One of the biggest appeals of theFantasygenre lies in the things that can exist in these worlds, from dragons to whirls of magic to otherworldly settings. Creators are given permission to create costumes and sets that blend modern tastes with historical fashions with something completely fantastical. Creating a fantasy movie with a beautiful aesthetic is more than just establishing cool supernatural beings and powers; it’s balancing that with the many artistic aspects of filmmaking.
Some of thebest animated fantasy moviesin recent years achieve this through a different medium, rendering the world from the ground up and not being too attached to creating something that looks realistic, for something entirely magical to look at.Filmmaking in the 2020s has often meant an overload on CGI,leaving the best new fantasy movies to demonstrate how to best use these technologies while still relying on practical effects and designs where they will look better.
10Dune: Part Two (2024)
Denis Villeneuve Again Captures The Sprawling World With Pointed Finer Details
The primary setting ofDuneis somewhat plain yet very intimidating, as the desert planet may look the same for miles around but is lurking with sandworms and rising leaders. The special effects inDune: Part Twofor the sandworms are certainly perfect, while much of the rest of the movie’s aesthetic beauty comes from the costume design and well-executed shots. The Fremen’s attire is a blend of well-worn fabrics and moisture-saving technologies, matched with their glowing blue eyes, creating a rough and mysterious effect.
Yetthe environment we mostly see on Arrakis is counterbalanced with the nobility elsewhere in this universe,of fine armored dresses and occasional sequences in black and white. Director Denis Villeneuve captures epic shots of deceptively simple battles while always reminding us of the epic landscape, alongside a blend of different styles that are all still very futuristic.
9Avatar: The Way Of Water (2022)
James Cameron Only Builds Upon The Intricate World Of Pandora
It goes without saying that James Cameron broke ground back in 2009 with the introduction of the planet of Pandora inAvatar,the (comparatively) untouched forest planet of strange but gorgeous and often glowing flora and fauna. For movies that are almost entirely CGI, it’s impressive that everything still looks amazing. Every creature and plant is thought out and the overall greens and blues are deeply soothing while still brimming with power.
Avatar 3 CinemaCon Footage: The Fire Na’vi Actually Control Fire, Quaritch Has New Allies & Eywa’s Power Has Limits
New footage has been released for Avatar: Fire and Ash, which teases what to expect from the lucrative science-fiction franchise’s next sequel.
Cameron, of course, pushed the design and special effects teams further withAvatar: The Way of Water,a large amount of which takes place in the water. The scale of the world becomes even more breathtaking with the stunning underwater shots where the main characters form new bonds with their planet and its animal inhabitants. However,we still see parts of the old jungle setting within this movie’s runtime, making for an even better visual feast that starts to show the variety of Pandorawhile still coming together as one aesthetic.
8Puss In Boots: The Last Wish (2022)
DreamWorks Embraces Stylized Animation With A New Take On The World Of Shrek
We are thankfully seeing morestylized animated moviesthese days, which are pushing the dominant medium of 3D animation to incorporate more artistic variety.Puss in Boots: The Last Wishset new standards for theShrekfranchise — which theweird animation ofShrek 5suggests it probably won’t live up to — with whimsical brush strokes and vibrant pallets that take the world to a whole new level.
The Last Wishmeshes some different tones and aestheticsas the characters travel through an almost Candyland-like setting, offset by the grungy getup of Goldilocks and the Three Bears and the Western anti-hero vibes of Puss. Then the Wolf cuts through the whole thing with his own dark and piercing aura, imbuing the history with a different sense of danger.The Last Wishhas some of the unapologetic fantasy ofShrek, but it dances on its own otherworldly plane.
7Mickey 17 (2025)
Cold & Mechanical Is Still Dystopian Beauty In Bong Joon-ho’s Latest Title
Mickey 17has a pretty bleak look, but there still a beauty in it as a work of art,especially with the direction of Oscar-winning director Bong Joon-ho resulting in some flawless shots. Mickey and the other characters are stuck in a cold and metal living arrangement, exploring the frozen tundra of a distant planet, broken up with threatening furnaces or aspects of luxury that are kept from most of the cast.
Mickey 17also has some brazenly sci-fi imagery that complements the more technically realistic set design which is in service of the story about exploitation. It may not be the most obvious example when it is not the easiest or most relaxing environment to enjoy, but it is intriguing and stunning from a filmmaking perspective, and again captures the dystopian thriller aesthetic that Bong perfected long ago withSnowpiercer.
6Luca (2021)
Pixar Goes To The Italian Riviera & Brings To Life A Whole New Style
Lucahas some tough competition, which is probably why it’s one ofPixar’s more underrated movies, but the way it takes inspiration from the real-life setting to create on-screen art is some of the studio’s best work. Drawing upon the bright colors of the Cinque Terre region,Lucadepicts a fictional coastal Italian town where everything is rosy and bright.The characters are all a little more round-faced than usual, making the whole thing even more pleasant.
Every color in this movie is deeply vibrant, from the green grasses to the blue sea to all the décor and foods in the town. The fact that the main characters are sometimes brightly colored sea monsters mixes into this for a fantastical vibe that still feels rooted in the scenic beauty of the real Italian Riviera. Luckily, it is supported by a sweet story with some surprises that settles into lovely surroundings.
5The Green Knight (2021)
The Stunning Medieval Epic We’d All Been Waiting For
The Green Knightdoes the grimdark medieval setting better than almost any other property. When the description of the Green Knight in the original text is fairly outlandish, the movie managed to create a vision of him that is faithful, foreboding, and fascinatingly supernatural. The architecture of the world is grim stone castles, with some more angular and simplistic costuming choices than we might expect from this genre, for something more downplayed.
Once Gawain gets out into the big wide world, we get more of the scale of this aesthetic, which includes lumbering giants, stone-laden planes, and misty forests filled with strangeness that many good fantasy stories rely upon. Overall,The Green Knightcontrasts the wilderness of the title character and his domain with the hard edges of Gawain’s court,which is, of course, the whole point.
4Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio (2022)
The Oscar-Winning Director Transitions Into Animation With The Same Majestic Visuals
Guillermo del Toro is known for his beautiful monster movies, which have relied both on practical and special effects to bring to life his monsters, which are typically written to reflect the monstrosity in humanity.Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchiowas a bit of a departure for the director, but one that now seems to have always been destined to happenwhen animation would only allow more opportunities for his imaginative vision to flourish.
Pinocchiois textured, spooky, and stunning, leaning into some of the horror vibes of the story with a more bittersweet ending than Disney opted for. The warm pallets of Pinocchio and Geppetto’s home contrast perfectly with the glowing blue of the afterlife, with some faded tones in between as they face the dangers of Mussolini-era Italy.
3Wicked (2024)
Pink Goes Well With Green
Pink really does go well with green when they create a strange but satisfying contrast, which at least by now invokes the iconic, life-changing friendship that has ingrained itself further into the cultural consciousness.Much ofWicked’s aesthetic comes from the frilly, glittering pink wardrobe of Glinda set against the mysterious and tougher blacks and greens of Elphaba,but the buoyant world surrounds these two with so much more.
15 Best Movies Like Wicked On Streaming
There are several excellent movies that share similarities with Wicked, and they are available to watch on various streaming platforms.
Wicked’s design draws upon the technicolor magic of 1939’sThe Wizard of Oz, with some sleek architectural choices added to refresh it for a modern audience and an all-around whimsy. There are plenty of bright blues, greens, yellows, and pinks, but behind it all are the set pieces and the motifs that allude to the theme of a clock and time ticking away, reminding you of the mechanical tension of the story.
2Come Away (2020)
A Below-The-Radar, Wonderful Mash-Up Of Fairy Tales & Aesthetics
Come Awayis a virtually unknown fantasy standalone starring Angelina Jolie, about a working-class family left in pieces after the death of their eldest son. Their remaining two children go off on their own adventures to help them heal, one becoming Peter Pan and the other Alice in Wonderland. As for the aesthetic,a toy store meets cottagecore meets steampunk meats fairy tale meets the lost boys is where you findCome Away.
The movie will appeal to anyone who just wants to sit in a good period piece and enjoys the low-budget charm ofStardust’s special effects. The new takes on characters such as the Mad Hatter and Captain Hook are also refreshing, both more understated but with the charisma they both need in any iteration.Come Awayis intriguing with the moderately edgy but deeply heartwarming way it brings these stories to life once again.
1Wolfwalkers (2020)
The Irish-Folklore Animated Adventure Only Gives Us The Best
Cartoon Saloon can do backdrops like no other studio,first delivering their stunning watercolor forest world in 2009’sThe Secret of Kells.Wolfwalkersmore than lives up to the flagship installment of the Cartoon Saloon Irish folklore trilogy, highlighting new characters and their sweeping movements. Particular character designs are also highlighted by this style, from Robyn’s lithe frame to Mebh’s wild mane of hair.
The painted aspects of the surroundings combined with the details penciled in make for a truly unique, niche aesthetic that no other movie I have seen has. Thepièce de résistanceof the entire project has to be the sequences of the wolves running through the woods under the moonlight, which showcases more of this animation with stellar cinematography. Suchfantasymovies lean on their mediums to create sheer artistry that will always be beloved.
