- Genre Fantasy
- Director David Yates
- Producer J. K. Rowling
- Actors Eddie Redmayne, Katherine Waterston, Dan Fogler, Alison Sudol, Ezra Miller, Colin Farrell
- Reviewed on Cinema (3D)
- Available on Cinema (2D)
- Air Date 2016-11-25
- TheStrangerHAZ
- Published November 24, 2016
-
Fantasy and Sci-fi both hold a special place in heart. If you were to ask which I hold more dearly, I probably wouldn’t be able to give you a straight answer. As such I’d always been an avid follower of the Harry Potter series of movies (not the books however, personally I think there’s much better fantasy novellas out there). I thoroughly enjoyed the series’ premise more and more as it reached its conclusion. You see, dear reader, there is an inherent lack of dark fantasy throughout film and Harry Potter not only gave us the light hearted fun of being a wizard but also evoked a very real fear of what the dark held. Naturally when I’d heard about more entries into this universe, I was first in line to check them out.
Today’s review is Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them .
The film’s entire premise is based on the creatures of the wizarding world, which are both beautiful and terrifying (Dementors am I right?).
The Lead
Our protagonist is Newt Scamander, a British wizard on his way to New York for reasons unbeknownst to us (for a short while at least). Newt is a chronicler of the beasts of this world; a role which, surprisingly, nobody has done before and is a gentle soul more in tune with the needs of animals than of people. This makes him slightly awkward…in a fun way.
Eddie Redmayne’s performance in this role was amazing, just as he was in the Theory of Everything. Honestly I don’t have any faults in that regard. His loveable, awkward and funny portrayal of Newt felt right at home with the character they were going for.
The actors played their roles fantastically, with one in particular being a complete surprise in the final act of the movie.
The World
This is no longer a tale of the English countryside but rather of a 1920’s United States. A New York City not only going through a period of industrial change but also of a magical one. A crazed wizard used magical beasts to do massive damage to this country and others just a few short years before (a rather interesting take on WWI) which has resulted in the ban on the ownership of magical beasts in the US. This ban was instituted and enforced by the Magical Congress of the United States of America who are also responsible for governing the magical world in the US.
The world itself is still one coming to grips with the effects of a massive war and the true destruction a wizard can create. One where fear holds larger sway than reason and tolerance.
The Story
Like most of the early Potter movies, Fantastic Beasts starts off with a very light-hearted and almost whimsical atmosphere, soon to be followed by an incredibly dark and serious tone that deals with some heavy subject matter. This feeling doesn’t stay long however as even in the middle of these moments, there is often a piece of comic relief to cut the tension. I must admit that I did find the build-up to this point in the movie to be somewhat bland, I wanted to know more about Newt and his creatures specifically, which takes a while to get to.
After that point however, I felt like the movie just kept getting more and more interesting!
The Cinematography and effects
This is something I must give props to Fantastic Beasts for, the effects looked absolutely gorgeous. Seeing someone evaporate is nothing new but mannnnn have they upped the budget on that CGI. Without spoiling anything, there is a “certain something” apparent later in the movie that is absolute eye-candy (you’ll understand after you see it) and honestly I have no faults to give on this front.
Fantasy and Sci-fi both hold a special place in heart. If you were to ask which I hold more dearly, I probably wouldn’t be able to give you a straight answer. As such I’d always been an avid follower of the Harry Potter series of movies (not the books however, personally I think there’s much better fantasy novellas out there). I thoroughly enjoyed the series’ premise more and more as it reached its conclusion. You see, dear reader, there is an inherent lack of dark fantasy throughout film and Harry Potter not only gave us the light hearted fun of being a wizard but also evoked a very real fear of what the dark held. Naturally when I’d heard about more entries into this universe, I was first in line to check them out. Today's review is Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. The film’s entire premise is based on the creatures of the wizarding world, which are both beautiful and terrifying (Dementors am I right?). The Lead Our protagonist is Newt Scamander, a British wizard on his way to New York for reasons unbeknownst to us (for a short while at least). Newt is a chronicler of the beasts of this world; a role which, surprisingly, nobody has done before and is a gentle soul more in tune with the needs of animals than of people. This makes him slightly awkward...in a fun way. Eddie Redmayne’s performance in this role was amazing, just as he was in the Theory of Everything. Honestly I don’t have any faults in that regard. His loveable, awkward and funny portrayal of Newt felt right at home with the character they were going for. The actors played their roles fantastically, with one in particular being a complete surprise in the final act of the movie. The World This is no longer a tale of the English countryside but rather of a 1920’s United States. A New York City not only going through a period of industrial change but also of a magical one. A crazed wizard used magical beasts to do massive damage to this country and others just a few short years before (a rather interesting take on WWI) which has resulted in the ban on the ownership of magical beasts in the US. This ban was instituted and enforced by the Magical Congress of the United States of America who are also responsible for governing the magical world in the US. The world itself is still one coming to grips with the effects of a massive war and the true destruction a wizard can create. One where fear holds larger sway than reason and tolerance. The Story Like most of the early Potter movies, Fantastic Beasts starts off with a very light-hearted and almost whimsical atmosphere, soon to be followed by an incredibly dark and serious tone that deals with some heavy subject matter. This feeling doesn’t stay long however as even in the middle of these moments, there is often…
Movie Review: Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
Movie Review: Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
2016-11-24
TheStrangerHAZ
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
Total - 8
80
8
Fantastic beasts and where to find them is quite simply, a very good movie. The story, although somewhat slow to start, gains momentum quickly and doesn’t stop. If you enjoy fantasy, you’ll like this movie. If you’re a fan of the series, you will love it
User Rating: 4.43 ( 3 votes)
8
The following two tabs change content below. - Bio
- Latest Posts
TheStrangerHAZ
Tech Editor / Gaming Author at Geek Node
Gamer, programmer and pc masterrace-er, my heart has pumped all things digital for longer than I can remember. I firmly believe that if you want to see the best of human ingenuity and passion, you need not look further than your local group of gamers.
Geek Node is a volunteer-run publication. If you like this writer's work, please consider supporting them by giving them a tip. How do tips work?
R
Latest posts by TheStrangerHAZ ( see all )
- Tech Review: Logitech G910 Orion Spectrum Mechanical Keyboard - March 22, 2017
- Video Game Previews: Preview: Conan Exiles - March 14, 2017
- Tech Review: Razer BlackWidow Chroma V2 - March 3, 2017
- Event: Nintendo Switch Pre-Release Event - February 28, 2017
- Tech Review: Audio-Technica ATH-PG1 and ATH-PDG1 Cross-Platform Headsets - December 12, 2016
Article Tags: fantastic beasts and where to find them · Fantastic Beasts Review · featured · House elves don't deserve this · Movie Review
Article Categories: Movie Reviews