6 Mythic Films Recommendations
Edenic landscapes, apocalyptic stakes, Valhalla and more...
These are movies which strike a mythic tone - they feel timeless, symbolic, epic regardless of scale; they don’t have to be explicitly about mythology.
All 6 are, as I write, available to stream in the UK on the major channels.
Princess Mononoke, Hayao Miyazaki (1997): man vs nature set in fantasy medieval Japan, with ambiguous villains, transcendent animation and a powerful ending.
My review on Letterboxd.
Watch it on Netflix.
The Grandmaster, Wong Kar-wai (2013): kung fu as philosophy and poetry, the best fight scene in cinema, and a haunting tragedy about a woman who cannot change.
My review on Letterboxd.
Watch it on Amazon Prime.
The Northman, Robert Eggers (2022): a precise and poetic vision of primal ferocity, a glorification of savage Viking masculinity, and a window into Valhalla itself.
My review on Letterboxd.
Watch it on Amazon Prime.
Sunshine, Danny Boyle (2007): mindbending visuals, apocalyptic stakes, stellar performances, and one of the greatest deaths you’ll ever see (Adagio in D Minor).
My review on Letterboxd.
Watch it on Disney+.
The Green Knight, David Lowery (2021): a rare, ominous and archaic fantasy film which spurns epic tropes to burrow mysteriously into horror and thriller aspects.
My review on Letterboxd.
Watch it on Amazon Prime.
Legends of the Fall, Edward Zwick (1994): melodramatic and boyish, redeemed by a gripping ‘love square’, strong acting, Edenic landscapes, and a gorgeous Brad Pitt.
My review on Letterboxd.
Watch it on Netflix.
All of these films depict characters pushed far beyond the ‘normal’ range of human experience. Their emotions are wildly intense, their decisions are inflexible, and the atmospheres in which they operate are, for some people, too slow or strange.
It’s a matter of preference, and perhaps it comes down to this:
Do you watch movies to see more of everyday reality, or are you after something else?