks on his tortuous voyage of civilization.


All Monsters Attack
1969 · 1h 10m · JP
Ichiro Miki is a child living in the industrial district of Kawasaki, where his parents' constant struggle to make ends meet often leaves the schoolboy alone. Constantly teased by a bully nicknamed Gabara, his only friends are toy consultant Shinpei and fellow classmate Sachiko. Ichiro turns to escapist dreams of Monster Island where he befriends the equally bullied Minilla.


Rumpelstiltskin
1960 · 1h 13m
East German adaptation of Grimm‘s fairy tale "Rumpelstiltskin". A boastful miller pretends that his daughter Marie can spin straw into gold, and so she is locked into a room full of straw and ordered to spin it into gold by the next morning. A little man appears and offers his help in exchange for Marie's necklace. The greedy treasurer makes Marie spin twice more until the only thing she has left to give the little man is the promise of her first-born child…


Doctor Dolittle
1967 · 2h 31m · US
A veterinarian who can communicate with animals travels abroad to search for a giant sea snail.


Thiruvarutchelvar
1967 · 2h 37m · IN
When a dancer makes a king realise the insignificance of the worldly pleasures, he decides to devote his life to the Almighty and starts reciting tales and songs of His greatness.


King Kong vs. Godzilla
1963 · 1h 36m · US
When an underhanded pharmaceutical company goes to a remote tropical island to steal King Kong for advertising purposes, they get more than they bargained for when the gigantic ape attacks an unsuspecting village and an enormous octopus.


The Tied Up Balloon
1967 · 1h 38m · BG
A barrage balloon appears unexpectedly over a Bulgarian village during World War II. The startled villagers decide to knock it down with a fusillade yet the balloon flies off to the mountains. The villagers, armed to their teeth, set off after it. But they are not alone in this undertaking...


King Thrushbeard
1965 · 1h 14m
A fairy-tale about a beautiful but very haughty princess Anna who cruelly mocks each of her suitors. Finally she is forced by the king to marry a beggar. The poor life, hard work and love teach the princess a lesson and turn her into a loving and kind person.


The Gnome-Mobile
1967 · 1h 25m · US
An eccentric millionaire and his grandchildren are embroiled in the plights of some forest gnomes who are searching for the rest of their tribe. While helping them, the millionaire is suspected of being crazy because he's seeing gnomes! He's committed, and the niece and nephew and the gnomes have to find him and free him.


Candy
1968 · 2h 4m · FR
A high school girl encounters a variety of kookie characters and humorous sexual situations while searching for the meaning of life.


Faust XX
1966 · 1h 25m · RO
A terminally ill professor gets an immoral offer.


Magnificent Bakya
1965 · 2h · PH
A 1966 Filipino fantastical comedy starring the legendary Gina Pareño.
The 1960s broke the old rules everywhere at once — the French New Wave, the collapse of the Hollywood Production Code, and new waves across Europe and Japan reshaping what a film could show and say.
Fantasy builds worlds with their own rules — myth, magic, and invented history rendered with enough conviction to carry a story. The genre's modern shape owes much to Tolkien adaptations, but its roots run through folklore from every filmmaking tradition.