Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them [Review]

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J.K Rowling has quite a hold on us. Her words are pools of escapism into which we dive, exploring her wizarding world of endearing heroes and terrible villains. It has the essence of the 'Harry is schizophrenic' theory; our thoughts of granduer being when we elevate ourselves to Harry's position. I mean, we were all there when he caught his first snitch, when he and Cedric won the Triwizard Tournament, and of course, when he defeated Voldemort. Now she has done it again. In Fantastic Beasts, we follow the socially-awkward Newt Scamander (Eddie Redmayne) into New York's magical wilderness, alongside his briefcase of mischievous beasts...

The structure of the film is very similar to early Potter. The audience are led on the main quest of collecting Newt's missing beasts, diverting our attention from the key issue of tracking down dark wizard Grindelwald, who we find out has assumed the identity of Mr Graves. This reveal had me a little dissapointed. This saga hasn't been one for predictability, but they had the same hairstyle, and his last name is Graves - it couldn't really be more obvious. The importance of Grindelwald also struck me as somewhat confusing; I wish they had touched on his gravitas more throughout the 8 Potter films so the danger surrounding him could be highlighted further. Having said that, they sure know how to pick 'em - I had no idea Johnny Depp was going to be involved! If just for his undeniably intriguing take on the role, I'm excited to see how this character will develop in the future. 

Any keen Potter fan like me would be more than satisfied with the amount of Harry Potter 'Easter Eggs', scattered throughout the film. From the mentioning of Lestrange and Dumbledore, to Newt's Hufflepuff scarf and the Deathly Hallows pendant, there were references galore. Nonetheless, Fantastic Beasts is still very much a film in its own right. Plus, the special effects were incredible, the scenes within the briefcase most prolific. 

Essentially, the film traces a selection of outcasts - Newt (the bumbling Brit in NYC), Jacob (the muggle, or non-mag), Credence (the oppressed wizard) and Grindelwald (the shunned dark wizard) - on a mission to find their place in the world. This brings a fantasy film down to a very relatable, very human level. The film's greatest asset comes in the way this is metaphorically represented in an enchanting battle for various desires, and reflects the very real issues of the muggle world today.

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