Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them

First of all I have to confess I could not be a bigger Harry Potter fan, but I will do my best and appear unbiased when reviewing the newest installment in the Wizarding World: Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them.

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them is a spinoff from the Harry Potter novels, specifically based on the author of the magical animal encyclopedia Harry and his friends use in school. The story centers on Newt Scamander (Eddie Redmayne), a magic zoologist who arrives in 1920s New York City with a case full of magical creatures. After a series of unlikely events, however, many beasts escape from his suitcase ensuing in Scamander and some unlikely friends like the No-Maj (non-magic person) Jacob (Dan Folger) and the witch sisters Tina (Katherine Waterston) and Marie Lou (Samantha Morton) help him on this new adventure.

The film is the first screenplay from Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling, and she does an incredible job. There is enough fan service to please the most obsessed Potter fans, but the film works well also as a blockbuster with no real prior knowledge needed to enjoy it. Thankfully, the humorous tone from the Potter books is kept in this film, which is something that had been fading away in the Harry Potter films. The movie really enjoys taking its time to stroll around its expanding universe with an immense array of new characters, creatures, and terms. However, in taking so much time to showcase the new world, the pace ends up becoming a bit sluggish and the barrage of introductions is a bit overwhelming. In fact the film really only serves as an introduction from beginning to end, with no significant character development, even if the characters themselves are incredibly unique and distinctive from the get-go.

The arranged cast is incredibly impressive; Eddie Redmayne charms us all, as always. Dan Folger was also a standout, in a Ron-like role to provide solid comic relief. And then there were some sizeable names such as Jon Voight, Nick Nolte, Ezra Miller, and Colin Farrell who does a great job as a dodgy authority figure.

The film is said to be one of five in this Fantastic Beasts series, I certainly came out hopeful from this film; the tone, cast, and ambition for this new universe is there, and this individual film itself was a solid entertainment piece to appease both Muggles and Wizards alike.

7.4/10