There is a quality to those stories that is very relatable -- students going to school, purchasing school supplies, dealing with difficult teachers, homework, family crises, ne'er-do-wells, bullies, love, hate...
Those stories had a beating heart.
Not only that, the three main protagonists -- Harry, Ron and Hermione -- were incredibly compelling characters.
In my mind, that's what made the Potter franchise stand out from other "youth driven" fantasies.
Considering Rowling's talent for compelling narrative, the movie "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" (Warner Brothers' launching point for a new Potter prequel franchise) is confounding to me.
Opinions are all over the place on this movie. I know some who loved the movie, and I know others who were just "whelmed" by this latest entry.
Count me in the latter category.
In a nutshell, the movie follows Newt Scamander (Eddie Redmayne), a wizard from England who travels via ocean liner to 1920s New York City. He is on his way to Arizona to return a magical beast to its native land.
He carries a leather suitcase along with him, and the magical piece of luggage features heavily into the plot. Not only does the bag contain magical creatures, there is more to it than meets the eye (think the TARDIS in "Doctor Who") -- there is an entire animal sanctuary inside this humble case.
Scamander has been traveling the world documenting magical creatures -- the resulting book is mentioned as a textbook in the Harry Potter series.
When one of Scamander's creatures -- a ferret-like Niffler -- escapes from his case, and when his misadventures to regain the creature results in him switching bags with a "no-maj" (the incredibly boring U.S. name for a muggle, or non-magical human), and when he is arrested by a demoted auror (think immigration officers in the wizarding world) for not being registered in the U.S., the adventure ensues.
But what ensues is a rather bland journey through wizarding politics in the United States, lack of magical acceptance in the 1920s, and various hijinks involving Scamander's CG pets on the loose.
If you ever thought to yourself, "ya know, all that 'backstory library research' Hermione Granger did in the books would make a great movie," then this is the movie for you.
In that regard, the movie feels at times like the "Star Wars" prequel trilogy, where great attention was given votes in the Galactic Senate, the dealings of the Trade Federation, disgraced politicians...
While some of that appeared in the previous Harry Potter saga, the strong mythic "hero's journey" plotline kept things from getting too bogged down in minutiae.
Part of the problem here is the fact that the cast is older in "Fantastic Beasts," and Redmayne isn't the presence he should be.
While I am sure he was playing the role as prescribed, there needed to be more.
What felt fresh and natural in the "Harry Potter" movies felt forced and warmed-over in this outing.
And, as was the case with the "Star Wars" prequel trilogy, things oftentimes feel too "insider" in "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them."
Unless a viewer is already versed in the "Wizarding World of Harry Potter," they could be somewhat befuddled by the whole thing.
The main aspect lacking in the movie was the joy imbued in those early Harry Potter stories.
I have heard that Warner Bros. plans to make this into a five-movie series. I'm not sure what direction Rowling plans to go, but they need to tighten things up, and create characters and stories that are more relatable and compelling.
See "Fantastic Beast and Where to Find Them" for yourself. Let me know what you thought in the comments below.
Rated PG-13, Runtime: 2 hrs 13 min
Read my previous post: The Return of an Old Favorite
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