When comedies fail to make you laugh, and dramas hit too close to home --or not close enough--consider the fantasy genre as a way to enjoy a movie. Harry Potter mania has subsided--for now--but the feature film " Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" comes out next year. In the meantime, explore on VHS and DVD some of these fantasies suitable for family viewing. "The Ruby Princess Runs Away" (Blackboard Entertainment) is a live-action fairy tale based on Scholastic's "Jewel Kingdom" book series. It was released last month on VHS ($15) and DVD ($20). PBS' "Dragon Tales" series (Columbia TriStar; VHS $13, DVD $25) recently released four VHS episodes and a DVD. "Dragon Tales" and "Ruby Princess" offer children worthy escapes into a world of dragons and magic spells. Other recent video releases include: "Bear in the Big Blue House: Halloween & Thanksgiving" and "Bear in the Big Blue House: A Berry Bear Christmas" (Jim Henson Home Entertainment, $13 each); and "The Miracle Maker: The Story of Jesus," (Family Home Entertainment, $20 for VHS or DVD.)

While it's great to discover new offerings in the fantasy genre, let's not forget the classics like "The Wizard of Oz" (1939), based on the tome by Frank L. Baum, Disney's "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang" (1968) with Dick van Dyke, Sally Ann Howes, Lionel Jeffries and Benny Hill, and "ET: The Extraterrestrial" (1982). The world of wizards and dragons provides rich fodder for film and video classics, from "The Reluctant Dragon" (1941, Walt Disney Home Video), "The Sword & the Dragon" (1956) and "Merlin of the Crystal Cave" (1991), a made-for-British-television story about Merlin as a young boy. The very cute "Dragonworld" (1994) shows 5-year-old Johnny in Scotland raising a baby dragon as his pet. When dragon Yowler grows up, Johnny loans his pet to an amusement park, only to learn the park's owner plans to keep Yowler. And don't forget "Pete's Dragon," (1977) a film that brilliantly combines the animated dragon Elliot with live actors, much like the ever-popular "Mary Poppins" (1964).

While not suitable for very young children, older kids and adults will enjoy "Dragonheart" (1996), with Sean Connery giving voice to the dragon, and Dennis Quaid as Knight Bowen; "Dragonslayer" (1981), with Peter MacNicol, Caitlin Clarke and Ralph Richardson, is very violent but has wonderful special effects. Lerner and Loewe's delightful musical "Camelot" (1967), with Richard Harris as King Arthur, Vanessa Redgrave as Guenevere and Franco Nero as Lancelot, focuses more on the love triangle than the wizardry of Merlin, as does the drama "First Knight" (1995) with Sean Connery, Richard Gere and Julia Ormond.

A much more fantastic and magical version of the Camelot story is "Excalibur" (1981), which explores the powers of Merlin and his wicked relatives, Morgan Le Fey and Mordred. "Sword of Lancelot" (1963) offers lots of sword fights and another view of the ancient legend, while "Sword of the Valiant" (1983) shows Sean Connery as The Green Knight challenging Gawain in Camelot.

There are two films titled "Merlin": 1992's version depicts present-day reporter Christy Lake (Nadia Cameron) discovering she's the daughter of Merlin the magician, reincarnated. Christy protects the Sword of Power from an evil sorcerer, with help from an ancient sage and a knight. The 1998 version was made for television and features Miranda Richardson as evil Queen Mab, Sam Neill as Merlin and Helena Bonham Carter as Morgan Le Fey. Martin Short, Isabella Rossellini, Rutger Hauer and Sir John Gielgud also are seen in this great presentation of the destruction of Camelot. "The Sword in the Stone" (1963, Disney) is an animated version of the first volume of T.H. White's "The Once and Future King" that depicts King Arthur as a boy being taught the ways of the world by Merlin the Magician and Archimedes the Owl.

Those who like stories of princes and princesses will love "The Princess Bride" (1987), a fabulous story starring Robin Wright Penn as the title character, Cary Elwes as her star-crossed love, and great cameos with such heavyweights as Billy Crystal, Carol Kane, Peter Falk and Mandy Patinkin. "Faerie Tale Theatre" offers a great re-telling of "The Princess and the Pea" (1983), starring Liza Minnelli as the hypersensitive princess.

Don't miss "The Last Unicorn," (1982) with the voices of Alan Arkin, Angela Lansbury, Jeff Bridges and Mia Farrow, and "The Swan Princess" (1994), an animated story based on Swan Lake, where Princess Odette, tired of being seen as just a pretty face by Prince Derek, runs away and is kidnapped by Rothbart the wizard. Rothbart turns Odette into a swan who can return to human form only in the moonlight. Prince Derek learns political correctness, and music sung by the likes of Liz Callaway (daughter of Chicago journalist John Callaway) is fabulous. "The Swan" (1956) stars real-life Princess Grace Kelly in her second-to-last performance before becoming the bride of Prince Rainier of Monaco. The laserdisc release of this romantic fantasy includes the news short "Wedding in Monaco," showing Kelly's royal wedding.

Another great film that uses the princess-becomes-a-bird-and-can't-marry-prince is "Ladyhawke" (1985) with Michelle Pfeiffer and Rutger Hauer as the lovers and Matthew Broderick as the pickpocket who struggles to reunite the pair. "The Adventures of Baron Munchausen" (1989), from director Terry Gilliam, who also brought us "Time Bandits," is a can't-miss, along with 1985's "Cocoon" with an all-star cast of seniors including Gwen Verdon, Maureen Stapleton, Wilford Brimley and husband and wife pair Hume Cronyn and Jessica Tandy. " The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe" (1988, BBC & WonderWorks), based on the "Chronicles of Narnia" by C.S. Lewis, offers a delightful escape into the wintry world found through the back of an antique armoire.

Jonathan Swift's tale of Gulliver's Travels has spawned several film and television versions by the same name now available on video, including 1939, 1977 and the epic 1995 made-for-television mini-series with Ted Danson and real-life wife Mary Steenburgen as Mrs. Gulliver. The latter has an all-star cast, which features Peter O'Toole, Ned Beatty, Alfre Woodard, Geraldine Chaplin, Omar Sharif, John Gielgud and "The English Patient's" Kristin Scott Thomas.

Time travel is another fun subject of fantasy films, as depicted in three different versions of "A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court," the best of which are the 1931 entry with Will Rogers, Myrna Loy and Maureen O'Sullivan, and the 1949 presentation, with Bing Crosby and Rhonda Fleming performing in the musical rendition. "Kids of the Round Table" (1996) is another offering that shows present-day children pretending to be King Arthur and his knights, discovering the Excalibur sword that summons Merlin (Malcolm McDowell). "Time After Time" (1979) stars Malcolm McDowell as H.G. Wells, who uses his time machine to chase and capture Jack the Ripper in modern San Francisco. This film is also too violent for young children, but 1960's "The Time Machine" covers H.G. Wells' story with less blood and more great special effects.

On a more romantic note, Christopher Reeve travels back in time to meet a woman, played by Jane Seymour, whose portrait has captivated Reeve in "Somewhere in Time" (1980). This is a sweet love story suitable for a general audience --and just released on DVD. One can't cover science-fiction fantasies without a mention of the "Star Wars" series, but there also are other lesser-known titles worth a trip to the video store. "Labyrinth" (1986) stars David Bowie and Jim Henson's Muppets in a marvelous tale about a baby-sitting teen who wishes her young brother would just disappear. Bowie's Wizard obliges her and the Muppets help the teen solve the Labyrinth in time to save her charge. Another must-see in this category is "The Never Ending Story" (1984), with terrific effects, about a lonely boy who saves the fantasy world within his favorite book with the help of a warrior.