I was watching an episode of The Trews recently during which Russell Brand mentioned that the most popular movies at the box office last year were mainly science fiction or fantasy. He had some thoughts on why this was so and then proceeded to talk about escapism, personal faith and spirituality.  Now I didn’t necessarily agree with all his points and I don’t believe in his views on higher powers but I did concur with some of his ideas discussed. As a result of the subject being raised, I have pondered of late why the fantasy genre seems to dominate cinema (and television), literature and gaming. Is it simply a case of providing a narrative vehicle that is universally flexible and accommodating, or are their deeper psychological and sociological reasons.