20 Best Chinese Fantasy Movies
In the last few years, the fantasy genre is finally back. Still, if you have seen everything that Hollywood has to offer about fantasy, you are maybe looking for something else. Well, in this article we have you covered, as we are bringing you the best Chinese fantasy movies of all time.
Some of the movies on our list will be fantasy movie series, but still, if you like fantasy, in this article you can find a lot of new fantasy movies you probably didn’t see. So, check them out, and find out your next fantasy watch.
Legend of the Demon Cat (2017)
The film is set in the Tang Dynasty. A Chinese poet and a Japanese monk join forces to stop a demonic cat that has possessed the general’s wife and ravaged the imperial court.
The investigation leads to spooky and unexpected twists and turns, causing the poet and the monk to be drawn into the mystery of the decades-old death of the legendary beautiful concubine Yang Guifei.
Ne Zha (2019)
A film adaptation based on an ancient Chinese novel called Fengshenyanyi or Legend of Cancellation. This novel tells the stories of Chinese gods, thousands of years ago. The novel itself is based on Chinese folk legends…
The Sorcerer and the White Snake (2011)
A film inspired by an old Chinese legend about a grower of medicinal plants who falls in love with a thousand-year-old white snake, hidden in the form of a woman. Jet Li plays a sorcerer who discovers the snake’s true identity and begins a battle for this man’s soul.
The Great Wall (2016)
Starring global superstar Matt Damon and directed by one of the greatest visual stylists of our time, Zhang Yimou (“Hero,” “House of Flying Daggers”), Legendary Studios’ Great Wall of China tells the story of an elite force building a foothold on one of the world’s most famous buildings.
Monster Hunt (2015)
The film takes place in ancient China, where Humans existed alongside the Monsters. They once shared the world in peace and harmony until the Humans drove the Monsters out of their home, for they sought total dominion over their lands.
Recently, a civil war took place in the Monster Realm which resulted in the usurpation of the Monster King’s throne from a treacherous minister, who later sought the Monster Queen and her unborn baby, and the Monster Queen fled to the Human Realm.
The story begins with Song Tianyin, an unnerved young village mayor who becomes pregnant with the Monster Queen’s baby, and he encounters an aspiring Monster-hunter named Huo Xiaolan, and they both embark on an adventure to protect the baby from villains of the Human and Monster worlds alike.
League of Gods (2016)
Based on the 16th-century Chinese novel Feng Shen Yan Yi (The Investiture of the Gods), the story tells of how King Zhou of Shang becomes a tyrant due to the wiles of Daji, a vixen spirit who is disguised as one of his concubines.
Painted Skin (2008)
Painted Skin is based on one of Pu Songling’s classic short stories in Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio. Zhou Xun stars as Xiao Wei, a fox spirit that feasts on human hearts in order to maintain her lovely, youthful appearance.
When General Wang Sheng (Chen Kun) ‘rescues’ her from a band of bandits and brings her home, trouble brews as the demon falls in love with the general.
The Forbidden Kingdom (2008)
An American teenager obsessed with Hong Kong cinema and kung-fu classics stumbles upon a fantastic thing in a Chinese pawn shop: he finds the legendary weapon of the Chinese sage and warrior Monkey King.
With the lost relic in his hands, the teenager unexpectedly finds himself in ancient China where he joins a group of warriors, masters of martial arts who are on a mission to free the captive Monkey King.
Painted Skin: The Resurrection (2012)
An ancient fox spirit embarks on a diabolical quest to become human after escaping an icy prison, and becomes bound to a disfigured princess who seeks the love of a noble guard as her kingdom crumbles in this lavish supernatural epic.
Confined to a frozen cell for centuries, malevolent fox spirit Xiaowei (Xun Zhou) regains her freedom and seeks to preserve her beauty by seducing men and consuming their hearts. Should a man offer her his heart willingly, Xiaowei will become mortal, breaking free of the underworld and experiencing living among the living.
Meanwhile, as a dark cloud falls over her kingdom, Princess Jing (Wei Zhao) flees, hiding her deep facial scars under a mask of pure gold while seeking the love of her former protector, who remains haunted by his failure to save her years prior. When destiny brings Xiaowei and Princess Jing together, the battle for the princess’ heart begins.
Once Upon A Time (2017)
Bai Qian, a goddess and monarch from the Heavenly Realms, is sent to the mortal world to undergo a trial to become a High Goddess. There, she meets Ye Hua, with whom she falls in love and marries. When an old enemy reappears in her life, everything she holds dear is threatened.
The Storm Riders (1998)
Based on a comic book called Fung Wan (or Tin Ha), the movie stars Ekin Cheng as Wind and Aaron Kwok as Cloud. The plot involves two children, Whispering Wind and Striding Cloud, who become powerful warriors under the evil warlord Conquer’s tutelage. They grow up serving as his subordinates, but a love triangle and an accident lead to a quest for retribution.
Detective Dee: The Mystery of the Phantom Flame (2010)
The film tells the story of Di Renjie (Andy Lau), one of the most celebrated officials of the Tang dynasty, who is tasked by Empress Wu Zetian (Carina Lau) to solve a series of inexplicable murders in which victims suddenly burst into flames.
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Young Detective Dee: Rise of the Sea Dragon (2013)
In Rise of the Sea Dragon, Di investigates the origins and nature of an attack against the Chinese fleet, believed to have been caused by a mysterious sea creature.
Detective Dee: The Four Heavenly Kings (2018)
Detective Dee is forced to defend himself against the accusations of Empress Wu while investigating a crime spree.
Wish Dragon (2021)
Determined teen Din is longing to reconnect with his childhood best friend when he meets a wish-granting dragon who shows him the magic of possibilities.
Mojin: The Lost Legend (2015)
In the late 1980s, the famous ancient tomb investigator Hu Bayi decided to retire and spend the rest of his life with his fiancée. But before the wedding, Bayi discovers that his first love, Ding Sitian who supposedly died twenty years ago, is actually alive.
The Monkey King Havoc in Heavens Palace (2014)
A monkey born from heavenly stone acquires supernatural powers and must battle the armies of both gods and demons to find his place in the heavens.
Monkey King: Hero Is Back (2015)
The all-powerful Monkey King was imprisoned by the Gods for 500 years, but when a child releases him from his curse, the Monkey King must now save an innocent village from the evil Mountain Lord and his monstrous army.
The Monkey King 2 (2016)
When a traveling monk is stranded in a wasteland, The Monkey King must escort him across the land to retrieve sacred scriptures and protect him from an evil demon.
The Monkey King 3 (2018)
Sun Wukong (Aaron Kwok), Tang Sanzang (Feng Shaofeng), Zhu Bajie (Xiao Shenyang) and Sha Wujing (Him Law) – inadvertently enter the Womanland of Western Liang, a nation populated by women raised to believe that men are fatally deceptive in matters of the heart.
Love nevertheless blossoms between Tang Sanzang and the Womanland’s young queen (Zhao Liying), even though her royal preceptor (Gigi Leung) is hell-bent on sentencing the men to death. As Sun Wukong, Zhu Bajie and Sha Wujing search for a way out of this nation surrounded by a vast magical net, it soon transpires, conveniently, that romantic love is the only key to opening the gate. Will Tang Sanzang give up on his sacred mission and stay with the queen?
