By Paul Hall
Harry Potter took the world by storm with book sales and movie receipts that were out of this world. Now, J.K. Rowling has returned with the new film Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them that runs as a companion to the Potter series.
These are the adventures of Newt Scamander as played out on the streets of New York City. A seemingly simple man, Newt arrives in New York with an innocent-looking briefcase on a bit of a stopover to obtain a beast to add to his collection. Within the briefcase lies an entirely different world containing creatures that are a spectacle to see. But when he arrives in the city, some of the monsters in his case get free. He must try to recapture them as soon as possible.
In New York there is a dark force destroying everything in its path and threatening the wizarding community. A group of fanatics, the Second Salemers, seeks to expose the witches and wizards and eradicate them. All while it seems the powerful dark wizard Grindelwald is on the loose after wreaking havoc on Europe and is nowhere to be found.
When Newt arrives, he is oblivious to the other factors influencing the world around him. Porpentina Goldstein (Katherine Waterston) works for the MACUSA (Magical Congress of the United States of America) and is stuck registering wands in her lower-level office, but when she witnesses one of Newt’s creatures escape she sees an opportunity and tries to bring him in. Quickly she learns that her bosses are not interested and finds it easier to work with Newt and the No-Maj Jacob Kowalski (Dan Fogler) than to appease her superiors. There are deeper and darker forces at play — can everyone find their way out?
Talk about a movie I sat down wanting to like. Fantastic Beasts had all the hype one could imagine. Unfortunately, it left me wanting much more. Sure, fans of the Harry Potter films will enjoy the ride, and I did as a whole. But there were issues for me.
I didn’t like the casting of Eddie Redmayne. He is an unquestionable talent, but the role seemed even quirkier than it needed to be, though this is coming from someone who has not read the book. I liked Dan Fogler’s bumbling character and was a fan of Queenie as brought to life by Alison Sudol, while the rest of the casting was serviceable at the least.
The film seemed to struggle to find a tone. While the opening sequence is full of lighthearted whimsy and fun, a later sequence involving child abuse takes the film to a darker place. It felt clunky in the transition and the desire to be both lighthearted but still serious.
But the true magic here is in the sets. The look of a 20s-era New York was enthralling and a spectacle in and of itself.
Sure there were some fantastic beasts, but as a whole this film was neither fantastic nor a beast. As Chapter 1 for a new generation of wizards and witches, this is a nice first step, but there is a long way to go to cast the same spell on me that the Potter movies did.
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
Rated: PG-13
Stars: Eddie Redmayne, Katherine Waterston, Colin Farrell
Director: David Yates
Grade: B-
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