Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (2016)

Gosh, how am I to review this...

Truth to be told, the Harry Potter books got me back into reading books...

Then the movies came about, and they were actually decent adaptation of the books!

So, in short, I read all 7 books, and have to admit, I have not read the Fantastic Beast and Where to find Them... It is a thin book...

And I understand they are making a couple of this???!!!

Let me do it this way

The Good

I am NOT a fan of Eddie Redmayne. I understand he had won awards for his works, and I cannot remember being drawn by his acting skills... Until now...


Warner, hoping for another cash cow, spared no expense, and the production is GORGEOUS!

The Bad

Because it is a Warner Production, this HAS TO take place in America... Sigh...

They even introduced an American School of magic... Groan x 2....

The Ugly

Apart from Newt Scamander (and vaguely at that) there is HARDLY any character development!!?!

This also suffers from what I call "The Hobbit Syndrome". meaning, reference material, a story does not make!!!

So, certain parts were spectacular, others...

My Two Sen

This post has been edited by Mov_freak: Nov 18 2016, 02:00 AM

I just learnt there are 5 of these (movies) planned...

Come on Warner Brothers....

Excerpt fron Harry Potter Wikia

"She's a taker. You need a giver."
—Queenie Goldstein to Scamander, regarding his former relationship with Leta.[src]
Leta Lestrange was a witch who, sometime between 1908 to 1916, had a "close relationship" with Newton Scamander while they were both students at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, due to their outcast nature and love of studying magical creatures. One of Leta's experiments went wrong, endangering the life of another student. Rather than see his friend expelled, Newt took the blame and was expelled in her place.[4] This left him bitter, but still much in love with Leta.[5] Scamander kept a framed picture of her within his workshed during his travels to New York in late 1926.

When Queenie Goldstein was using Legilimency on Newt, she noted that Leta was "a taker" in their relationship.

Behind the scenes
Leta Lestrange is portrayed in the film inspired by Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them by Zoë Kravitz.
According to director David Yates, we will learn more about Leta Lestrange, and Newt's relationship with her, in future movies in the franchise

Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald (2018)

Oh gosh, I did a movie marathon today, and am kinds exhausted, and I still want to complete this review.

SO if my spelling is out, or I don't make sense in general, go gentle on me....

This movie is one of Warner's big gun for the year, and it is...

I am getting ahead of myself.

Watching Part 1 & 2 of this is a little weird.

Why?

With the Harry Potters, I had read the book before I watched the movies, so I knew the story.

Where as with these movies, I really wasn't sure what to expect.

So did I go in with High Expectations?

You bet your bottom dollar.

Jude Law, Johnny Depp and surprisingly, a very sedated Ezra Miller??!?

So Newt's (Eddie Redmayne) adventure, continues.

The main gang from the first movie rerturns.

Some HUGE plot holes from the first movie are being patched here.

Leta Lestrange (Zoë Kravitz) is in this. In some way, this movie "is" about her.

Albus Dumbledore (Jude Law) and Gellert Grindelwald (Johnny Depp) is explained. Also surprising the reason why Dumbledore did not go after Grindelwald much earlier on.

Nagini get a back story here.

Even Fawkes (I think) makes an appearance.

So what do I think of the movie?

A little bit of a mess.

In patching the plot holes of the first movie, this movie dug new ones for itself?

Why?

Because some of the ideas introduced here, contradicts the Harry Potter movies....

So, did my "perfection complex" stopped me from enjoying this movie?

Maybe it did.

My Two Sen....

P.S. Just found out there are going to be 5 of these (movies) What The *beep*

This post has been edited by Mov_freak: Nov 15 2018, 05:15 PM

Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore (2022)

I want to like this movie.

I really do.

I love the harry potter books and movies (well with the exception of one of the movie).

This is an expensive movie.

The producers, writers and director are Harry Potter Universe veterans.

If you do follow my reviews, the main issue I have with Fantastic Beast movies are the storyline.

I don't think there is a true idea of what they are trying to express to the audience or even a clear pathway to get to the end game

If it was really up to me, they should end the series with this movie.

It does come to some form of conclusion.

Gellert Grindelwald has so far been played by three actors and latest being Mads Mikkelsen.

I don't think Mads Mikkelsen has a strong grasp of Gellert.

I know Ezra Miller is in alot of kaka at this point in time. Seriously, he literally could have phone his performance for this movie in...

They expanded the wizarding world without much explanation and just assume the audience would "buy it".

Some of the Fantastic Beast is way WAY out there....

The only one that seems to hold it together is Jude Law as Albus Dumbledore, not sure if that is enough to keep the series going...

They just had so many things happening and did not know how to keep the audience's focus... Leaving the audience... lacking a better term... exhausted/fatigue...

My Two Sen...

Huh, got say meh. I don't recall hearing Dumbledore expressing himself to Grindelwald...