I love you, Newt.
I am of course referring to Newt Scamander, the magizoologist who brought his case of magical creatures into a late 1920s New York City. When his case is accidentally taken by a No-maj (the extremely less cool term for non magic folk that Americans use) some of his fantastic creatures escape and threaten to expose the magical community in New York. Newt's arrival comes at the worst time, as a "Second Salem" era is erupting in which the No-maj population are becoming increasingly aware that there are witches and wizards among them. With the help of Tina, an ex-Aura, her sister, and the No-maj that opened the case, Newt sets out to retrieve his magical creatures and prove that they are not responsible for the unknown terror that is attacking the city.
This movie was unlike any previous Harry Potter film. That is because it is not a Harry Potter film. Before seeing it I was worried that the film's makers would try to tieFantastic Beasts to the Harry Potter movies with too many painfully obvious Easter eggs. I was relieved to see that the connections made to the Harry Potter Universe we all know and love were extremely subtle and tasteful. The characters even show a bit of rivalry between the American Wizarding school and Hogwarts (Go Hogwarts!). The main antagonist is what most directly connects the two film series. Gellert Grindelwald is the evil wizard at large during the time of the movie, played by an almost unrecognizable Johnny Depp. I am sure that most of you are familiar with Grindelwald, but for those who need a refresher, he is the wizard that Dumbledor won the Elder Wand from...I will leave it at that...
The film stood apart from the Harry Potter series with its beautiful creatures, detailed settings of New York, and less than personable main character. Newt Scamander is no Harry Potter. He is a quiet and quirky, yet brave and compassionate with the simple goal to protect his creatures and those who are unable to defend themselves. Newt is lovable, and there could be no better actor to portray him than Eddie Redmayne. I felt a real connection to Newt, and that connection became stronger as the story progressed and I learned of his backstory and motives.
I wish that I could say the same thing for the female lead. The character's name is Tina Goldstein and there were just simply too many unanswered questions about her for me to have any real connection with her. She was flat and had a one track mind during the first half of the movie until she realized that she was wrong and a bigger plot was afoot. Despite her revelation, she still came off as an uninteresting witch with a cloud hanging over her head, though perhaps more light will be shed on her troubled past in future movies. We have certainly not seen the last of her. Where will the next film take place? Will she travel to London to find Newt or will he return to America? If you are a reader interested in possible spoilers, simply google her full name, Porpentina Goldstein, to clear up a couple of lingering questions...
Though "Fantastic Beasts" has a lot of funny, charming, and adorable elements ( I am talking about the creatures), it is by no means void of the darkness that defined the tone of the later Harry Potter films. I will not say what exactly made the film dark, but I will say that Ezra Miller's character, Credence, is extremely creepy. He sulks around with the Second Salem folk and lingers in dark allies longer than any normal person would. I was a little concerned for my nine-year-old brother to see it, but apparently, he was preoccupied with one of the cute creatures and wasn't too fazed by Credence's antics or his haircut.
Overall this film was everything I wanted it to be. It brought me back into the Wizarding World with eyes full of wonder, just like they were when I saw Harry Potter for the first time. "Fantastic Beasts" is a wonderful family movie with something for everyone to love. Now, if you all will excuse me I must get some tickets to Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure in order to buy stuffed animal versions of all of Newt's fantastic magical creatures. Hopefully, they don't try and escape from my suitcase...
