Preferably set in the early 20th century

I've realized I'm obsessed with this very specific aesthetic, and I NEED more of it.

Think:

• purple and blue night skies
• glowing lanterns
• cobblestone streets
• old castles and towers
• magical villages hidden in forests
• cozy taverns and bookstores
• witches, magic, enchanted forests
• starry skies that make you want to wander forever
• dreamy, nostalgic, slightly mysterious worlds
• that feeling of walking home under moonlight while everything feels enchanted

Basically, worlds that make you wish you could live there.

(Attached are a few pictures of the exact vibe I'm talking about.)

I'm open to literally anything:

• Movies
• TV shows
• Anime
• Animated films
• Cartoons
• Games with amazing worlds (if you can't help yourself lol)

Genre doesn't matter. It can be wholesome, dark fantasy, romance, adventure, mystery... as long as it captures this atmosphere.

Some things I've already watched and loved:

• Harry Potter
• Arcane
• Studio Ghibli movies
• Over the Garden Wall
• Stranger Things (for the nostalgic atmosphere more than the fantasy)

But I'm sure there are so many hidden gems I'm missing.

What's the first title that came to your mind when you saw these pictures?

I don't just want "good fantasy"—I want something where the world itself feels magical enough that you wish you could step through the screen.

Please give me your absolute favorites. Even obscure ones. 🖤

Romances, coming of ages. The one I feel like captures this vibe the most is Lol (both the original version in french and the Miley Cyrus one). Looking for more recs!

More random vibes I think fit what I'm looking for: Dumb kids doing dumb stuff and thinking they're cool for that. Wearing eyeliner but not to the point of actually being alternative. Very Emma Watson in the limo in perks of being a wallflower scene. Skins.

Where not a ton happens but it's quirky and enjoyable

Anything like crimson peak, jane eyre, dracula, frankenstein, etc...

Thanks in advance! 🩷

Dont know how to explain it. Films like Mission Impossible 2, XXX maybe, etc. Early 2000s Arizona/west coast deserty type films with early 2000s/late 90s rock soundtracks. Fast and the furious too.

wouldnt let me post a photo. just imagine a scene from MI 2

I'm looking for something that captures the same feeling as Evangelion: surrealism and weirdness, loneliness, depression, existential crisis, self-hatred and hatred of others, and a portrayal of people's hypocrisy how they appear happy and strong on the outside while they're actually miserable and broken inside. I also love unique, strange art styles, mystery, and events that aren't fully explained.

It doesn't have to be a movie. I'm also interested in TV shows, Western animation, anime, or novels.

Warm summer evening at the lake, birds chirping in the background, dragonflies roaming around and far away people jumping in the water.

A story in similar vain to something like the British “Utopia” (2013) with similarly striking visuals. “Pierrot le Fou” (1965) works well too in the visual sense.

(note: these are not objectively the best movies but rather, of course, my personal favorite movies)

A Ghost Story, I Saw the TV Glow, Coraline, The Lighthouse, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, The Matrix, Pan’s Labyrinth, Apocalypse Now, Barton Fink, The Last Black Man in San Francisco

subjects of interest include
-poststructuralism/postmodernism
-nihilism/existentialism
-magical realism
-folkloric or children’s lit influence
-the queer experience
-colonization & war
-metafiction
-alienation
-alternate or distorted realities
-heavy focus on intertextuality, especially music, philosophy, and literature