by Tasha Raymond

Created on: April 12, 2008   Last Updated: July 02, 2009

The 1950s was considered the Golden Age for Hollywood. This era saw the cinematic birth of many a talented writer, director, actor, and actress. This was also the time when Stanislavski's style of acting became much more prominent. Known as Realism in the United States, actors took to focusing for a more artistic truth on stage and began to "live the part" of their character. This most likely than not helped to boost the popularity of the fantasy films at that time. While the 1950s is said to have very few major fantasy films, there are those that can not be forgotten no matter how hard we try.

-Darby O'Gill and the Little People-
Disney released this wonderful master piece in 1959. Set in rural Ireland ant the beginning of the 20th century, the film is based off the books by Herminie Templeton Kavanagh and tells about the adventures of a groundskeeper engaged in a battle of wits with the leprechauns. Living with his daughter, Kate, Darby tends to spend more time in the pubs engaging in stories about the "wee folk" than tending the estate at which he works. He's essentially fired when the owner brings in a younger groundskeeper to look after things and allowing Darby to retire. Thinking they're doing him a favor, the leprechauns try to take him in for all eternity. Darby tricks the leprechauns into letting him escape, but later needs their help when his daughter is called by the banshee.

-The 5,000 Fingers of Dr. T-
For those born after this era, it will come as a surprise to know that the infamous Dr. Seuss (Theodor Seuss Geisel, to be exact) actually penned the story, screenplay, and lyrics for a feature film distributed by Columbia Pictures. Originally produced in 1953, the film was rereleased under the name of Crazy Music in 1958. Bart Collins, dreading his piano lessons and instructor, Dr. Terwilliker, falls asleep at this piano and enters a horrible dream where he and 499 other boys (thus the 5,000 fingers) are forced to play a massive piano that requires the aforementioned 500 children to play it. Dr. Terwilliker has also enslaved Bart's mother and plans to marry her, causing him to hatch a plan to not only save himself but his mother as well.

-The Seventh Seal-
Originally released in Sweden as Det Sjunde Inseglet (1957), The Seventh Seal (1958) is an existential film that borrows heavily from the Book of Revelations. This film focuses on the tale of Antonius Block, played by Max von Sydow, a knight who returns from the Crusades only to find a tragedy:

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