Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000)

Strictly speaking, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon is not a fantasy movie. There is no magic, no gods, but the choreography is not of this world. No one in real life fights like that, like they are flying through the air. The sets acting and choreography make this movie one for the ages. It’s beautiful. The movie is not in English, but in Chinese with English subtitles, but the language barrier does not detract from the overall beauty of the movie. You watch it for the beauty not for any sort of coherent plot. But it does have a plot, a beautiful plot that doesn’t need a lot of words to have it make sense. This movie is in the book 501 Movies to Watch Before You Die.

Aquaman (2018)

Aquaman is a fun adventure romp set in the DC universe. In it Arthur, the titular Aquaman, and Princess Mera must go on an epic quest to find the magic trident and stop Arthur’s brother from destroying the world. Was there plot holes in this movie? Yes. Did it matter? Not really. I went in to see Jason Momoa run around in an epic quest without his shirt. I got that. I was, and am, happy.

Jurassic Park (1993)

The beginning of a franchise and an era, the first Jurassic Park has it all. Dino mayhem, people running and whether or not cloning these ancient monsters was really that great of an idea. One of my favorite scenes is when Alan and Ellie first see the dinosaurs, before the mayhem starts. It is a classic tale that could only come from the mind of Michael Cricton. It shows what mayhem can ensue when men play with forces they don’t understand. Such a classic giant monster movie.

Them! (1954)

Them! Is one of my  all time favorite giant monster movies. I always think about it when we get an ant infestation in the house. Fortunately, the ants we get are normal size! The characters  are great and the storyline is fun! A fun fact, they originally filmed this movie in color but decided that the ants were too pretty and so decided to make it black and white. Leonard Nimoy also has a cameo as Soldier in Crowd. It was also referenced in Antman and the Wasp, and why wouldn’t Antman be watching a movie about giant ants?

The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms (1953)

The Beast from 20,000 fathoms is one of the first of the atomic age movies. It introduced the world to the special effects of Ray Harryhausen and influenced the director of Godzilla to make his dinosaur movie. It tells the story of an ancient dino awoken by nuclear testing that then goes back to its historic breeding grounds, New York City. Of course it causes a bunch of havoc as it rampages through the city. Only the brave scientist can stop the monster. It is a great monster flick!

The Sea of Monsters

The Sea of Monsters is certainly weaker than the first movie. Many true fans of the book objected to the Lightning Thief because although it kept many of the principles of the first book in the series, they also changed a lot. In Sea of Monsters, movie makers attempted to return to the source material while still keeping some of the plot points brought up in the previous movie. The result was a weird combination that seemed disconnected from both the book series and the first movie. However, the movie can be enjoyed despite this if you take it for what it’s worth. A fun mythical look at modern day life. Percy Jackson is still one of my favorite contemporary heroes.

The Lightning Thief (2010)

The Lightning Thief (2010)

What would you do if you learned you were the son of a Greek god? If you’re Perseus Jackson, you would go on an epic quest to save the world from Hades, god of the Underworld. Percy is the son of Poseidon, god of the sea. This means that he can do a lot of cool things with water that a lot of people can’t do, like basically drown someone on the top of building. Water also heals him and gives him super strength. And he has a pen that can turn into a sword. I want a pen that can turn into a sword…