Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them

Harry Potter has become such a monolithic and divisive franchise at this point that it’s difficult for me to come to a solid conclusion on Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. I have been a fan of the books for most of my life, beginning when my teacher read them to my first grade class. “Nostalgic” doesn’t even begin to cover how I feel about this world. But despite that, I still believe Fantastic Beasts is a universally good movie, if a bit lopsided.

Taking place in 1926, the movie follows the misadventures of Newt Scamander (Eddie Redmayne), his non-magical acquaintance Jacob Kowalski (Dan Fogler), disgraced magical cop Tina Goldstein (Katherine Waterston), and her telepathic sister Queenie (Alison Sudol). Scamander is an eccentric, introverted magizoologist (like a regular zoologist, but for magical animals, obviously) from England recently arrived in New York with a mysterious enchanted suitcase and an even more mysterious agenda. He is quickly swept up in the local controversies, all revolving around recent attacks by a mysterious creature that threatens to put the magical and non-magical communities at war with one another, and must navigate the tense American magical landscape in order to save himself, his allies, the city of New York, and his animal companions from harm.

Now. If that sounds a little bit busy and unfocused to you, that’s because it is. Fantastic Beasts has a serious issue with structure. The entire first act consists of set-ups and leads that are so scattered, it’s difficult to piece together exactly why anything we’re seeing is important on any level. Act two and three manage to bring them closer and to a unified end, respectively, but that rocky start did not do the film any favors. Couple that with the fact that movie is unconcerned with explaining anything about this world (it assumes if you’re here, you’re already familiar with Harry Potter to a degree), and you get something that threatens to be nigh-incomprehensible.

There is, however, a key element that manages to save the film from its huge, glaring structural issue: the characters. This is a fun, well-rounded group of people that draw you in with completely relatable personal desires, as well as the brilliant subtleties the actors convey throughout. A stand-out performer is hard to pinpoint, but there are several candidates.

Starting from the top is Eddie Redmayne’s Newt Scamander. Redmayne’s quiet eccentricity is a refreshing change of pace for the usually boisterous eccentric hero we see in this sort of film. And that reserved energy lends itself to allow for a greater sharing of the spotlight. The non-magical Jacob Kowalski played by Dan Fogler threatens to steal every scene he’s in with his lovable nervous enthusiasm at everything magical going on around him. And Katharine Waterson and Alison Sudol both bring in equally enjoyable performances that nicely round out the leading quartet. This is much more of an ensemble piece and the movie benefits greatly from the sharing of character importance.

The effects are nicely implemented, if overdone at times. While you may not totally believe in the creatures themselves, you certainly believe Scamander’s connection to them. Emotional connection and chemistry are a vital part of this movie's DNA and it’s these strong factor that pulls everything together.

Fantastic Beasts may not have been as fantastic as I would have liked, but it still managed to wrap up admirably and provide solid entertainment throughout. Coming from a lifelong fan of J.K. Rowling’s Wizarding World, I was reasonably pleased and patiently await the next chapter in this era of the saga. And I think anyone could be too, to an extent.

Score: B

Doctor Strange

Doctor Strange is a brave first step into a much stranger world for Marvel. These movies have, up until this point, been mostly concerned with the realm of super-science and only the occasional tangent into the fantastical. But now we have full-on, uncensored, uncut magic in this world and it is beyond wonder.

Doctor Stephen Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) is one of the world’s most gifted neurosurgeons. Like most god-tier doctors, he’s arrogant, brash, and overly concerned with his own reputation. All that changes when he gets into a car crash (don’t text and drive, kids) and completely destroys the nerves in his hands, ending his career as a surgeon. Strange seeks out any remedy he can find, but Western medicine fails him. So he heads East in search of healing. Instead, he finds the ancient mystical temple of Kamar-Taj and becomes the student of an immortal sorcerer known only as the Ancient One (Tilda Swinton). While learning the ways of magic and re-learning everything he thinks about the world, he’ll team up with other powerful sorcerers (Chiwetel Ejiofor, Benedict Wong), combat agents of the extra-dimensional warlord Dormammu, and save the world from the forces of darkness. The doctor is in.

Seizing the imagination when it comes to magic can be a tricky act to pull-off, but Doctor Strange manages it in spades. Pulling inspiration from Steve Ditko’s original art from the comics, the visuals and world of Doctor Strange are mind-boggling. Space is warped and time becomes bendable as we accompany Strange on his journey through psychedelic dimensions and mirrored worlds. The colors and vibrant unreality challenges the mind not to understand, but to give up trying to understand. That is the true beauty of this movie.

From the get-go, we are told that this world of magic is not always going to make sense. And that’s perfectly fine. Science and natural world beg to be understood. But this is the unnatural world. Trying to understand it is like trying to understand the filmography of Nicholas Cage. There’s no point to it because at some point you’ll learn of a new element that breaks down everything you once knew about how the world should work. It is the perfect counter-point to the science of the MCU thus far.

The cast does an overall serviceable job in getting to the heart of this world. Benedict Cumberbatch brought his usual bold energy to the role of Strange and this proves to be one of the few times where ravenous, fan-driven casting succeeds.

Rachel McAdams as Strange’s hospital colleague was the weakest link in the chain, having very little to do in the film. Her role as his connection to humanity was firmly established and implemented well enough, but the added romantic element wasn’t necessary. I did appreciate where it was left off during their final encounter.

Mads Mikkelsen’s Kaecilius managed to rise above the usual lackluster crop of villains seen in these movies, but just barely. For a movie like this, where the world and visual spectacle are the real stars, the role of the villain is secondary. Kaecilius is effective, nothing more, nothing less. And that’s all he has to be.

All in all, Doctor Strange is an above average entry into the Marvel canon with an astounding visual eye and enough likable characters to warrant multiple repeated viewings.

Score: B+