In 2016, “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them” returned to the wizarding world with a new cast, a new city, and a new set of problems. The film trades Hogwarts for 1920s New York, where magizoologist Newt Scamander arrives with a suitcase full of trouble. It is a dense, busy movie that often feels like it is setting up five more films rather than telling one complete story. Still, its best moments crackle with the old magic.
Trailer, via Warner Bros..
Newt’s Suitcase
Newt Scamander, played by Eddie Redmayne, is a gentle lead. He is more comfortable with creatures than with people, and Redmayne plays that distance with a quiet, shuffling charm. The suitcase itself is the film’s best invention. Inside it is a vast, snowy preserve where Newt keeps his beasts, and the scenes set there are the most purely delightful in the movie. The creatures themselves — the thieving Niffler, the shy Bowtruckle, the giant Thunderbird — are designed with real personality.
1920s New York
The New York of the film is a dark, jazz-age version of the wizarding world. MACUSA, the American magical government, operates in secret under the shadow of a rising anti-magic movement. Dan Fogler plays Jacob Kowalski, a No-Maj baker who accidentally gets dragged into Newt’s world. He provides the film’s comic heart and its emotional one. Katherine Waterston’s Tina Goldstein is a disgraced Auror looking for redemption, and her earnestness grounds the story.
The Obscurus Problem
The central plot involves an Obscurus, a destructive force born from a child who suppresses their magic. It is a grim idea, and the film handles it with more weight than the lighter creature scenes. The villain of the piece is a troubled boy named Credence, played by Ezra Miller. His story gives the film its tragic spine. But the movie rushes his arc, and the climax feels hurried.
Grindelwald’s Shadow
The film is the first in a planned five-part series, and it shows. Colin Farrell plays Percival Graves, a high-ranking MACUSA official with a hidden agenda. The reveal that he is actually the dark wizard Gellert Grindelwald in disguise lands with a thud of setup rather than surprise. Johnny Depp appears briefly as Grindelwald at the end, and his performance is theatrical, but the moment is more a trailer for the next film than a payoff for this one.
Visual Craft
Director David Yates, who helmed the last four Harry Potter films, keeps the visual effects sharp. The spells fly, the city crumbles, and the beasts look fantastic. The soundtrack, composed by James Newton Howard, does not linger in memory. The production design, though, is rich. The 1920s setting gives the wizards a new wardrobe and a new attitude.
Strengths and Weaknesses
The film’s strengths are its creatures, its lead performance, and its sense of wonder. Its weaknesses are its overstuffed plot, its rushed villain, and its constant forward-looking. The movie wants to be a standalone adventure and a franchise opener at the same time. It does not fully succeed at either.
The comparison is clear.
| Element | Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them | Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone |
|---|---|---|
| Lead | Adult magizoologist | Child student |
| Setting | 1920s New York | 1990s Hogwarts |
| Tone | Darker, political | Lighter, wonder-filled |
| Plot focus | Creature rescue and a hidden villain | A mystery at school |
The film is never dull. It is too busy for that. But it is also never quite satisfying as a whole.
The Score
“Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them” is a handsome, overlong, and uneven introduction to a new era. It works best when it lets its creatures and its characters breathe. It struggles when it forces the larger mythology into the frame. The magic is there, but it is buried under plot.
