After Harry Potter the vast vacuum of magical fantasy stories was always missing in Hollywood and it was only time before the next series of films came by and who better than the Queen of Hogwarts herself could have penned a script for the kids. Fantastic Beasts is set as a prequel or rather a spin off from Harry Potter’s books, however the makers have already decided that this will be a five part film, so lots of magical twists and tales in the store indeed.
Set In 1926, Newt Scamander arrives in New York City on a secret assignment. Landing in the America for the first time, he doesn’t know anyone in the city, is unfamiliar with the local witches and wizards, and only vaguely knows their laws. What makes his situation even more risky is that he arrives with a suitcase full of magical creatures, all of which are illegal to possess in the United States. Somehow predictably you know what is going to happen next with a suitcase full of magical creatures. It doesn’t take long for one of the magical creatures to escape and wreak havoc in New York. As Newt pursues the creature through a bank, he meets Jacob Kowalski, a normal human (“No-Maj” as they call Muggles in the states) is amazed by the revelation that magic still exists. Newt also catches the attention of Porpentina Goldstein, an American witch and officer for the local magic regulators. But amid the chaos, more of the creatures escape.
As the regulator arrests Newt for his ever-increasing number of infractions, he suddenly gets blamed for an invisible monster rioting in the streets of the city. But Newt may be their only hope of reigning in the deadly menace as the rest of the movie ticks with a visual treat. There’s a lot going on in director David Yates’ camp who also helmed last few Potter movies and he certainly knows how to deal with magic and bring the book into a 2 hour screenplay. Skilled Potterverse veteran Yates was responsible for the darker movies in the original series and is the perfect fit here to create a firm foundation and greater scope for the upcoming series. It’s Rowling’s typical story-telling techniques that continue to amaze and many will respond to her latest densely packed fantasy landscape with the passion they originally embraced her Boy magician Potter.
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them is at its most fun when there are actually fantastic beasts on the screen. Each of them has distinctive personalities and striking designs that keep the timing very much engaging. When we finally get a chance to see what’s in Newt’s magical suitcase, it’s one of the most memorable scenes in all of the Harry Potter series of films, and surely Potter fans would be delighted for there is a lot of reference to the HP series, watch out for the surprises.
The problem with the movie is that it keeps trying to recreate the Harry Potter magic throughout and somehow appears it doesn’t innovates on its own. There is a fantastic script at disposal and with a title of Fantastic Beasts, they don’t come that often to fantasize and make extended cameo appearances only. If the series has to live longer and for other four parts as promised the audience especially the children should be shown some more innovation and comic portions to make it form a own legacy rather than thrive on Rowling’s previous HP movies.
Verdict: You can say all you want, but in the end the children will still enjoy the spectacular 3D version thoroughly for it serves the purpose of entertainment.
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