Last Updated on 1 November 2024

I searched the Internet for lists of the best fairy tale movies of all time. Criteria included the movies being ranked, not just listed, and generally created by groups, whether teams or committees or based on general public voting (like Ranker.com).

“Fairy tales are characterized by straightforward storylines — a princess needs to be rescued, a curse needs to be broken, a villain needs to be defeated — typically including some magical elements. Fairytale-themed movies from the last 50 years include stock characters like princesses, knights, wizards, and magical creatures, and usually have a medieval setting.” – ScreenRant

I was able to find 18 lists. I took the 18 lists and added all their content into a spreadsheet, noting the rank of every film. I ended up averaging the rankings each movie got (there were 86 that were on at least 2 lists) and dividing that average by a factor of the number of lists that movie was on. The lowest score meant a high ranking average on many lists. The complete spreadsheet is attached at the bottom.

The movies that were on the most lists (out of 18) were:

  • The Princess Bride (1987) – 12 lists
  • Enchanted (2007) – 9 lists
  • Beauty and the Beast (1991) – 8 lists
  • The Wizard of Oz (1939) – 8 lists
  • Pan’s Labyrinth (2006) – 8 lists
  • Stardust (2007) – 8 lists
  • The Red Shoes (1948) – 7 lists
  • Ever After: A Cinderella Story (1998) – 7 lists
  • Edward Scissorhands (1990) – 7 lists
  • Hook (1991) – 7 lists
  • Beauty and the Beast (1946) – 7 lists
  • Snow White and the Huntsman (2012) – 7 lists

Here are links to the lists I used along with dates the lists were created:

Best Fairy Tale MoviesDownload

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