Coming of Age Stories Need More Magical Elements
There’s something amazing about a film that takes the world and makes it feel magical and interconnected. The movies that make you feel this way are few and far between, and there should be more of them out there, especially for coming-of-age stories. However, these magical elements aren’t just for young adults and teenagers but fit every generation and genre.
Magical Realism Is The Sweet Spot For This Genre
One great example of a coming-of-age story that more movies need to try and recreate is The Secret Garden. This is a classic book written in 1911 that’s been adapted several times into films and movies. No matter which version you liked, there’s no denying that the faint magical elements are what make this story so good.
The Secret Garden Is Subtle In Its Magic
The Secret Garden is a story about a girl who loses her parents and ends up living with her uncle in a giant, but cold, mansion. Mary’s a rude and spoiled child that many people don’t like. But then she finds an old garden on the grounds. As she helps the garden come back to life with her friend, she learns compassion and even ends up helping her cousin recover and her uncle realize it’s okay to love again.
The magic is subtle in The Secret Garden, but it’s there in the garden, coming back to life, the animals coming to the garden, and in the children themselves as they heal and grow.
The Water Horse: Legend Of The Deep
Another good example of a coming-of-age story with a magical element is The Water Horse: Legend of the Deep. This story follows an introverted young boy who is dealing with his father’s involvement in the war. He stumbles across an egg, which turns out to be a “water horse” or a large monstrous creature.
As the boy raises the creature and tries to keep him hidden, he bonds with an older man, acting a bit like a father figure. He learns to stand up for himself and those he cares above and overcomes his fear to protect the creature he raised.
Water Horse Isn’t About The Water Horse
However, while I think more magical elements need to be included in coming-of-age stories, they should be subtle. Water Horse is pushing it, but it’s done well. Though there’s a giant water creature, the story is more about the boy growing up and learning to cope with the current situation rather than about the magical creature.
Studio Ghibli Nails The Genre
It doesn’t have to be centered only on coming-of-age stories, either. This focus on magic being a subtle element in the real world is a classic element of Ghibli films and is a major theme in more adult-oriented movies like Pan’s Labyrinth. There’s something about these films that leaves the viewer with a lasting feeling as if they’re a part of something bigger and like there’s a hidden part of the world they’re living in.
It’s a great feeling that invokes nostalgia and whimsy, and that’s why I think that more stories need it, especially coming-of-age stories. This is the perfect period in a person’s life to remind them of the importance of imagination and provide them with a great sense of playfulness and fancy.
