I have mentioned before that we often draw our lines too thickly when it comes to defining the various genres that sprung up from early speculative and weird fiction – traditionally dividing them into science fiction, fantasy, and horror. At the same time, I fully understand why these distinctions have become important as groupings, as those genres themselves have splintered into more and more subcategories and evolved to suit changing tastes and styles.

These diverging paths have taken these genres into very different places over the years, having their own highs and lows. What is interesting to look at is the relationship between these genres in the written format comparative to the film format. I had this particular subject on my mind after a heard a friend mention the complaint that the fantasy genre gets underserved in film compared to science fiction and horror.

Having been brought up on Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings movies my first instinct was to protest this, but further reflection made me wonder if there wasn’t some truth to this. At the time, there was an expectation that Lord of the Rings would serve to “legitimize” fantasy, in the same way that The Exorcist “legitimized” horror, and 2001: A Space Odyssey “legitimized” science fiction. Obviously, I believe that this is too much of an oversimplification, but it does feel that fantasy has had a start that was both delayed and stumbling compared to its sister genres. The aforementioned films did not radically change their entire genres but did leave the door open for films to be to be more ambitious within the scope of their genre. More so, they turned their genres into a worldwide phenomenon that helped shape the popular culture in the Western world and beyond.

The fantasy genre seemed to be on track for a second chance at a major breakthrough with a different approach with the wide popularity of Game of Thrones. However, decreasing quality once the writers had to go off the notes of book author GRR Martin, followed by a last season that has become best remembered as a punchline, Game of Thrones looks doomed to quickly fade from its previous impactful heights. I suspect its legacy will be overall a more damaging one to the fantasy genre in television. I cannot count the times I’ve read in news articles the excitement about “The Next Game of Thrones!” This initial burst of popularity has so warped perception of the fantasy genre that a plethora of shows have been twisting themselves to try and become Game of Thrones imitators. (One of the most hilarious examples I can think of is the recent show Carnival Row which started in concept as a Guillermo del Toro headed steampunk fantasy series. While elements of this remain, the show we got quickly leaps off the rails as soon as it hits the Game of Thrones inspired incest and half-baked political plots.)

It may simply be that we have to be patient. Science fiction and horror filmmaking had what felt to be much more organic growth, though each did have its periods of stagnation. This history does strengthen both those genres, however – even during their bleaker eras, they have a solid foundation to return to when things look bad. Popular director Denis Villeneuve clearly takes inspiration from older, more contemplative science fiction films when crafting his own modern takes. Rising horror director Ari Aster clearly looks to older horror based around family dysfunction, such as Carrie or Rosemary’s Baby. His second film, Midsommar, is highly reminiscent of the horror classic The Wicker Man (no, the first one, not the remake. I know you were about to make a comment about bees.)

I think a clue is that these genres have had a flexible evolution that is deeply tied to their audiences. Our concept of the future and of what scares us changes incrementally over time, and these ideas can be constantly updated to what might interest an audience. 2001: A Space Odyssey appealed to those interested in space travel within our solar system, with the space race well underway at the time. In the 70s, science fiction often pivoted to political and social commentary, reflecting more uncertain times, with films like Logan’s Run and Soylent Green. Science fiction even arguably managed to appeal to a desire for fantasy better than the fantasy genre even did with Star Wars and Flash Gordon, and found itself comfortable intertwining with horror through films like Alien and The Thing. The changing concepts of what technology was and meant to us resulted in the growth of cyberpunk, with films like Blade Runner. Horror was also able to change with the times, atomic monsters and gothic horrors giving way to satanic conspiracy and supernatural terror, eventually transitioning into the modern slasher icons, who were almost comically flexible in their timeliness. (Remember Jason heading into space? Michael Myers killing contestants on a reality TV Show? Freddy Krueger using the Powerglove? Actually, does anyone even remember the Powerglove at all?)

Fantasy, meanwhile, by its nature is in many ways disconnected from our current time, and from its trends. While certain styles of fantasy come in and out of fashion, it is much more difficult to pin down exactly why this is without pointing to a particular work that others sought to emulate – fantasy, essentially, often sets its own trends. This timeless nature is part of the appeal of the genre to many, I think, but translating it to film often involves a constant risk of not connecting with wide general audiences, a risk that not many are willing to take. There was also the unfortunate assumption by many that while science fiction and horror can be made to appeal to all ages, that fantasy was best targeted towards children. This is not to knock many of the fantastic fantasy films aimed at family audiences, but it did put another self-imposed limitation on the number of fantasy films that could be greenlit, and the number of them. Frustratingly, one of the most promising mediums for fantasy, that of animation, itself managed to suffer from an association with being “mere” children’s entertainment, despite many valiant attempts to break from this mold. These included directors as diverse as Ralph Bakshi, who made adult-oriented films like Fire and Ice and Wizards (not to mention his own take on Lord of the Rings) and Japanese director Hayao Miyazaki, who has produced brilliant works that make a mockery of the idea that family, fantasy and animated films cannot be high art.

This is not to say that there were not any great live-action fantasy films before The Lord of the Rings arrived – far from it. The original Conan the Barbarian and The Princess Bride are particular favourites of mine, as well as the works of Jim Henson and Terry Gilliam. There is also the issue that fantasy is a rather fluid term on its own – many films with very fantastic elements to them tend to be grouped into other genres, or simply declared to be “magical realism” or “surrealist”.

However, for many fans of fantasy, Lord of the Rings surely seemed like a 2001 or a Star Wars, something that would carve out a new space for their genre to compete alongside others on equal and respected footing. But was that really the case?