Concerning Wizards
These are tough times for Wizards in pop-culture. A certain franchise would have the public believe that wizards are boring old humans who go to crowded magic schools, solve their everyday problems by zapping them with magic wands, marry their High school sweethearts (what a horrible message to send to young people), and fight each other by standing stock still and shooting CGI lightning at each other (at that point, why don't you just buy a gun?).
This is wish fulfillment; 'maybe you're a wizard, maybe your unsolicited acceptance letter to Hogfarts will arrive tomorrow, maybe there's a secret passage to a hidden world of wonders in your boring town, maybe you can easily zap all your real world problems away'. But a proper wizard isn't necessarily something you'd want to be.
A true movie Wizard will meet most of these criteria
1. A wizard wanders. Whether it's around the countryside or between dimensions, a wizard has no home and spends all their time traveling, helping others, reading ancient runes, and communing with plants and animals in nature. Therefore, a wizard doesn't have possessions. Maybe a staff, maybe not.
2. A wizard is not a main character, a wizard can only be a supporting character. We do not follow the wizard when they're by themselves and their main contribution to the film is giving the protagonist sage advice. A wizarding apprentice can be our main character (Luke Skywalker, Galen Bradwarden) but if they ever master their craft, they must become a mentor figure to new protagonists (Luke in the sequel trilogy).
3. A wizard only uses magic in extreme circumstances (life and death situations). A Wizard does not walk around solving all their problems by zapping them.
4. A wizard does not perform magic, a wizard is magic. They don't say magic words or have magical items, when circumstances dictate the use of magic they can bend fate and the elements by sheer force of will. Because...
5. A wizard is not human. Assuming they ever were (Gandalf and Saruman never were), wizards are no longer relatable, understandable mortals. A wizard has (sometimes unwillingly) seen things humans weren't meant to see and they know things humans weren't meant to know and they've ceased to have normal human concerns. If they lust, eat, smoke, or sleep it is shown to be odd and other (Merlin sleeps for nine months, Gandalf sleeps with his eyes open).
6. While Wizards don't use magical items themselves, they have been known to create items and give them to others. Good wizards may give a protagonist a magical item they can use in their quest, evil wizards may create magical items to trap/control/drain-the-life-from people.
7. A wizard is impossibly old. Their aging process has either stopped or slowed to a crawl.
8. A wizard is humble and seeks no reward or glory. They will travel under numerous names and titles (sometimes presenting themselves as being weak and indigent) and will often wander off when the quest is completed to avoid any credit for their contribution (evil wizard Randall Flagg also goes by many names but when he wanders off at the end of his missions, it is to avoid blame)
9. Having lived so long and traveled so much, a wizard is well connected and knows everything about their world. The people, the customs, the geography, the dangers.
Note: Evil Wizards can bend these rules. They are not supporting characters but Antagonists and, as such, an evil wizard can have scenes to themselves. Also, evil wizards are not shown to have any kinship with nature and they can live in an evil lair (Orthanc, The Mountain of Power). ...And obviously they don't help people.
These rules are what separate the wizard from the sorcerer/sorceress, who are humans that perform magic (reading spells from a dusty tome and using amulets or potions), who can have a home (often a castle), can have a dayjob (often being an evil king/queen), can have a spouse and a family. A female wizard is simply a wizard (I apologize that there are so few examples here) and absolutely not a Witch.
Here I've listed some of the best movie wizards. The good, the bad, and those that scoff at human notions of good and bad.
This is wish fulfillment; 'maybe you're a wizard, maybe your unsolicited acceptance letter to Hogfarts will arrive tomorrow, maybe there's a secret passage to a hidden world of wonders in your boring town, maybe you can easily zap all your real world problems away'. But a proper wizard isn't necessarily something you'd want to be.
A true movie Wizard will meet most of these criteria
1. A wizard wanders. Whether it's around the countryside or between dimensions, a wizard has no home and spends all their time traveling, helping others, reading ancient runes, and communing with plants and animals in nature. Therefore, a wizard doesn't have possessions. Maybe a staff, maybe not.
2. A wizard is not a main character, a wizard can only be a supporting character. We do not follow the wizard when they're by themselves and their main contribution to the film is giving the protagonist sage advice. A wizarding apprentice can be our main character (Luke Skywalker, Galen Bradwarden) but if they ever master their craft, they must become a mentor figure to new protagonists (Luke in the sequel trilogy).
3. A wizard only uses magic in extreme circumstances (life and death situations). A Wizard does not walk around solving all their problems by zapping them.
4. A wizard does not perform magic, a wizard is magic. They don't say magic words or have magical items, when circumstances dictate the use of magic they can bend fate and the elements by sheer force of will. Because...
5. A wizard is not human. Assuming they ever were (Gandalf and Saruman never were), wizards are no longer relatable, understandable mortals. A wizard has (sometimes unwillingly) seen things humans weren't meant to see and they know things humans weren't meant to know and they've ceased to have normal human concerns. If they lust, eat, smoke, or sleep it is shown to be odd and other (Merlin sleeps for nine months, Gandalf sleeps with his eyes open).
6. While Wizards don't use magical items themselves, they have been known to create items and give them to others. Good wizards may give a protagonist a magical item they can use in their quest, evil wizards may create magical items to trap/control/drain-the-life-from people.
7. A wizard is impossibly old. Their aging process has either stopped or slowed to a crawl.
8. A wizard is humble and seeks no reward or glory. They will travel under numerous names and titles (sometimes presenting themselves as being weak and indigent) and will often wander off when the quest is completed to avoid any credit for their contribution (evil wizard Randall Flagg also goes by many names but when he wanders off at the end of his missions, it is to avoid blame)
9. Having lived so long and traveled so much, a wizard is well connected and knows everything about their world. The people, the customs, the geography, the dangers.
Note: Evil Wizards can bend these rules. They are not supporting characters but Antagonists and, as such, an evil wizard can have scenes to themselves. Also, evil wizards are not shown to have any kinship with nature and they can live in an evil lair (Orthanc, The Mountain of Power). ...And obviously they don't help people.
These rules are what separate the wizard from the sorcerer/sorceress, who are humans that perform magic (reading spells from a dusty tome and using amulets or potions), who can have a home (often a castle), can have a dayjob (often being an evil king/queen), can have a spouse and a family. A female wizard is simply a wizard (I apologize that there are so few examples here) and absolutely not a Witch.
Here I've listed some of the best movie wizards. The good, the bad, and those that scoff at human notions of good and bad.
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