The 40 most popular 1970s fantasy movies, ranked. Click any film for ratings, reviews, trailers, and where to watch.


The Rescuers
1977 · 1h 18m
country: United States
Two agents of the mouse-run International Rescue Aid Society search for a little orphan girl kidnapped by sinister treasure hunters.


Monty Python and the Holy Grail
1975 · 1h 31m
country: United Kingdom
King Arthur, accompanied by his squire, recruits his Knights of the Round Table, including Sir Bedevere the Wise, Sir Lancelot the Brave, Sir Robin the Not-Quite-So-Brave-As-Sir-Lancelot and Sir Galahad the Pure. On the way, Arthur battles the Black Knight who, despite having had all his limbs chopped off, insists he can still fight. They reach Camelot, but Arthur decides not to enter, as "it is a silly place".


Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory
1971 · 1h 40m
country: United States
When eccentric candy man Willy Wonka promises a lifetime supply of sweets and a tour of his chocolate factory to five lucky kids, penniless Charlie Bucket seeks the golden ticket that will make him a winner.


The Lord of the Rings
1978 · 2h 12m
country: United Kingdom
Young Hobbit Frodo Baggins is thrown into an amazing adventure when he's tasked with destroying the One Ring, created by the dark lord Sauron. Frodo must travel in a small fellowship of nine warriors and accomplices. But it won't be an easy journey for the Fellowship of the Ring, on the ultimate quest to rid Middle-earth of evil.


The Man Who Fell to Earth
1976 · 2h 19m
country: United Kingdom
Thomas Jerome Newton is an alien who has come to Earth in search of water to save his home planet. Aided by lawyer Oliver Farnsworth, Thomas uses his knowledge of advanced technology to create profitable inventions. While developing a method to transport water, Thomas meets Mary-Lou, a quiet hotel clerk, and begins to fall in love with her. Just as he is ready to leave Earth, Thomas is intercepted by the U.S. government, and his entire plan is threatened.


Pete's Dragon
1977 · 2h 8m
country: United States
Pete, a young orphan, runs away to a Maine fishing town with his best friend a lovable, sometimes invisible dragon named Elliott! When they are taken in by a kind lighthouse keeper, Nora, and her father, Elliott's prank playing lands them in big trouble. Then, when crooked salesmen try to capture Elliott for their own gain, Pete must attempt a daring rescue.


The Car
1977 · 1h 36m
country: United States
The Utah community of Santa Ynez is being terrorized by a mysterious black coupe that appears out of nowhere and begins running people down. After the car kills off the town sheriff, Captain Wade Parent is determined to stop the murderous driver.


Bedknobs and Broomsticks
1971 · 1h 57m
country: United States
Three children evacuated from London during World War II are forced to stay with an eccentric spinster. The children's initial fears disappear when they find out she is in fact a trainee witch.


One Million-Year Trip: Bander Book
1978 · 1h 32m
country: Japan
Bander is a 17-year-old boy from Earth who lives on a distant planet, which is populated by human shape-shifters who feed off of vegetables and animal tails. Violence soon breaks out, as invaders launch an attack on Bander's new planet. This was Japan's first 2-hour animated film for television. The program received high ratings when broadcast as part of a set of 24-hour TV programs called "Ai wa Chikyu wo Sukuu" on Nippon Television. After a long gap since his last animated film for television, this work fully reflects Osamu Tezuka's desire to achieve theatrical quality with this production.


The Wiz
1978 · 2h 14m
country: United States
Dorothy Gale, a shy kindergarten teacher, is swept away to the magic land of Oz where she embarks on a quest to return home.


The Sentinel
1977 · 1h 32m
country: United States
As a young girl, Alison Parker attempted suicide after being traumatized by her father's sexual exploits. Now an elite fashion model, she moves to a Brooklyn Heights apartment building where she encounters a number of bizarre, eccentric tenants and attempts to uncover the building's sinister secret.


Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger
1977 · 1h 53m
country: United Kingdom
Princess Farah refuses to marry Sinbad until Prince Kassim, her brother, is able to give his consent. However, the Prince's wicked stepmother, Queen Zenobia, has changed Kassim into a baboon in order to have her own son crowned as caliph. Sinbad, his crew, the Princess and the transformed Prince travel to a distant land, fighting every obstacle Zenobia places in their path, to seek the advice of a legendary wise man who can possibly tell how to end the spell.


Return from Witch Mountain
1978 · 1h 35m
country: United States
Tony and Tia are other-worldly twins endowed with telekinesis. When their Uncle Bene drops them off in Los Angeles for an earthbound vacation, a display of their supernatural skill catches the eye of the nefarious Dr. Gannon and his partner in crime, Letha, who see rich possibilities in harnessing the children's gifts. They kidnap Tony, and Tia gives chase only to find Gannon is using her brother's powers against her.


The Beast
1975 · 1h 38m
country: France
The head of a failing French family thinks that fate has smiled down on him when the daughter of a wealthy man agrees to be married to his son. The daughter and her aunt then travel out to the French countryside to meet with the family, unaware that a mysterious 'beast' is stalking the vicinity.


Heaven Can Wait
1978 · 1h 41m
country: United States
Joe Pendleton is a quarterback preparing to lead his team to the superbowl when he is almost killed in an accident. An overanxious angel plucks him to heaven only to discover that he wasn't ready to die, and that his body has been cremated. A new body must be found, and that of a recently-murdered millionaire is chosen. His wife and accountant—the murderers—are confused by this development, as he buys the L.A. Rams in order to once again quarterback them into the Superbowl.


House
1977 · 1h 28m
country: Japan
Hoping to find a sense of connection to her late mother, Gorgeous takes a trip with her friends to visit her aunt's ancestral house in the countryside. The girls soon discover that there is more to the old house than meets the eye.


Donkey Skin
1970 · 1h 30m
country: France
A fairy godmother helps a princess disguise herself so she won't have to marry her father.


The Spirit of the Beehive
1973 · 1h 38m
country: Spain
In 1940, in the immediate aftermath of the Spanish Civil War, a young girl living on the Castilian plain is haunted after attending a screening of James Whale's 1931 film Frankenstein and hearing from her sister that the monster is not dead, instead existing as a spirit inhabiting a nearby barn.


The Hobbit
1977 · 1h 17m
country: Japan
The story follows the adventures of Bilbo Baggins, a diminutive creative who resides in a place called Middle-Earth before he is compelled to go on a quest to find a treasure buried deep in the heart of the Lonely Mountain.


Three Wishes for Cinderella
1973 · 1h 22m
country: Czechoslovakia
Popelka, a resourceful and independent young girl, is a servant in her stepmother's house and confides in her closest friend the owl. When she comes across three magical acorns, she's granted a single wish for each one of them.


The Golden Voyage of Sinbad
1973 · 1h 45m
country: United Kingdom
Sinbad and his crew intercept a homunculus carrying a golden tablet. Koura, the creator of the homunculus and practitioner of evil magic, wants the tablet back and pursues Sinbad. Meanwhile, Sinbad meets the Vizier who has another part of the interlocking golden map, and they mount a quest across the seas to solve the riddle of the map.


The Adventures of Buratino
1976 · 2h 12m
country: Soviet Union
A wooden boy Buratino tries to find his place in life. He befriends toys from a toy theater owned by evil Karabas-Barabas, gets tricked by Alice the Fox and Basilio the Cat and finally discovers the mystery of a golden key given to him by kind Tortila the Tortoise.


Freaky Friday
1976 · 1h 35m
country: United States
School girl Annabel is hassled by her mother, and Mrs. Andrews is annoyed with her daughter, Annabel. They both think that the other has an easy life. On a normal Friday morning, both complain about each other and wish they could have the easy life of their daughter/mother for just one day and their wishes come true as a bit of magic puts Annabel in Mrs. Andrews' body and vice versa. They both have a Freaky Friday.


Zardoz
1974 · 1h 46m
country: United Kingdom
In the far future, a savage trained only to kill finds a way into the community of bored immortals that alone preserves humanity's achievements.


The Island at the Top of the World
1974 · 1h 34m
country: United States
A Victorian gentleman hopes to find his long-lost son, who vanished while searching for a mysterious Viking community in a volcanic valley somewhere in uncharted Arctic regions. The gentleman puts together an expedition team to go on the search, but when they reach their destination they must escape from some Viking descendants who will kill to keep their existence a secret.


Hanuman and the Seven Ultramen
1974 · 1h 43m
country: Thailand
After a valiant Thai boy is brutally murdered by a gang of archeological looters, his soul is joined with the Hindu god Hanuman, who teams up with Ultraman and his brethren against familiar Ultra-foes unleashed by a weather control experiment gone awry, in this influential Thai-Japanese co-production.


Herbie Rides Again
1974 · 1h 28m
country: United States
The living Volkswagen Beetle helps an old lady protect her home from a corrupt developer.


Valerie and Her Week of Wonders
1970 · 1h 13m
country: Czechoslovakia
Valerie, a Czechoslovakian teenager living with her grandmother, is blossoming into womanhood, but that transformation proves secondary to the effects she experiences when she puts on a pair of magic earrings. Now seeing the world around her in a different light, Valerie must endure her sexual awakening while attempting to discern reality from fantasy as she encounters lecherous priest Gracian, a vampire-like stranger and otherworldly carnival folk.


Dracula
1979 · 1h 49m
country: United Kingdom
In 1913, charming, seductive, and sinister Count Dracula travels to England seeking an immortal bride.


Tourist Trap
1979 · 1h 29m
country: United States
After their car breaks down, a group of young travelers find themselves stranded at a roadside museum run by the enigmatic Mr. Slausen and populated by his collection of life-like wax mannequins.


Céline and Julie Go Boating
1974 · 3h 13m
country: France
Julie, a daydreaming librarian, meets Céline, an enigmatic magician, and together they become the heroines of a time-warping adventure involving a haunted house, psychotropic candy, and a murder-mystery melodrama.


Hercules in New York
1970 · 1h 32m
country: United States
Hercules is sent from Mount Olympus to modern-day Manhattan, where he takes up professional wrestling before getting mixed up with a gang of mobsters.


The Shaggy D.A.
1976 · 1h 31m
country: United States
Wilby Daniels, a successful lawyer running for District Attorney, suddenly finds himself being transformed into an English sheepdog. Somehow he has to keep his change a secret and find just what is causing it, all the while eluding the local dog catcher.


Now You See Him, Now You Don't
1972 · 1h 28m
country: United States
Dexter Riley is a science student at Medfield College who inadvertently invents a liquid capable of rendering objects and people invisible. Before Dexter and his friends, Debbie and Richard Schuyler, can even enjoy their spectacular discovery, corrupt businessman A.J. Arno plots to get his greedy hands on it. Slapstick hijinks ensue as Dexter and his pals try to thwart the evil Arno before he can use the invisibility spray to rob a bank.


L'Ampélopède
1974 · 1h 25m
country: France
In a village located in the central French region of Sologne, a young girl notes the negative effects of urbanization on her environment; then she imagines the appearance of the Ampélopède, a strange creature living in the woods.


Arabian Nights
1974 · 2h 11m
country: France
The final part of Pasolini's Trilogy of Life series is rich with exotic tales of slaves and kings, potions, betrayals, demons and, most of all, love and lovemaking in all its myriad forms. Mysterious and liberating, this is an exquisitely dreamlike and adult interpretation of the original folk tales.


Escape to Witch Mountain
1975 · 1h 37m
country: United States
Tia and Tony are two orphaned youngsters with extraordinary powers. Lucas Deranian poses as their uncle in order to get the kids into the clutches of Deranian's megalomaniacal boss, evil millionaire Aristotle Bolt, who wants to exploit them. Jason, a cynical widower, helps Tia and Tony escape to witch mountain, while at the same time Tia and Tony help Jason escape the pain of the loss of his wife.


The Humpbacked Horse
1975 · 1h 7m
country: Soviet Union
Remake of the 1947 Soviet film directed by Ivan Ivanov-Vano and produced by the Soyuzmultfilm studio in Moscow.


The Smurfs and the Magic Flute
1975 · 1h 30m
country: France
The evil knight Torchesac, who is at the service of the sinister lord of La Mortaille, gets a very powerful magic flute and uses it for evil purposes. Johan and Pirlouit, assisted by the magician Homnibus, travel to the land of the Smurfs, the only manufacturers of this sort of instrument, to get a new one and battle the usurpers.


Dona Flor and Her Two Husbands
1976 · 1h 57m
country: Brazil
After the death of her handsome but good-for-nothing husband Vadinho, Flor, a widow, marries Dr. Teodoro, a respectable gentleman. Hilarity ensues when Vadinho's spirit returns into her life.
The 1970s are widely considered American cinema's strongest decade, when the studio system's collapse handed a generation of young directors unusual freedom. It ended with Jaws and Star Wars inventing the modern blockbuster.
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.