Best Fantasy Movies of 1942

Rocksford, New England, 1672. Puritan witch hunter Jonathan Wooley is cursed after burning a witch at the stake: his descendants will never find happiness in their marriages. At present, politician Wallace Wooley, who is running for state governor, is about to marry his sponsor's daughter.

Rudyard Kipling's Jungle Book is given the full treatment in this lavish retelling filled with huge sets, exotic animals, a large cast and the incomparable Sabu, starring as Mowgli, the young orphan boy raised by wolves. Curious to reconnect with his human village, Mowgli returns only to find disappointment in the greed and treachery of man. Over time, Mowgli and the village members do grow to trust one another, but not before the village finds itself under siege. It's up to Mowgli and his jungle friends to save the day.

Ygor discovers Frankenstein's creation is still alive and brings him to the Doctor's son, Ludwig, for help. Obsessed with restoring the monster to his full potential, Ludwig is unaware that someone has more devious plans for the creature.

When Andrew Long, hyper-efficient small town accountant, finds a $1240 discrepancy in the city budget, his superiors try to explain it away. When he insists on pursuing the matter, he's in danger of being blamed himself. In his trouble, the spirit of Andrew Jackson, whom he idolizes, visits him, and in turn, summons much high-powered talent from American history...which only Andrew can see.

A high priest of Karnak travels to America with the living mummy Kharis (Lon Chaney Jr.) to kill all those who had desecrated the tomb of the Egyptian princess Ananka thirty years earlier.

When police interfere with a reckless scientist's experiment, it creates a deadly meteor shower only Superman can stop.

José Carioca, showing Donald Duck around South America and introducing him to the samba

A frozen Tyrannosaurus rex is found and put on display in a museum, but when he thaws out and revives, Superman has to stop his rampage!

Criminals with rocket powered car loot and extort the city, and only Superman can stop them!

When things go wrong at the circus, it's up to Superman to stop the escaped animals.

David Charleston, once a world renowned journalist, now lives alone maintaining the Thunder Rock lighthouse in Lake Michigan. He doesn't cash his paychecks and has no contact other than the monthly inspector's visit. When alone, he imagines conversations with those who died when a 19th century packet ship with some 60 passengers sank. He imagines their lives, their problems, their fears and their hopes. In one of these conversations, he recalls his own efforts in the 1930s when he desperately tried to convince first his editors, and later the public, of the dangers of fascism and the inevitability of war. Few would listen. One of the passengers, a spinster, tells her story of seeking independence from a world dominated by men. There's also the case of a doctor who is banished for using unacceptable methods. David has given up on life, but the imaginary passengers give him hope for the future.

A playboy drops his many girlfriends when he falls in love with a grounded angel.

A young girl's parents are killed on a tropical island, and the girl is raised and protected by the jungle animals. When she is found, as a grown woman, she is taken back to the United States to claim her inheritance. There are several people, with vested interests, who stand to gain something if she is shown not to be the missing heir.

Kenneth Anger plays a "chosen adolescent" who is elected to be sent on a trip to Mars in a rocket. He awakes in a Martian maze only to find that he not the first to arrive from Earth, as evidenced by the human bones littered about. Although circulated on 16 mm through 1967, Anger then withdrew Prisoner of Mars. It is possible that the film no longer exists, but it may be among a few extant titles that Anger has stated he prefers not to show. This science-fiction drama was particularly interesting, as it was a structured as a serial chapter, and made use of miniatures and models.