Fantasy movies from past till present have captured the minds of their audience with their stimulating world-building, unforgettable characters and life-like themes that resonate with their lives. Their goal is to primarily mirror reality and to challenge the mind on how to handle that reality. Thus, it is intriguing how clever fantasies do this to capture hearts and minds.
Moviegoers who have the MBTI® classification of INTP (introvert, intuitive, thinking, perceiving) or “The Logician” can find something inventive and intelligent in the genre. Here are five fantasies that they will love (and another five that they can skip).
Love: Hellboy II: The Golden Army (2008)
The second part of Guillermo del Toro’s Hellboy sees the titular heroic demon on a mission to stop a banished prince from unleashing a mechanical army as retaliation over an ancient war between humans and magical creatures.
Hellboy II: The Golden Army recaptures what made the first movie charming and imaginative in the first place and escalates the level of inventiveness, which INTPs may initially overlook. INTP audiences can also lean on the film’s level of patience when exploring its fantastical grandeur and logical character motivations.
Hate: The Mummy (2017)
1932's The Mummy is a spine-chilling horror film with a timeless gothic atmosphere. The 1999 Brendan Fraser remake is a fun action-adventure with a mix of Indiana Jones and monster movie fare. The 2017 reboot, however, is a calculated mistake that consists only of Tom Cruise running and franchise building.
But setting that aside, INTPs may not find anything clever nor inventive about the uncovering of Ahmanet. And apart from being a Tom Cruise-type, they may find Nick Morton a hasty, irrational adventurer.
Love: Matilda (1996)
Based on the beloved Roald Dahl classic, Matilda is about a girl who learned not only to fend for herself, deliver conniving pranks and read books at the early age of four, but also discover that she has telekinetic abilities. With this, she used her powers against her cruel parents and her tyrannical headmistress, Miss Trunchbull.
While she is more imaginative than inventive, INTPs will gravitate towards Matilda’s rapid curiosity about life and thoughtful analysis of what is right and wrong.
Hate: Nanny McPhee (2006)
Nanny McPhee features Emma Thompson as the titular caretaker who steps in as the guardians for the unruly children of Mr. Brown (Colin Firth). With her hideous appearance, the children initially hate her but learn to grow tolerant of her disciplinary ways.
British nannies are a common trope in children’s fantasies, and while this film is not much different from superior examples, Nanny McPhee is a welcome interpretation. However, INTPs will find the children’s mischievousness hard to swallow and every lesson thrown at them will feel cynical.
Love: Groundhog Day (2013)
Popularly, apart from the date on the calendar, the term “groundhog day” is defined as being stuck in a time loop. One can thank this Harold Ramis-directed classic for popularizing this definition of the term. The film centers on egotistical reporter Phil Connors (Bill Murray), who is sent to cover the festivities in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, and ends up trapped in a repetitive cycle.
Groundhog Day is a tale about self-improvement and maturity and INTPs will learn from Phil’s trial-and-error lesson to seize the day and win over Rita (Andie MacDowell).
Hate: The Witches (1990)
The Witches is a classic Roald Dahl story where his darkest twisted elements come to life. The story centers on a boy who discovers a convention of witches that plot to kill children, prompting him and his grandmother to find a way to outwit and stop them.
While fans of gothic fantasy will certainly admire this film for not holding back on its mature elements, INTPs will find it unnerving to witness this cautionary tale about paranoia that hits home in its shrewdness.
Love: Mary Poppins (1964)
Back again to the British nanny subgenre, Mary Poppins is a timeless Disney classic that may have strayed away from P.L. Travers’ original vision, yet it still captured the hearts and imaginations of children through its lovable characters, engaging visuals and unforgettable songs.
Analyzing its characters, INTPs can relate to Mr. Banks’ arc. He starts off as a father with high standards for his children to follow, but he slowly considers their candidness and resorts to making the hardest decision of his life to uplift his family.
Hate: Into The Woods (2014)
Based on the Stephen Sondheim musical, Into the Woods mixes fairytales like Cinderella, Jack and the Beanstalk, Rapunzel and Little Red Riding Hood into a deconstruction of fairytale clichés. The characters eventually come together to overcome a curse from a vengeful witch (Meryl Streep).
Rest assured that this film, being a Sondheim story, will include flawed characters pointing fingers at their adversaries comeuppances. Thus, INTPs will feel tired over their eventual fates, their unlikable traits and their initial refusal to accept responsibility.
Love: Harry Potter And The Prisoner Of Azkaban (2004)
The third book of the Harry Potter series sees the titular boy wizard encountering a dark figure known as Sirius Black (Gary Oldman), who was alleged to have plotted the death of his parents and has escaped from the infamous prison of Azkaban.
This Harry Potter film is arguably the most beloved of the eight-part series and it is easy to see why. Alfonso Cuarón’s direction allows the series to embrace its growing darkness and poignant maturity. However, INTPs will be rewarded by Harry’s triumph over handling his difficult emotions and his overcoming them with a rich understanding.
Hate: The Hobbit: The Battle Of The Five Armies (2014)
The Hobbit trilogy could be a mixed bag for some audiences. And while it had a rocky start, it also ended on a rocky note with The Battle of the Five Armies. This trilogy finale finds Bilbo (Martin Freeman) and the rest of the dwarves, who after reclaiming the Lonely Mountain from Smaug, stand their ground and defends their land from opposing armies.
The excessive stretch of the original children’s fantasy is bad enough. But INTPs will be unconvinced of how each character arc is resolved, with Thorin making irrational plans and Bilbo acting helpless. It will be disappointingly frustrating and, therefore, should be avoided.