As you may or may not know, I contribute a fortnightly column called "Big Worlds on Small Screens" on my friend Helen Lowe's blog. It basically involves me writing about science-fiction and fantasy as it exists on television, though occasionally I focus on films as part of specially themed sub-series.
Most recently was "Fantasy and Science-Fiction Films You've (Probably) Never Heard Of", with the "probably" disclaimer inserted because I knew that such a title was bound to cause contention from people who have of course seen all these films. It just has a nicer ring to it than "Fantasy and Science-Fiction Films That Aren't Mainstream."
I had a lot of fun revisiting some of my old favourites and discovering some new classics, so I'm shifting the list to this blog, with links to the more detailed reviews on Helen's website. I hope it brings some otherwise-unheard of films to your attention – more than that, I hope that if you chose to seek any of them out, you'll end up enjoying what they have to offer.
A spiritual sequel of sorts to the likes of Labyrinth and The Dark Crystal, this offering from the Jim Henson Company trades in puppetry for stylistic CGI, with a screenplay by Neil Gaiman that includes all his favourite tropes: family tension, quirky wordplay, and the balance between light and dark.
A must-watch movie before you see Star Wars this December, as this was the film that first brought John Boyega to the world's attention. Aliens attack a rundown council block in South London, and it's up to the delinquent teenagers who live there to stop them.
Beautifully animated and musically scored film about the (real) Book of Kells and how it's both crafted and protected by a young monk and a strange woodland spirit.
The story is based on Hamlet, what with a dead king, an evil uncle and a feckless young prince who must leave home in order to find himself – but what if I told you the entire thing was performed by marionettes?
What did Audrey Plaza get up to after she left Parks and Recreation? She signed on for this indie film in which a diffident young intern gets swept up in the promise of a time machine built by a strange loner in a small town.
Based on the short-story collection The Bloody Tower by Angela Carter, this film is batshit crazy and I love it. It explores the meaning and symbolism of fairy tales through framing devices, dream sequences, nested stories-within-stories and other bewildering narrative tricks that'll leave you thinking: "what the hell did I just watch?"
A single night changes Rhoda's life in two fundamental ways: the discovery of another planet, and a car crash that leaves a child and pregnant woman dead. How these two events affect each other in the years to come forms the basis of the film, with a final scene that'll play on your mind for days.
Though it was a Studio Ghibli film nominated for an Academy Award, this one seemed to fly under the radar a bit. Based on a Japanese folktale with a strikingly unique animation style, there's a hypnotic quality about its gentle pace.
Granted, this is more of a psychological thriller than science-fiction, but it does end on a note that leaves you wondering. Two university students infiltrate a cult run by a young woman who insists she's from the future – and gradually get sucked into her rhetoric.
If you're a nineties kid there's a good chance you watched this on daytime television – an adaptation of the Norwegian fairy tale in which a princess marries a polar bear in order to break a magical spell. Watch for the wonderfully hammy acting and the creative innovations made on a shoe-string budget (need to portray a girl climbing a sheer cliff in magic shoes? Just tilt the camera!)
You'll have to watch this one twice, as I guarantee you won't understand it the first time around. Two old friends build a time-travel device in their garage and – actually, if you figure out what happens next, be sure to let me know.
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