The fantasy genre of film is an extensive library of amazing stories and dynamic worlds built of dragons and danger, wizards and war, helplessness and hope. These movies have appealed to audiences from the earliest days of film, and thanks to advances in special effects, they have been entrancing audiences since humanity took a A Trip to the Moon in 1902 courtesy of Georges Melies. The genre has come far since then, and many films throughout the years have achieved similar notoriety. Of these classics, two films stand out for their technical innovations, shared themes, and pop culture status. Both movies involve a young woman’s journey of self-discovery through a fantasy land full of memorable characters who help the hero along the way. And though they are commonly categorized as “kid’s movies,” they both carry very adult themest. In viewing the details of these films one may ask: what is the underlying journey of the main character? How does the setting give us information about these characters and their inner growth? How are color and screen elements used to emphasize these points? The answers to these questions will reveal a hidden complexity to both Jim Henson’s 1986 film Labyrinth and Victor Fleming’s 1939 classic The Wizard of Oz.
