Published: June 4, 2024 | Last Updated: June 13, 2025
What is Magical realism? Definition & Meaning
Magical realism is a style found in painting, literature, and film that shows impossible events as if they are part of normal life. The setting stays realistic. The magic is unexplained. Characters accept it without reaction. The term began in 1920s European art and later became known through Latin American fiction. It is used to show history, trauma, and belief without changing the structure of the real world.
Origins of Magical Realism
The term came from art critic Franz Roh in 1925. He used it to describe paintings that combined realistic detail with strange or surreal elements. These works showed ordinary subjects in precise detail but with subtle distortions or strange moods. The goal was not fantasy but to make the real world feel slightly unreal.
Artists like Alexander Kanoldt painted still lifes with elongated forms and sharp clarity. The space often feels frozen. The room looks real, but something about it seems off. This tension between realism and detachment defined the early visual version of magical realism.
H. R. Giger’s paintings mix human anatomy with machines in sterile, hyperreal space. His work became the design basis for Alien (1979, 20th Century Fox). The setting looks clinical. The shapes are real. But the feeling is impossible.
This kind of visual realism, combined with horror and dream logic, is a key aspect of how magical realism has influenced film design.
Magical Realism in Literature
This art movement stayed mostly in Europe but later influenced Latin American painters, writers, and illustrators.
Frida Kahlo used this style in her self-portraits. Her settings are grounded in real life, but the symbols (blood, plants, and animals) appear with no explanation. The body becomes part of the environment. The magic is personal and treated as fact.
In the 1940s, writers in Latin America adapted the idea for literature. They used it to mix local myths and political history. Gabriel García Márquez, Isabel Allende, and Jorge Luis Borges became key figures.
A good example is the novel One Hundred Years of Solitude (1967, Editorial Sudamericana), in which a woman floats into the sky while folding laundry. Her family continues eating. The magic is treated as part of daily life.
Key Traits of Magical Realism
The setting is realistic. The characters are ordinary people. The supernatural events are unexplained. There is no clear boundary between the magical and the real. Time often moves in loops or breaks from logic. The story may reflect political or historical trauma.
Magical realism is common in countries with histories of violence or censorship. Writers and directors use it to show memory, grief, or political silence. The unreal becomes a way to describe what facts cannot (a case in point is Pan’s Labyrinth below).
Examples of Magical Realism in Film
Magical realism in film shows unreal events without special effects or world-building. These events appear in familiar places. The tone stays quiet and grounded. The audience is not told to question what they see.
In Pan’s Labyrinth (2006, Warner Bros), a young girl meets a faun in post-civil war Spain. He gives her a series of tasks. She also witnesses violence in the real world. Both exist side by side.
Beasts of the Southern Wild (2012, Fox Searchlight) follows a girl named Hushpuppy in a Louisiana bayou. She talks to animals. Prehistoric creatures appear after a storm. These events are part of her world.
Like Water for Chocolate (1992, Miramax) shows food as a way to express emotion. A wedding cake causes everyone to cry. A dish leads to desire. These reactions are treated as normal.
Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives (2010, Strand Releasing) includes ghosts and spirit creatures. They join conversations without fear or surprise.
Comparing Magical Realism, Low Fantasy, and High Fantasy
Now, you might think that magical realism sounds a lot like low fantasy. Both happen in familiar worlds and reject epic fantasy tropes. But magical realism treats the unreal as part of reality. Low fantasy usually treats it as strange or disruptive.
Magical realism takes place in real locations. The magic happens without explanation. Characters accept it without surprise. The story stays focused on daily life. Magical realism avoids plot logic and world-building. It uses magic to reflect memory, trauma, or belief. The events are strange, but the tone stays quiet and controlled.
Low fantasy also uses real-world settings, but the magic is treated as unusual. Characters notice it. The tone often feels eerie or strange.
High fantasy creates a new world with its own rules. Magic is expected and often explained. The story usually follows a large-scale conflict or quest.
Below, I’ve created a table to show the differences:
| Trait | Magical Realism | Low Fantasy | High Fantasy |
|---|---|---|---|
| Setting | Real world, unchanged | Real world, touched by magic | Fully invented world |
| Magic | Unexplained and accepted | Hidden or disruptive | Explained and central |
| Reaction to Magic | No one questions it | Characters are surprised or afraid | Magic is powerful and structured |
| Tone | Quiet, grounded | Strange or mysterious | Epic and mythic |
| Character Type | Everyday people | Often unaware or reluctant | Heroes, rulers, chosen ones |
| Purpose | Reveal hidden truths or trauma | Explore mystery or fear of the unknown | Fight evil, fulfill prophecy |
| Examples | Pan’s Labyrinth (2006, Warner Bros) Uncle Boonmee (2010, Strand Releasing) Like Water for Chocolate (1992, Miramax) | The Sixth Sense (1999, Hollywood Pictures) Let the Right One In (2008, Magnet Releasing) Edward Scissorhands (1990, 20th Century Fox) | The Lord of the Rings (2001–2003, New Line) Game of Thrones (2011–2019, HBO) Harry Potter (2001–2011, Warner Bros) |
Read more about the differences between low fantasy and high fantasy in movies.
Summing Up
Magical realism shows supernatural events inside real settings. It avoids spectacle and treats the strange as ordinary. Films like Pan’s Labyrinth (2006, Warner Bros), Beasts of the Southern Wild (2012, Fox Searchlight), and Like Water for Chocolate (1992, Miramax) use this style to explore memory, trauma, and belief. The world stays familiar, but something in it has changed.
Read Next: Curious how art movements shaped film?
Explore our full Visual Art Timeline to see how styles like Surrealism, Cubism, and Suprematism influenced cinema’s most experimental moments.
Or keep browsing our Film Movements & World Cinema section for more on the histories that shaped screen culture around the globe.
