Charming (2018)

This is a parody of the Disney-type fairytales. There have been many of those - four Shrek movies, to start with. However, this is an animated movie with a sing-along soundtrack so it is a direct parody of the Disney Princess movies.

Prince Charming (Wilmer Valderama - From Dusk Til Dawn (TV Series) ) has been cursed to be irresistable to women. Most Princes are considered attractive simply because they are rich, famous and powerful. This one is engaged to three Princesses - Snow White ( ), Cinderella ( ) and Sleeping Beauty ( ) - and has to pick one to marry. Unfortunately he believes in True Love, when in real life a royal marriage was a career move instead of a lifestyle one.

Red Riding Hood ( Demi Levato ) is immune to Charming's curse, because she has one of her own. Her heart is frozen to love. This makes her perfect as his companion, so she disguises herself as a man.

If the storyline sounds familiar, that is because it was an episode of Once Upon A Time TV show.

The film is voiced in English, but the two leads are Latino. This makes us address the issue prevalent in historical fantasy stories - that their setting is generally European. Well, modern Fantasy is often inspired by the works of JRR Tolkien who was inspired by older European fairy tales. The works of the Brothers Grimm are considered generic. However, what happens when stories from the Arabian Nights are adapted by Westerners? Accusations of so-called Cultural Appropriation abound.

Jack and the Beanstalk: The Real Story

This is a Jim Henson production, a metaphor for exploitation of the Third World.

Matthew Modine ( Cutthroat Island ) inherits his family fortune. Unfortunately he is cursed to die before long. His Aunt Vanessa Redgrave knows the family secret. They are descended from Jack the Giant-killer.

Mia Sara travels from the Giants' world to bring Modine back for trial. The Giants include Richard Attenborough, Daryl Hannah and Honor Blackman .

John Voight ( National Treasure ) is Jack's business manager.

Tangled (2010)

This is an animated retelling of the Rapunzel story, reminiscent of Shrek .

Rapunzel ( Mandy Moore ) is trapped in her tower. Mother Gothel brings her supplies every day.

Flynn Rider (Zachary Levi - Shazam! ) and the Stabbington Brothers (Ron Perlman - Hellboy (2001) ) conduct a theft in the city. Rider selfishly decides to double-cross his partners. But when he goes on the run in the forest, the city guard's greatest champion is after him. This is Champion the wonder-horse, of course.

Mother Gothel is portrayed as a villain because she wants eternal life, first by using the magic flower and then by using Rapunzel's hair. However, true villainy would be to comit literal vampirism and take the lives of many victims to briefly extend her own. Bilquis never gets shown as a villain in American Gods , more as a force of nature.

Alice (2009)

This is a big-budget TV mini-series that consists of two episodes, first shown in 2009. It was made by the US SyFy channel, and filmed in Canada.

Alice ( Caterina Scorsone ) is an American judo instructor who lives in modern-day London with her mother ( Teryl Rothery ). Her father went missing years ago, so when her boyfriend gets kidnapped she follows ...

Alice finds herself in a steampunk distopia, where humans use Wonderland nicknames and codenames. Hatter (Andrew Lee Potts - Primeval ) and the Don Quixote-looking White Knight (Matt Frewer - Max Headroom ) help her. The Queen of Hearts ( Kathy Bates ) and the King of Hearts (Colm Meaney - Star Trek: DS9 ) want to capture Alice to get her ring, which controls the magical looking glass. And Resistance leaders Dodo (Tim Curry - Rocky Horror Picture Show ) and Caterpillar (Harry Dean Stanton - Alien ) have their own agendas ...

Alice in Wonderland (2010)

This is a sequel of sorts, set ten years after Alice's initial descent into Wonderland. She is nineteen years old, about to be engaged, and has forgotten all about her childhood adventure. But once again she sees the white rabbit, and follows him ...

This film was much-awaited, with fans clamouring for cult director Tim Burton to do a 3-D rehash of Lewis Carroll's classic (i.e. Public Domain!) childrens' novel. However, the biggest fans seem quite disappointed. The Film seems to be making its money based on the visuals - the CGI and 3-D effects are magnificent, but expensive - and thus a ticket for this will add more to Box Office Takings than a ticket of a 2-D film would. The problem is that the story is quite simplistic. Earth-person goes to alien landscape and helps local rebels overthrow dictatorial usurper. Sound familiar?

Alice is pursued by the Creepy Thin Man (Crispin Glover) from Charlie's Angels . He serves the Red Queen ( Helena Bonham Carter ), who seems to be channelling Miranda Richardson 's portrayal of Elizabeth Tudor in Blackadder 2.

The Mad Hatter (Johnny Depp - Pirates of the Caribbean ) is a leader of the Resistance, with flashes of Braveheart emerging sporadically through his OTT insanity. He wants Alice to help restore the White Queen ( Anne Hathaway ).

Alice Through The Looking Glass (2016)

This is a sequel of sorts, set several years after Alice's second descent into Wonderland. She has become a sea-captain, swashbuckling aboard a sailing ship like Keira Knightley did in the Pirates of the Caribbean series. Yes, that is now the tone for female protagonists these days.

Unfortunately the shipping company is owned by Alice's ex-fiance, the poor (well, unfortunate) fool that she spurned at the altar. She sees the blue butterfly, and follows him through a looking glass ...

The White Queen ( Anne Hathaway ) wants Alice to help restore the Mad Hatter (Johnny Depp - Pirates of the Caribbean ), whose OTT insanity has been driven into overdrive. He thinks that Alica can save his family, even though they were killed by the Jabberwocky many years previously.

Alice descends into the Underland, steals a time-machine from Sasha Baron Cohen and travels back to meet the younger Hatter and his family. Can she save them?

Cinderella (2015)

This is the Kenneth Branagh version of the fairy tale, set in a small un-named European kingdom that has an early 1800s feel to it.

Ella ( Lily James ) is a happy child, until her mother ( Hayley Atwell ) dies. She grows up to be enslaved by her wicked stepmother ( Cate Blanchett ), who nicknames her Cinderella.

Cinders befriends a young man named Kit (Richard Madden - Game Of Thrones ), who turns out to be a handsome Prince. The King (Derek Jacobi - Dead Again ) is dying, so he wants his son to choose a bride and create an heir. With the help of her fairy godmother ( Helena Bonham Carter ), our heroine carries out her clandestine romance.

The Prince's uncle, the Grand Duke (Stellan Skarsgard - ), does not approve of the match. He prefers to believe that the Prince, ruler of the country, should put his nation above his own personal desires. For example, a marriage to the Princess of Zaragossa would mean a strong alliance for the kingdom. However, the King's buddy (Nonso Anozie - Zoo ) helps search for the girl with the slipper-fitting foot.

Ever After: The Cinderella Story

Ever After: The Cinderella Story

In Renaissance-era France, Drew Barrymore is enslaved by her wicked stepmother ( Angelica Houston ) who wants to sell her off in marriage to Richard O'Brien ( Rocky Horror Picture Show ). But she wins the heart of a French Prince (Dougray Scott - Mission: Impossible 2 ).

There is no magic in this version, our heroine relies on Girl-power. Leonardo Da Vinci also puts in an appearance.

Enchanted (2008)

The story starts in a Disney-esque cartoon. The wicked witch ( Susan Sarandon ) sends pretty Princess Giselle through a portal. Giselle ends up in New York City, where she looks like Amy Adams Ms Adams is a literally Oscar-worthy actress who shows her abilities for musical theatre, slapstick comedy and portraying a clueless bimbo.

Giselle befriends Patrick Dempsey (an experienced straight-man in rom-coms). He is a single father who is only interested in career women. The wannabe-cat-lady type, not the wicked stepmother type.

Giselle's fiance, Prince Edward (Matthew Marsden - X-Men ) comes looking for her. His talking chipmunk buddy is rendered mute, but his CGI antics make him more acrobatic than ever. Timothy Spall ( Red Dwarf ) is along for the ride, as the most interesting character in the film.

This fairytale parody stuff has been done before in Ella Enchanted and the Shrek series. But Amy Adams takes this past the cliches and makes it incredibly watchable. That said, the climactic confrontation itself seems a bit forced.

Disenchanted (2022)

Frozen (2013)

Once upon a time in fairytale land, a baby princess is badly stricken. The parents take her to the ice trolls who heal her with magic. However, the parents then ignore the trolls' advice and lock their daughter up. Eventually she goes stir crazy, busts out and becomes the Snow Queen.

Her younger sister Anna ( Kristen Bell ) goes looking for her. Anna has two love interests - a handsome Prince who seems to be too good to be true and a macho woodsman who bickers with her in a Han-and-Leia fashion.

This was originally meant to be a more straightforward version of The Snow Queen . Instead, it becomes like Maleficent , showing a female villain in a more positive light. As a result, the male characters are merely hangers-on.

Frozen 2 (2019)

This starts with a flashback to the girls' bedtime, when their father read them a bedtime story. This provides the exposition that sets up the entire storyline.

The girls go on a quest together. Well, Elsa is not just the Queen but the most powerful magic-user in the known world. Instead of soldiers, they take beefcake and the snowman.

The girls discover a clue to their parents' mysterious disappearance. This potentially sets up a storyline for the third movie in the trilogy.

Will there be life-changing consequences for anyone? Or will Elsa's powerful magic create a cheesy happy-ever-after ending?

Is this as good as the original? Well, it has all the same ingredients so it is basically just more of the same. There is one very noticeable difference, however. The original had a few very memorable songs, while this one has nothing that really stands out.

Hocus Pocus (1993)

This is set in a small town in New England, USA. It starts in the 1600s, when three sisters ( Bette Midler, Kathy Najimy, Sarah Jessica Parker ) are accused of witchcraft. They are guilty, so they are punished accordingly.

The story jumps forward three hundred years, to 1992. Omri Katz ( Eerie Indiana ) takes his kid sister ( Thora Birch ) trick-or-treating. They run afoul of the three witches, who come back from the dead.

Hocus Pocus 2 (2023)

Maleficent

Once upon a time there were two lands - The land of the Haves and The land of the Have-Nots. Maleficent was a fairy girl (with big satanic horns) who lived in a magical land of milk and honey. One day she met a human boy named Stefan, who had to steal in order to get food. They became friends, but apparently Stefan's unhappiness with poverty is a bad thing.

Eventually they grew up, so that Maleficent looked like Angelina Jolie and Stefan looked like Shalto Copely ( District 9 ). Stefan's greed and ambition (AKA starvation and a sense of duty towards his community) led him to start working for a living. He betrayed Maleficent, but spared her life - and no good deed goes unpunished.

Instead of marrying Maleficent, the Princess of the Fairies, Stefan marries the Princess of the Humans. But Maleficent, full of rage, gate-crashes their daughter's christening. The daughter is cursed that on the day of her sixteenth birthday ... she will become Sleeping Beauty . Yes, this is basically the fairy tale retold from the antagonist's perspective. But it is not without its flaws. To start with, the narrator is not present at most of the events shown. She would only be able to repeat hearsay from Maleficent herself.

Maleficent 2: Mistress of Evil (2019)

This is set five years after the original. Princess Aurora ( Elle Fanning ) has apparently abandoned the kingdom of her birth-mother's family, and come to live as Princess of the Moors instead. Apparently her original castle was given to the people, whatever that means. They may have just elected a new King, but as the USA shows us they might just give ultimate power to the village idiot.

Prince Philip of Far Far Away proposes to Aurora. Philip's mother, the Queen ( Michelle Pfeiffer ), insists Maleficent ( Angelina Jolie ) join the human Royal family at dinner. Naturally, it all goes wrong.

Maleficent mocks the human farmers, who can only defend themselves with puny wooden pitchforks. However, she does not dare touch the iron cutlery she is offered at the dinner table. Since the faeries can be killed so easily, by any human with iron armour and weapons, why do the villains spend so much effort creating magical fairy-killing weapons?

Maleficent joins a colony of fellow flying humanoid Faeries who are unhappy that humans have made iron tools. They are called the Dark Fae, descendants of the Phoenix. Yes, the fiery bird that rises from its own ashes - and is thus virtually indestructible, like Dracula .

The Bad Dark Fae (Ed Skrein - Game of Thrones ) wants to go to war against the humans, making him the mirror image of the human warmongers. The Good Dark Fae (Chiwetel Ejiofor - Serenity ) is a soulful saint, which makes him the mirror image of Philip's General (David Gyasi - Cloud Atlas ).

The Dark Fae start an aerial attack on Farfaraway. However, the humans have copied Cersei in Game of Thrones and invested heavily in anti-aircraft defences.

Come Away (2020)

Alice ( Gugu Mbatha-Raw ) reads her children a bedtime story. It is about her own childhood, when she and her brother Peter lived with their mother ( Angelina Jolie ) and father (David Owelowo - Don't Let Go (2019) ).

The family is beset with tragedy. Peter tries to help his father by pawning a family heirloom, and ends up associating with the Lost Boys and falling foul of pirates. Alice gets tutored by her mother's mother ( Anna Chancellor ), and has the chance of becoming a young lady.

Hook (1991)

Peter Banning (Robin Williams - Awakenings ) is a successful lawyer in New York City. He barely has time for his children, answering work-related calls on his mobile phone when at his daughter's school play - Peter Pan. There is certainly a lot to unpack from this start. In 1991 the analogue mobile phone was the prestige symbol of the Yuppies, while the arrival of the digital Iphone in 2007 made it an essential so everyday people would spend all day browsing the web using wifi internet.

Peter takes his family to London, England, to visit his wife's Granny Wendy ( Dame Maggie Smith ). When the old lady discovers Peter specialises in Mergers and Acquisitions, and is basically a hired gun for the likes of Gordon Gecko in Wall Street, Wendy realises the irony of the fact Peter is basically just a pirate.

Peter's children are abducted, and police detective Inspector Good (Phil Collins - ) does his best. Wendy tells Peter that they are the real people that the Peter Pan story was based on. Young Wendy ( Gwyneth Paltrow ) hooked up with a Lost Boy named Toodles, and Peter married their grandaughter Moira. Of course, Peter rejects this - until Tinkerbell ( Julia Roberts ) takes him to Neverland.

Captain Hook (Dustin Hoffman - Kung Fu Panda ) has abducted Peter's children, and uses them as bait to lure Peter back into a war. Unfortunately Peter is nowhere near his prime, so Tinkerbell talks Hook into giving Pan a few days to prepare. The Lost Boys train Pan up, involving a lot of slapstick humour, making him more like the usual kind of 1990s Robin Williams character.

While Pan has grown up and embraced the boredom of adulthood, Hook is depressed and has nothing but nostalgia for the good old days. In truth, Hook's fear of the ticking clock mirrors Pan's fear of growing old. Even as an adult, Pan fears time and aging and death. Anyway, Smee (Bob Hoskins - Who Framed Roger Rabbit ) appears to be the brains of the pirates' operation. He points out that, since Pan is now so much like Hook, perhaps Hook himself might be a better father figure for the kids. This certainly raises the stakes - instead of the cliche of trying to save a love interest, Pan has to win back the love of his son.

The climax is a slapstick comedy battle, like in Labyrinth but with more actual killing. The subtext is a reversal of Death Wish 3 , with the villains being the grown-ups instead of the 18-30 crowd.

Steven Spielberg delivers a typically schmaltzy effort. The basic message of parents should spend more time with their kids is something of a First World Problem, since (as Barry Norman pointed out) it might be an option for suburbanites but not so much for a working-class single parent.

Neverland (2011)

Captain Elizabeth Bonney ( Anna Friel ) leads the pirates.

Pan (2015)

This is a prequel to the main Peter Pan story. It starts with a woman ( Amanda Seyfried ) abandoning a baby at an orphanage. Presumably this is in the Edwardian era, when JM Barrie wrote his original work. Ten years later when baby Peter has grown up a bit the German aircraft bombing London should be zeppelins. Instead, they are Heinkels - yes, this is the Second World War instead of the First. This is deliberately anachronistic, and gets even worse.

Peter and the other orphans are abducted by Bishop (Nonso Anozie - Zoo ), captain of a flying pirate ship, who takes them to Neverland. They are set to work in a slave mine, like in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom . Blackbeard (Hugh Jackman - Wolverine ) is making his slaves mine for pixie-dust, set to a 1980s pop song - like in A Knight's Tale . Yes, this movie is incredibly derivative.

Peter gets roped into an escape attempt by James Hook (Garrett Hedlund - ) and Mr Smee (Adeel Akhtar - Utopia ). They get captured by Tiger Lily ( Rooney Mara ), and imprisoned in the Native camp. The Natives are waiting for their Messiah, whom they call the Pan, prophesised to free Neverland from the pirates. Blackbeard also believes the prophecy, and is obsessed with catching Peter.

Hook and Tiger Lily do a lot of flirting, of the typical smuggler-and-princess variety. There is a lot of swashbuckling, although it is Tiger Lily who fights most of the pirates - including the big duel with Blackbeard. This might be a bit more convincing if she were The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo , but this is a child-friendly movie so she just looks like a little girl.

All in all, a very unoriginal effort. It sank without trace at the time of its release, and has fallen down the memory hole since then.

Peter Pan (1953)

Peter Pan (2003)

Peter Pan And Wendy (2023)

Wendy (2020)

Shrek II

Shrek and Fiona visit Fiona's parents, King and Queen of Far Far Away. Naturally, the Royals are less than happy to see a couple of Ogres arrive!

The King (John Cleese - Life of Brian ) hires Puss in Boots (Antonio Banderas - Zorro ) to assassinate Shrek!

Shrek

Shrek 3

Shrek the Third

The King (John Cleese - Life of Brian ) dies. Shrek, as Fiona's Husband, is next in line for the throne. He does not want it, so he goes to find a young Prince (Justin Timberlake) who is also in the inheritance.

They get a helpful wizard (Eric Idle - Life of Brian ) to lend a hand.

Meanwhile, Prince Charming wants the Throne himself. He gets together an army of outcasts, the people who always come off worse in fairytales, and unites them with common cause.

Shrek

Shrek 2

Shrek Forever After

Shrek the Ogre (Mike Myers - Austin Powers ) is stressed out with the domestic bliss of his marriage to Fiona ( Cameron Diaz ). He gets tricked into making a deal with Rumplestiltskin, and ends up in a world where he was never born - like in It's A Wonderful Life .

Rumplestiltskin is leader of the more disenfranchised members of society, commonly referred to as The Villains. These were the people that Prince Charming banded together in Shrek the Third , but strangely he is never referred to in this film.

Shrek

Shrek 2

Shrek the Third

Puss in Boots (2011)

This is a U-rated cartoon spun off from the Shrek Series. Think of it as Shrek lite.

Our hero (voiced by Antonio Banderas - Zorro ) narrates his background story, from the days before he met the green ogre. He teamed up with cat-burglar Kitty Softpaws ( Salma Hayek ) and his childhood friend Humpty Dumpty (Zach Galifrianis - Tru Calling ). They want to catch the goose that lays the golden eggs. But first they must steal the magic beans from incestuous giants Jack (Billy-Bob Thornton - Armageddon ) and Jill ( Amy Sedaris ).

Shrek

Shrek 2

Shrek the Third

Shrek Forever After

Puss in Boots: The Last Wish (2022)

Puss in Boots (Antonio Banderas - Zorro ) shows off as being the greatest hero he can be. Well, he always was a two-dimensional character due to his invulnerability ... until he loses his eigth life, and suddenly becomes mortal. Pursued by the Big Bad Wolf, his own personal grim reaper, Puss retires from his career. The bad news is that he ends up in the care of a crazy old cat lady. The worse news is that the only one he can talk to is Perrito (Harvey Guillen - What We Do in The Shadows ), a talking dog who is pretending to be a cat.

Puss is pulled out of retirement by a crime family - Goldilocks ( Florence Pugh ), Mama Bear ( Olivia Colman ), Papa Bear (Ray Winstone - Robin of Sherwood ) and Baby Bear. They want help stealing the map with the location of a magical wishing star. Of course, Puss wants his nine lives back so he goes after the map for his own selfish reasons.

Once again, Puss reluctantly teams up with cat-burglar Kitty Softpaws ( Salma Hayek ). It turns out that they have some additional backstory, since the events of the previous film. Well, that was a prequel to the Shrek series while this is set after them.

Of note, the three members of Team Friendship are best known for their Vampire work. Perrito is basically a cartoon dog version of Season One's Guillermo, while Banderas was a vamp in Interview with the Vampire and Hayek's break-out role in the USA was as the original Santanico Pandemonium in From Dusk Til Dawn . Hopefully they will be reunited in a future episode of What We Do in The Shadows .

Shrek

Shrek 2

Shrek the Third

Shrek Forever After

Snow White: A Tale of Terror

In the 1500s, Sam Neill ( The Dish ) marries Sigourney Weaver . This is a very dark story, strangely sympathetic to the evil stepmother.

Snow White: The Fairest of Them All

A Genie (Clancy Brown - Starship Troopers ) offers a man three wishes. Naturally, his wishes (a Kingdom and a beautiful wife) come with strings attached ...

Miranda Richardson wishes to be beautiful - but her vanity turns her into a Wicked Queen. In her jealousy she orders the huntsman to kill her stepdaughter ( Kristen Kreuk ). The girl ends up with the Seven Dwarves, embodying the colours of the rainbow and named after the days of the week. They include Warwick Davis ( Star Wars: Return of the Jedi ), Vincent Sciavelli ( Tomorrow Never Dies ) and the dwarf from Twin Peaks .

Mirror, Mirror

King Sean Bean ( Game of Thrones ) is killed by a magical monster. His daughter, Snow White ( Lilly Collins ) is left in the care of her Wicked stepmother ( Julia Roberts ).

A few years later, after the Wicked Queen has economically ruined the country, Snow White eclipses her in the beauty stakes. Worse, the Princess is a rival for the affections of a heroic-but-dim Prince. A lackey is sent to get rid of the Princess …

This is a light-hearted comedy romp, very much centred around the female characters. Snow White manages to rescue herself, outwitting all opponents. The Wicked Queen is a worthy antagonist, however. In contrast, the male characters are mostly the butt of the story's humour. The Prince is the best fighter in the story, but still loses every fight he gets in. And as always, the seven dwarves are played for laughs.

This was directed by an Indian director, which explains the unconventional feel to it. And the bollywood-style song routine over the end credits. Beyond that, the greatest inspiration seems to be The Princess Bride . It is certainly not as memorable, but still an enjoyable effort.

Snow White and the Huntsman

It is difficult to find a fairy tale unoriginal, because they generally birth tropes rather than regurgitate cliches. However, this effort seems patched together from a vast number of other films.

Snow White's father is a bloodthirsty king who takes no prisoners. He marries the beautiful lady Ravenna, who might look like Charlize Theron but deep down is more like Aileen Wournos ... She lambasts men for valuing only her beauty, but she sucks the youth out of every woman in the land so she can retain it (and with it, her magic). Snow White is the last - but eating her heart will give Ravenna immortality.

Snow White ( Kirsten Stewart ) is a lot more active in this version than in others. The Huntsman also has an awful lot more to do. He is a rogue, she is a warrior princess. They bicker like Han Solo and Princess Leia. There is a charming Prince - well, the son of a Duke, anyway.

They naturally encounter seven dwarven warriors - well, seven famous British actors (Ray Winston, Lovejoy, etc) shrunk by camera trickery, like in Lord of the Rings .

For the climactic battle, Kristen Stewart straps on armour and leads the assault - like Joanne Whalley-Kilmer in Willow .

The Huntsman: Winter's War

Once upon a time there were two sisters. One of them fell in love with a charming man, and they finished each others' sandwiches, but it ended badly. Also, one of them discovered she had the superpower of freezing things so she went off, made herself an ice palace and became a supervillain. Yes, this is the grown-up version of Frozen !

The Ice Princess ( Emily Blunt ) builds herself a kingdom and kidnaps all the local children. She trains them as a mixed-gender group of child soldiers. They are nicknamed Huntsmen - yes, the term has been retro-fitted as the name of an elite military unit rather than as what it has traditionally meant, merely a man who hunts things. The finest among them are Eric (Chris Hemsworth - Thor ) and Sarah ( Jessica Chastain ).

Seven years later, after the events of Snow White and the Huntsman , Eric has to go on a quest to retrieve the magic mirror. He forms a Fellowship with a couple of Dwarves - Nick Frost ( Hyperdrive ) and Rob Bryden. They team up with a couple of female Dwarves ( Sheridan Smith and Alexandra Roach ). This section of the story is more than a little reminiscent of Willow , which is a bit shocking because that was generally regarded as one of the most unoriginal Fantasy efforts ever made.

Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe, The

This is the mega-budget adaption of the childrens' book by CS Lewis. It certainly does not disappoint. It is a lot more accessible to youngsters than the Lord of the Rings trilogy, which is the closest comparison.

The story starts in the Second World War, when the four Pevensie children are evacuated from London. The go to live in a country mansion with Professor Jim Broadbent ( Inkheart ). The youngest child, Lucy, discovers that a wardrobe is actually a doorway to the magical world of Narnia.

Narnia is ruled by the wicked White Witch ( Tilda Swinton ). However, the talking animals that live there look forward to the Second Coming of their saviour, Aslan the talking lion (voiced by Liam Neeson - SW I: Phantom Menace ).

Lucy brings her siblings through the wardrobe. Peter, the eldest, is de facto leader. Susan ( Anna Popplewell ), ironically when one considers her eventual fate, is a contrary bitch who argues with every one of Peter's decisions. Edward, a middle child, goes off on his own ... and meets the Witch!

Prince Caspian

Voyage of the Dawn Treader

Prince Caspian

This is adapted from the first sequel to The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe . But while the source material was a children's book, a slim pamphlet of 190 pages (including illustrations), this has been much expanded to fill out over 2 hours!

A year after the events of the first book, the Pevensie children are summoned back to Narnia. The land has been conquered by a human race, the Telmarines, and the magical Narnian creatures have been driven into hiding. The Pevensies must team up with Caspian, a young Telmarine Prince of their own age, and liberate Narnia in the name of Aslan. Little People Peter Dinklage and Warwick Davis (Reepicheep in the BBC adaption) play Dwarves. Davis gives a wonderful performance - his earlier work was OTT, almost pantomime material, but here he gives his character far greater depth. Eddie Izzard provides the voice for Reepicheep, the swashbuckling mouse.

While the story stays more or less true, the dialogue is much changed. The original tweeness has been replaced with a modern cynicism - the D.L.F. line is the most obvious example.

The Telmarines, the equivalent of the Norman Conquerers, are portrayed as Spanish conquistadors (with crossbows instead of muskets). But in fairness they are now actually introduced as individual characters, while in the book they were a bland conglomeration.

All in all, despite all the changes this is a much improved version of the story. The CGI and celebrity supporting actors do not hurt it, either.

The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe

Voyage of the Dawn Treader

Voyage of the Dawn Treader

The Pevensie children are still enduring the Second World War. Susan and Peter have been sent to America, and do not get back to Narnia this time. While Lucy and Edmund stay with their annoying cousin Eustace, they end up with Prince Caspian aboard a Narnian sailing ship named Dawn Treader.

The story has been adapted quite a bit from the original book. A lot of action scenes have been added, turning this into a Hollywood 3-act structure The heroes must now locate seven magic swords in order to defeat an evil mist which uses the image of the White Witch! There is also more character-development - the younger Pevensie kids are suffering from sibling rivalry, which means that Susan and Peter get more mentions.

There are other changes. For example, Reepicheep is voiced by Simon Pegg ( Star Trek Reboot ) instead of Eddie Izzard ( Mystery Men ).

The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe

Prince Caspian

Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them

In 1928, Newt Salamander (Eddie Redmayne - Jupiter Ascending ) arrives in New York City. He has a suitcase full of magical beasts, and one of them is a duck-billed platypus who is also a kleptomaniac. The platypus escapes and goes on a thieving spree in a bank. Newt has to use magic to get it back, but attracts the wrong kind of attention in doing so.

Newt stumbles into the main plot by accident. Magical detective Colin Farrell ( Daredevil ) is investigating a series of incidents apparently caused by a magical beast. It may have something to do with a group of fanatical fascists, led by a woman who would not be out of place in the Temperance movement or the Suffragettes.

Griswold (Johnny Depp - Pirates of the Carribean ), the mentor of Voldemort and lover of Dumbledore alluded to in the Harry Pottermovies, is on the run after his failed uprising in Europe. It seems that the USA is exactly the kind of place he would like. MACUSA, the local equivalent of the Ministry of Magic, has a strict segregation policy towards Muggles. Magical beasts are generally exterminated whenever possible. And instead of trial by jury or sentence by judge, an execution order can be issued by a single detective without need for any paperwork at all. Yes, this place would be a fascist hate-monger's paradise.

This film was made in Leavesden, England. Thus many of the smaller roles may be recognisable. For example, Gemma Chan has a tiny role as the Chinese magic community's representative.

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

Harry Potter and the Deadly Hallows (Pt1)

Harry Potter and the Deadly Hallows (Pt2)

Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindlewald (2018)

This starts six months after the events of the previous film. Grindlewald (Johnny Depp - Pirates Of The Carribean ) is due to be shipped back to Europe for trial. The plan is to use a flying coach with broomstick outriders for the intercontinental journey. However, the villain still has a few devout followers.

Meanwhile, Newt Scavander (Eddie Redmayne - Jupiter Ascending ) is banned from all international travel. The Ministry of Magic knows that Dumbledore (Jude Law - A.I.: Artificial Intelligence ) has been waging a secret war against Grindlewald, and they are jealous because he has been doing their job better than they have.

Kowalski (Dan Fogler - The Walking Dead ) pops up to help out, and provide the usual comedy relief.

Scavander's brother works for the Ministry of Magic, and is in charge of recapturing Grindlewald. He may seem to be the Mycroft Holmes of the story, but Newt is not exactly Sherlock. In fact, the two brothers shared a love interest ( Zoe Kravitz ) and although the actress is wasted in the part she still has more success in her quest than either of the brothers.

It is much less of a stand-alone story than the previous one. To start with, it is focused as a prequel to the main Harry Potter series. Secondly, the disappointing climax leads on to a cliffhanger ending. Yes, this is part one of two. Not so much the Empire Strikes Back of the series, more like the Matrix 2 .

Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore (2022)

Dumbledore (Jude Law - A.I.: Artificial Intelligence ) gets together a gang of misfits to defeat Grindlewald (Mads Mikkelson - Casino Royale ). Unfortunately the good guys have a few problems. Firstly, Dumbledore and his lover Grindlewald have magically sworn never to directly harm each other. This means that the most powerful of the good guys is neutralised. Secondly, Grindle has a tame precog in his entourage, so he knows everything that will happpen. This means that the good guys have to split up and act in a random fashion, rather than develop a consistent plan that might actually work.

Grindlewald has a few objectives. Firstly, he must get himself absolved of all crimes he comitted. secondly, he must gain public acclaim so that he can join the ruling council. Finally, he must get enough support to enact his agenda - race war against the humans, leading to world domination.

Meanwhile, Newt Scavander (Eddie Redmayne - Jupiter Ascending ) teams up with Kowalski (Dan Fogler - The Walking Dead ) again. Their love interests are not on the good guys team, but a bunch of new characters are invited along. What mission can succeed without a few redshirts?

The magical world is primed for Grindlewald, and his later copycat Voldemort. After all, it is an aristocracy peopled by super-humans and run by nepotism. Since power corrupts, magical power corrupts absolutely.

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

Harry and the others go back to Hogwarts for their Second year. Celebrity Wizard Gilderoy Lockhart (Kenneth Branagh Dead Again ) is the new Professor for Defence Against the Dark Arts.

Some monsterous follower of Voldemort is on the loose in Hogwarts. It is even killing the castle's Ghosts! Suspicion is that the monster is something to do with the mysterious Chamber of Secrets, supposedly concealed somewhere in Hogwarts.

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

Harry Potter and the Deadly Hallows (Pt1)

Harry Potter and the Deadly Hallows (Pt2)

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

Harry and the others go back to Hogwarts for their third year. But Sirius Black (Gary Oldman - Lost In Space ) has busted out of Azkaban prison. Everyone thinks he’s on his way to Hogwarts, to kill Harry.

David Thewlis ( Dragonheart ) is the new Professor for Defence Against the Dark Arts. He takes a liking to Harry, and teaches him the Petronas charm

This was directed by Latin American film-maker Alfons Cuaron , and is far more serious in tone than the previous offerings by Hollywood kids' director Chris Columbus .

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

Harry Potter and the Deadly Hallows (Pt1)

Harry Potter and the Deadly Hallows (Pt2)

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

This time the director is Mike Newell , best known for serious dramatic work. The film opens with a score reminiscent of John Williams' work and a landscape reminiscent of Mordor. The eeevil Voldemort is planning something.

Meanwhile, the main characters head off to the Quiddich World Cup. This does not add much to the plot, but conveniently introduces most of the story's main characters. Then Voldemort's followers, the Death-eaters, attack - led by David Tennant ( Dr Who )!

Back in Hogwarts, the school has been chosen to host the Tri-Wizard Cup. The two other Magical schools send their best pupils, the typical bunch of shallow stereotypes. Each sends their best as a contestant for the Cup. The Russian is a sporty, slow-witted fellow. The French girl is also a stereotype. The Hogwarts golden boy is Cecil Diggory, who never made much impression before this movie. And someone mysteriously put Harry Potter's name in!

Harry is forced to compete, while dealing with Ron and Hermiones' tantrums. Tabloid journalist Miranda Richardson pops up briefly to insinuate scandal into things. One gets the feeling there was a sub-plot in the book that was barely squeezed into the film.

The climax really just sets things up for the next episode in the series.

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

Harry Potter and the Deadly Hallows (Pt1)

Harry Potter and the Deadly Hallows (Pt2)

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Harry and the others go back to Hogwarts for their Fifth year. Ministry of Magic Securocrat Imelda Staunton is the new Professor for Defence Against the Dark Arts. Her main job is actually to cover up for the fact that Voldemort is back in business!

Dumbledore has started his own secret army, the Order of the Phoenix. Snape is an important member, even though Potter and his chums still have a childish mistrust of the man that Dumbledore puts so much faith in. However, we get a brief flashback that explains Snape's emnity towards Potter's father ...

Potter and his chums start their own self-defence classes. Of course, they have to escape the attentions of Ms Staunton. Meanwhile, Voldemort rebuilds his army by staging a mass breakout from Azkhaban. The old Death Eaters are back in force, including Bellatrix Lestrange ( Helena Bonham Carter ).

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

Harry Potter and the Deadly Hallows (Pt1)

Harry Potter and the Deadly Hallows (Pt2)

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

Dumbledore recruits an old Potions Master to Hogwarts. This is part of his strategy, as he takes Harry on the offensive. Finally they have a way to hurt Voldemort.

The returning Potions Master takes Harry under his wing. And in potions class, Harry discovers a text-book that once belongs to a pupil called himself The Half-Blood Prince. This is an interesting side-story to the overall plot of the film.

Snape is promoted to Master of Defence against the Dark Arts. Just like he always wanted. But he has to help Draco Malfoy complete his evil task.

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Harry Potter and the Deadly Hallows (Pt1)

Harry Potter and the Deadly Hallows (Pt2)

Harry Potter and the Deadly Hallows: Part 1

The Death-eaters are on the rise. Their first target is the Ministry, which is of course entirely unprepared. Despite all their planning and preparation, the Order of the Phoenix can do little to protect Harry.

Harry, Ron and Hermione go on the run together. They try to stay off the grid, to stay out of trouble. Luna Lovegood's dad (Rhys Ifans - Hannibal Rising ) tells them about the new McGuffin - the titular Deadly Hallows. This consists of three magical super-weapons that the trio must locate to help them destroy the Horcruxes and defeat Voldemort.

Our intrepid trio have a lot to worry about, but their greatest threat is from their feelings for each other.

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

Harry Potter and the Deadly Hallows (Pt2)

Harry Potter and the Deadly Hallows: Part 2

Our heroic trio stage a bank heist, to get one of the remaining Horcruxes. They coerce a Goblin (Warwick Davis - most improved actor in the UK, as evidenced in his incredible performance).

Once their mission is complete, they retreat to Hogwarts for the climactic super-battle. There are seven films worth of supporting characters, all of whom need to have their fate in the battle shown on-screen.

The problem with the film is that it does not have the three-act structure. The whole thing is basically an extended third act, like the crappy Transformers 3 . It is Part Two of a two-parter ... but it does not work as a stand-alone, compared to Kill Bill 2 . But in spite of the odd pacing, at least it does not have the multiple endings of LOTR: Return of the King .

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

Harry Potter and the Deadly Hallows (Pt1)