Which other scenes, except the horse in the swamp from 'Neverending Story', which TV Tropes lists as 'shout-out' anyway? And I think the Christian/pagan conflict might be a feature, not a bug. Lack of explanation as to how the world works -- oh yes, you're totally right on that one. Was that Dark Forest stuff magic or drugs? Is the Queen's mirror magic or self-delusion? Magic seems to exist, so these things are possible; but on the other hand, there is just enough of a hint at depth for it to be the other thing, too.