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by Michelle Strozykowski

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The eighties was a decade defined by cinema's insatiable appetite for big budget fantasy adventures. Included within its span was a trilogy of Indianna Jones films, two Ghostbusters films, two Back to the Future films, two Star Trek films, Romancing the Stone and its sequel Jewel of the Nile, the second and third Superman films, the second Alien film and the conclusion of George Lucas' original and much revered Star Wars trilogy, Return of the Jedi.

It's a given that many of these films fall into more categories than is typified by the singular term fantasy, encompassing as they do other genres such as action, comedy, horror and science fiction. Therefore, despite the inevitable genre amalgamations common to almost all cinematic output, the following 10 films have been selected for the specific reason that fantasy assumes a dominating presence within the major elements of structure and storyline.

1. Beetlejuice (1988)
Tim Burton's raucously uplifting comedy ghost story was arguably Winona Ryder's finest hour. She plays the introspective goth daughter of particularly obnoxious parents. The three of them move into a new house, but it soon becomes apparent that the recently deceased previous tenants are still in occupation. These ghosts are the sweet, lovely couple Adam and Barbara, and in their desperation to get rid of the new arrivals they call on Beetlejuice to help. Big mistake.

2. Ghostbusters (1984)
Funny, scary, amazing special effects and a cool story to boot. Ghostbusters is chock full of memorable scenes, quotable lines and perfectly pitched performances.

3. The Princess Bride (1987)
William Goldman's spectacular script (based on his book) parodies many fairy tale cliches, but with a wit and affection that only serves to enhance his own work. The characters may be familiar, but the story is full of twists and turns, humor and adventure. A near perfect fantasy with pirates, giants and rodents of unusual size.

4. The Lost Boys (1987)
A fantastic vampire flick, dark, exciting and completely stolen by Kiefer Sutherland who mesmerizes in every scene. The soundtrack is pretty good too.

5. The Terminator (1984)
Arnie's first outing as The Terminator, a fantastical futuristic cyborg, remains one of James Cameron's greatest achievements. A film of truly outstanding daring and drama.

6. Flash Gordon (1980)
Funny costumes, hammy acting and cartoonish visuals in bright primary colors make Flash Gordon a hilarious camp classic.

7. Clash of the Titans (1981)
A classic historical fantasy, re-telling the story of Perseus, featuring a cast of amazing fantasy creatures such as Pegasus the winged horse and Medusa, the snake haired Gorgon. Produced by Ray Harryhausen, doyen of stop motion monster special effects, Titans is a magical experience.

8. Splash (1984)
Ron Howard's enjoyable fish out of water story is a funny, romantic fantasy about a boy who falls in love with a mermaid.

9. Time Bandits (1981)
King of the fantastical, Terry Gilliam, makes films that inspire wonder. Time Bandits zips about in history, taking us along for a ramshackle ride with the bandits as they stumble across famous people such as Napoleon and Robin Hood on their quest to get rich quick. Abstract magic.

10. E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial (1982)
Steven Spielberg's profoundly poignant film about the little visitor from out of space who accidentally gets left behind is simply beautiful. Bringing magic into the lives of Elliott and his siblings, E.T. contains some of the most memorable scenes ever committed to celluloid.

With such an expansive amount of great eighties films to choose from, personal favorites inevitably influence any list of classics. Many much loved and greatly admired films had to be cut in order to produce an overview that didn't spiral ever onwards out of control. In the interests of hating to waste research, here are some of the films that nearly made the grade:- Batman, Poltergeist, Gremlins, The Witches of Eastwick, Wings of Desire, The Goonies, Labyrinth, Dragonslayer, Highlander and that lovable early Tom Hanks fun-fest Big. Hopefully your own personal favorites can be spotted somewhere amongst all these rather brilliant classic eighties films.

Sources: IMDb was used to verify film release dates.

Learn more about this author, Michelle Strozykowski.

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