Genre Database: Dark Fantasy
*Gothic and dark are used interchangeably in this postGenre conventions – content
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Dark Fantasy films are fantasy films with dark, horror or thriller elements added. Thus, these movies tend to have simple storylines and plots, that is made more complex with supernatural creatures, complicated characters, and fantastical settings. An example of this is the dark remake of Snow White, Snow White And The Huntsman (2012). It is a retelling of the simple fairy tale of snow white, but the film chooses the make its characters more complex and explore their motivations beyond just “she was evil.” Another important thing about dark fantasy films is that they often have fantastical but dark settings. For example, the Tim Burton remake of Alice in Wonderland (2010) features an entire land of amazing creatures and magical structures but is presented in dark colors and slightly abnormal or otherwise strange designs. Common settings for dark fantasy films include woods, as they are simple but creepy, and easily made seem magical, or a Victorian mansion, because they present an air of timelessness that is also important to the magic of a dark fantasy film.
Another important part of dark fantasy films is that they also feature an element of realism. This is either present in their main character, who is typically human but for some reason is special for has found that they have abnormal powers, as seen in the earlier Alice in Wonderland example; or a realistically styled setting with magical elements, like the mansion in Dark Shadows (2012). Unlike normal fantasy films where good vs. evil is very clearly defined, dark fantasy films like to blur the lines between good and evil in order to question the true nature of the story and pose questions about humanity and what are the true motivations behind a person’s character and actions, and whether or not they can be seen as truly evil or truly good. An example of this is Bram Stoker’s Dracula (1992), where the director challenges the traditional character of Dracula by giving him a romantic interest and changing how we view his actions. Dark fantasy is sometimes also used to describe stories told from a monster's point of view, or that present a more sympathetic view of supernatural beings usually associated with horror. Interview with the Vampire (1994) is an example of this style of dark fantasy. This is in contrast to the traditional horror model, which focuses more on the victims and survivors. On the other hand, dark fantasy films can also feature protagonists that are often heroic. They choose to face the dangers presented to them in the movie in order to save others or to achieve some greater goal. They are often experienced with the occult or in possession of special skills, knowledge, or powers.Genre conventions – production techniques
Gothic films have a mise-en-scène based around archetypal settings and characters, and familiar visual signifiers, and can either be period pieces or contemporary. Common motifs of gothic films are old dark houses, sublime castles, dungeons, graveyards, and secret passages. Costumes are often dramatic and Victorian styled, with blacks, whites, and other deep colors employed to demonstrate the darkness of the film. This is mixed with magical or supernatural elements, like in Alice in Wonderland, where the landscape and characters are created with grim and almost creepy designs, while also appearing otherworldly.
In terms of camera shots and lighting, action takes place in the shadows, and soft lighting maintains a misty atmosphere while under-lighting is used to distort features. Editing is used to create competing frames of rational and irrational shots that contrast each other to generate tension and unease. The use of CGI and special effects can range from production to production, with films like Bram Stoker’s Dracula using only practical effects to create a dated look, versus movies like Snow White and the Huntsman using CGI to create while characters like the dwarves and the mirror man.
Film sample #1 – Pan’s Labyrinth
Pan’s Labyrinth is the story of a girl named Ofelia who encounters a mysterious faun in 1944’s fascist Franco-ruled Spain. The film follows the idea of obedience versus disobedience; whether you should blindly follow rules or question them and rebel against it, mirrored in Ofelia’s quest to prove that her essence is intact and her soul is worthy of returning to its rightful home as the princess and sister to the faun and her rebellion against her stepfather, Vidal, a twisted soldier who is devoted completely to hunting down and executing anti-Franco rebels. An important part of the movie is also the deconstruction of characters and their transformations, Vidal starting off immaculately groomed, hair slicked to perfection, the model commander and representation of the new fascist regime. However, he ends the film physically scarred, drugged and stumbling about after Ofelia in a manner similar to the terrifying Pale man sequence. The faun also transforms, he begins incredibly old and it takes a lot of effort for him to move. With each subsequent encounter, he looks younger, more able-bodied and in a way more beautiful which juxtaposes with his increasingly sinister and distrustful behavior. This ties back to the emphasis that dark fantasy movies have on their characters, rather than complex plotlines, though Pan’s Labyrinth also has a substantive plot.
An important part of the film is also its production design. Scenes, where Ofelia confronts fairies, are dominated by warm colors like yellow and red whereas the real scenes in the house are surrounded by cool colors like blue and purple. Both worlds are portrayed with low key lighting emphasizing the shadowy atmosphere of the film. The uniforms of the officials and costumes of the people reflect 1940s Spain. It is a time of war and the colors of the clothing used in the movie are dark. The main character Ofelia is dressed in colors like brown, green and blue. These colors also contribute to the atmosphere of the movie, making it fantastical and dark at the same time. The editing tends to seamlessly merge scenes to create contrasts between reality and fantasy, as the film goes on the scenes merge together more effortlessly which can perhaps make the audience question where the lines between the two elements are drawn. Pan’s Labyrinth is set in both a realistic Spain and a magical underground kingdom, which is important to the dark fantasy genre of the movie, showing the juxtaposition of reality vs. fantasy, especially through the plots that occur in both locations that parallel each other.
Film sample #2 – Coraline
Coraline is a stop-animation film based on the book by Neil Gaiman. It follows Coraline, the titular character as she moves into a new house with strange residents, and encounters a portal to another world. The main focus of Coraline is on its characters, exploring the Beldam, and more importantly, how Coraline interacts with her and the other characters. It's a dark but magical fairy tale that draws the reader in. Similar to typical dark fantasy conventions, Coraline is a heroic protagonist, at the end of the film choosing to re-enter the other world and fight the Beldam in order to get back the souls of the other children stuck in her world. Coraline is set in a large house that has been sectioned off to multiple tenants, including a pair of long-since retired stage performers, and a Russian circus mouse trainer. Coraline's setting employs another element of dark fantasy in its setting, contrasting a stark, realistic world to a parallel one that appears fantastical, straight out of a fairy tale. It is set in a simple location, a large old house in the woods, which makes it easier to then create the parallel world and have it model, but enhance the real world.
In order to show that stark contrast between the real and the fantasy, Coraline uses a muted color palette in shades of gray, black and white for the real world, in order to represent the boring and miserable life Coraline leads in the normal world. On the other, bright colors like orange and red are used to represent the Other World, which is Coraline's escape from her normal world. In terms of character design, the characters are to look odd, an exaggeration of humans. An example of this is the Russian man, Bobinski, with his large gut but skinny legs. This is further exaggerated in the Other World characters, whose eyes have been replaced with buttons, and characters like other Wybie have their mouth sewn shut.
Other Examples
1. Dark Shadows
2. Crimson Peak
6. Maleficent
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