Tarot has been with us for centuries. It has become part of different aspects of life, including cinematography. Offering an insight into the unknown, tarot decks help a lot when it comes to making life-changing decisions, finding answers to the why questions, and (as it turns out!) spending a movie night solo or with family and friends. Today, we offer top picks in the world of films with stories that are centered on tarot cards. Enjoy!
#1 Live and Let Die (1973)
If you’re a fan of James Bond’s world, this movie guarantees a good time. This episode of the 007 franchise shows you some mysterious deaths of several British agents. All of them have been murdered. It is, of course, James Bond who is supposed to investigate the mysterious murders in New Orleans. On the screen, you see a tarot card reader, Solitaire (virtuously played by Jane Seymour). She is a psychic using the tarot cards to guide the plans of Agent 007 and the villain. It is due to the tarot decks that this part of Bondiana blends mysticism and suspense to add extra tension to the plot and tickle your nerves.
#2 Exorcist III (1990)
If you’re into classy horror, here’s the option – Exorcist III – with the Giant Rider-Waite deck in the center. The supernatural psychological fright flick involves The Death, The Devil, and The Tower card. Above all, we see Patrick Ewing as the Angel of Death. He slaps the cards to the bed where one of the characters was killed just before.
#3 The Ninth Gate (1999)
One of the works of a well-known Roman Polanski. The darker-than-the-dark thriller tells the story of a rare book dealer portrayed by Johnny Depp. The movie does not really center on the tarot cards; however, it features the man entangled in the occult texts with all the symbols of esoteric and various elements that expressly remind us of tarot.
#4 Monster-in-law (2005)
The love life of the main character, Charlie (Jennifer Lopez), goes down until…she meets Dr. Kevin Fields (Michael Vartan). The girl is totally smitten! He’s the perfect man for her, so Charlie is happy to say yes when the will-you-marry-me question pops up. Too good to be true? Sooner than you know, a merciless potential mother-in-law comes on stage. Viola (Jane Fonda) is there, willing to protect her son from a new family member. Besides, the monster mother-in-law has just lost her job, which means the evil power doubles. Where’s the tarot, you may ask? One of Charlie’s best friends, Morgan, reads and interprets the cards for her. And exactly in the tarot deck, the girl sees a special man to appear in Charlie’s life.
#5 V for Vendetta (2005)
Remember the good old Hollywood vigilante known only as V? Created by Lana and Lilly Wachowski, this classy dystopia shows Great Britain that had turned into a fascist land. A revenge tragedy character in a mask fights against the oppressive government of neo-fascist Great Britain. Known only as “V,” the mysterious anarchist saves a young woman from the hands of the police. However, the vigilante soon realizes that the one he rescued is about to become his partner in his guerrilla. Great adaptation of the Vertigo comic shows the tarot cards framing the themes of rebellion and fate in this wonderfully-paced film. You see how Evey Hammond (Natalie Portman) encounters tarot card reading on the screen. The practice alludes to the disorder in society that is caused by the mysterious person who stands behind the “V.”
#6 The Red Violin
The number six position in our hit parade belongs to the work of François Girard – The Red Violin. The movie is centered on music (Girard is known to have a long-lasting desire to create a motion picture about that!). Every chapter of the movie unfolds as a fortune teller, Cesca, pulls out a new tarot card in order to foretell the future of the unborn baby of her master, Anna Bussotti. Anna is pregnant with the child of her husband, a violin maker – Nicolò Bussotti. Since the fortune-teller can’t read the future of Anna’s baby because it’s unborn, she decides to share Anna’s future instead. The old fortune teller draws The Moon card, which means Anna is going to live a long and happy life. At the same time, Anna’s husband is engaged in a new violin handicraft. It is time to varnish the beautiful instrument; however, the violin maker finds out that his wife and the baby are dead. Grief-stricken, Nicolò Bussotti is on his way to his shop, where he chooses a red color to varnish the instrument. This red violin is going to be the last he ever makes, while the viewers start following the extraordinary journey of the instrument in Austria, Vienna, Oxford, and so on…
#7 Venus and Mars (2001)
Kay is 26 years old, and it’s time for the young woman to come back to her hometown after some years of absence. The reason for the comeback is tragic – her soccer coach passed away. That’s why all team girls go to the funeral to say goodbye to the trainer. Kay listens to the stories that girls share and is sure about something she’s known for long – when in love, you are unhappy. Emily, Kay’s mom, uses tarot cards to make some predictions for her daughter and her friend. The woman says that when Mars lines up with Venus, her girl will meet her perfect man. Needless to say, unexpected adventures kick in when a mysterious American pops up on the screen.
It’s show time!
Why should you put the above-mentioned movies on your list? Well. First of all, each motion picture is more than just another option to kill time on Saturday night. Each is a bag of palpable chemistry, quotable plots, symbols of deeper meaning, and twists. Whether you’re just at the beginning of your tarot journey or a real card guru like those guys at https://tarotatlas.com, you will be intrigued by the mystique each show brings. These films thrilled viewers from the minute they premiered. Each demonstrates the significant impact that the deck can make on a plot, characters, and storytelling in general.
