Connor Macgregor Reviews...Fantastic Beasts & Where To Find Them
And people said that JK Rowling was done with Potter. The writing's been on the wall for years that JK wasn't satisfied. And this new series of films will take her wizarding world in an entirely new direction.
The year is 1926 and Newt Scamander has just completed a global excursion to find and document an extraordinary array of magical creatures. Arriving in New York for a brief stopover, he might have come and gone without incident...were it not for a No-Maj (American for Muggle) named Jacob, a misplaced magical case, and the escape of some of Newt's fantastic beasts, which could spell trouble for both the wizarding and No-Maj worlds.
The Wizarding World is rejuvenated in this spin off film, set in the 20s. Magical society is still hidden, but under different circumstances. The film overall moves nicely, and is a lot lighter than David Yates's other hits as director of Potter. However it lacks the majesty and magical feel the Harry Potter series really nailed. The positives are strong however; The Main four are strong and have terrific chemistry. Eddie Redmayne nails the lead role perfectly as Newt. He's geekish, but brave at the right moments. His curiosity for magical creatures really shows, as well as care and love for weird, wondrous things. Dan Fogler as Jacob is also very good; A different muggle character from what you're used to in this world. Curious, in disbelief, but reacts well and fast to the events taking place. The two females are also very good. Katherine Waterston as Tina is great. Not as flashy as some of Rowling's other female characters, but definitely still crucial and great to watch on screen. Lastly is Alison Sudol as Queenie, who is a very quirky but charming character. She plays an important role in the team, and develops a real interest in Jacob. Lastly I want to talk about Colin Farell as Graves. I thought his character was really interesting as well as being very secretive. I won't reveal spoilers, other than he's something hiding a fair amount of secrets.
Another thing to note is the visuals. They exceed the potter effects by a large margin, and actually retain some aspects of magical wonder lost in the darker editions of the potter series. The design of the beasts and birds throughout the film are gorgeous and certainly worthy of an oscar nomination, perhaps even a win. One negative however is David Yates. I think compared to other potter directors, he's the weakest one, strengthened only by good source material. But I went and rewatched a selection of the potter films (Goblet Of Fire to Deathly Hallows II) and Order Of The Phoenix really stands out in a bad way. Yates's camera work isn't very remarkable, and some of the performances in his films aren't that strong, if not kind of bad. A nitpick, but still one to note.
Overall, Fantastic Beasts is a good entertaining film with strong visuals, new interesting characters, setting the story for new wizarding adventure.
Rating - 85% - A-