Conclusion

Abstract

In the introduction, I noted that Kathy Smith claimed that fantasy films such as Harry Potter and The Lord of the Rings provided relief to audiences traumatized by 9/11 (2005: 69–70). The box-office dominance of fantasy film since 2001 seems to support such a claim. However, this analysis of some of the most commercially successful fantasy films made since 2001 reveals that the genre has been a vehicle through which to reprise themes and images relating to 9/11 and the war on terror. Jack Zipes outlines an analogous scenario in relation to the success of Star Wars (Lucas, 1977) and its post-Vietnam and Watergate contexts, suggesting that “the film, with all its sequels obviously endeavors to serve as a palliative for the discord which divided Americans in the late 1960s and early 1970s. It suggests that the system is all right, but it can fall into evil hands at times, and this evil must then be subdued by the mystical force of democracy” (2002: 132). Further discernible is a progressive darkening of theme and visual style in franchises such as the Harry Potter and Pirates of the Caribbean series, which both span the first decade of the new millennium. Films made toward the end of the decade are also more inclined to address the political aspects of the war on terror (Avatar and Iron Man both openly criticize the war in Iraq).