A bust of the goddess Hera crashes to the ground. A football star is catapulted into a galaxy where a game of life and death is seen as sport. A giant fire-breathing dragon terrorizes a land. A kidnapped child sits waiting in the hands of the nasty Goblin King. These are but a few of the plot lines that weave their way through the classic fantasy films of the 1980s.

Defining what makes a film fantasy can be as difficult as distinguishing between whether a person drives a big truck because they have to haul a lot of stuff or they feel a certain inadequacy in what they are "hauling" themselves. The lines of fantasy are often times blurred with those of science fiction, horror and animation making it difficult to pin down the genre. Many of the classic fantasy films of the 80s cross into several genres although they seem to have some common elements: Fantastic story lines, unique worlds where anything can and does happen, use of supernatural or magical elements and existence of beings and worlds outside of our own.

Beginning in 1980 with Flash Gordon, this movie version of the comic strip takes us into a science fiction land where camp was as important as the plot. Many view this as a cult classic that is as entertaining to watch as it is to make fun of. Flash, Dale and Ming the Merciless are done up in over-the-top costumes while the story line reads like an intergalactic soap opera. It's perfect!

Calling upon ancient history as its source material, Clash of the Titans (1981) launched us into the fantasy genre full force. A beautiful princess, a flying horse, dueling Immortals and beasts the likes of Medusa and the Kraken all mesh to create the fantasy retelling of the Perseus myth. The stop motion animation, now seen as comedic, was a throwback to films like Jason and the Argonauts. Rumor has it that the film is being remade and will be released in 2010.

Delving into Arthurian lore is the film Excalibur, also released in 1981. The film dealt with the love triangle of Arthur, Guinevere and Lancelot. The film was also quite successful and was released in PG and R-rated versions. 1981 also produced two other popular fantasy films that are now considered classics: Time Bandits, the story of 11-year old Kevin and a band of dwarves who are using a map that transports them to any era in time and Dragon Slayer, the tale of a young wizard who must save a kingdom from a terrible dragon. Now attained to cult status, Dragon Slayer is now seen

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