In 1920s New York, tensions are high between the magical and non-magical (called No-Majs) communities. The Magical Congress of the USA (MACUSA) is led by Seraphina Picquery (Ejogo) and have very strict rules to keep the No-Majs from discovering them. British wizard Newt Scamander (Redmayne) is traveling to Arizona, and arrives in New York with a suitcase full of unusual creatures. One of the creatures gets loose and he collides with No-Maj Jacob Kowalski (Fogler) while chasing the creature. In the collision, they trade suitcases. Newt is able to recover the creature, but his actions catch the attention of Porpentina Goldstein (Waterson), who works for the MACUSA, and takes him to her superiors.
Porpentina and Newt team up to find Jacob and the case. Jacob is stung by one of the creatures. They go back to Tina's apartment and meet her sister Queenie (Sudol), who immediately catches Jacob's eye. Jacob is introduced to the world of magic and agrees to help Newt find the rest of his missing creatures. Their plans put them in the cross-hairs of the MACUSA and Auror Percival Graves (Farrell). The MACUSA does not allow magical creatures. They are being plagued by a powerful creature and blame Newt.
Meanwhile, Mary Lou Barebone (Morton) leads the New Salem Philanthropic Society and speaks about the presence of magic in the world. She adopts orphan children and uses them to help spread the word. As the creature continues to plague the city, can Newt find it before the No-Maj's start a war with MACUSA?
J.K. Rowling created a world for her Harry Potter series. After the books and films ended, there were still characters left to explore, without returning to Harry and his friends. In 2001, Rowling wrote the textbook "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" that was used in the Potter series. In 2013 they decided to adapt the textbook and Newt's life/story (not in the book) to film, with Rowling writing the screenplay.
The story inhabits the same world as Potter, but 70 years earlier. This film is set in New York, which has a different set of names of the non-magic people and a different name for their magic leadership and school. It also shows some interesting creatures... the story is a little slow, despite all of the creatures. The characters are ok, but it takes time to like Eddie Redmayne's Newt. Dan Fogler is funny and interesting as Jacob, and reacts the way most people would in the situation. Katherine Waterson's Tina suffers from the same problems that plague Newt... it takes time to care about her. Alison Sudol is charming as Queenie. Carmen Ejogo is compelling as Seraphina, but I wish she was more involved. Percival Graves, as played by Colin Farrell, keeps you guessing. I assume this film will set up future films.
Director David Yates is no stranger to this world, previously directing 4 of the Harry Potter films: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2007), Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince (2009), Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 1 (2010), and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2 (2011). This film is the first in a series. They plan to make 5 films, with Yates set to direct the sequel.
It was ok, but not as good as it could be.
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (2016) 133 minutes
Rating: PG-13 for some fantasy action violence
Director: David Yates
Starring: Eddie Redmayne as Newt Scamander
Dan Fogler as Jacob Kowalski
Katherine Waterson as Tina Goldstein
Alison Sudol as Queenie Goldstein
Colin Farrell as Percival Graves
Carmen Ejogo as Seraphina Picquery
Ezra Miller as Credence Barebone
Samantha Morton as Mary Lou Barebone
Ron Perlman as Gnarlack
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