Screened Out – Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them

[three-star-rating]Eddie Redmayne, Katherine Waterson, Dan Fogler, Alison Sudol, Samantha Morton, Colin Farrell, Carmen Ejogo, Jon Voight[/three-star-rating]

Really, it should be called Fantastic Bits and Where to Find Them. They’re here – the magical moments Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling has always provided – spread throughout this, her first direct-to-film writing. However, her many, many, many ideas would really wow us if they strongly connected to each other.

You do have Newt Scamader (Redmayne), bringing his case of magical creatures into 1920s New York. For Potter fans – and I fully admit I’m one of them – this is wondrous stuff. Because we remember Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them is the famous textbook Harry Potter uses under Hagrid’s tutelage. We’ve heard of Newt before, but we didn’t know his back-story.

This flick fills in some, but not enough.

Newt comes to Jazz Age America, which is seriously backwards and prejudiced on magic. Witches and wizards carefully hide. The whole magical world is subjugated. Puritanical baddie (Morton) knows magical people are still out there, and she preaches from her cruddy church/orphanage to rout out and destroy them.

So, when – through a bit of Hollywood slapstick – Newt’s suitcase zoo is confused with a non-magical human’s luggage, chaos ensues. Because of this, some very weird animals get loose. Newt and American witches and wizards have to capture them or risk exposure.

Of his beasts, Scamander says, “They’re currently in alien terrain surrounded by millions of the most vicious creatures on the planet; humans.”

This would be enough of an idea for a flick. However, an evil European wizard is on the loose. A dark force is also sweeping through New York, tearing up buildings and streets. Political trouble is brewing inside MACUSA, the magical congress of the US. A non-magical newspaper magnate (Voight) wants his one son elected senator, while his other son is trying to convince dear old Dad that witches and wizards exist.

Sure, Scamander and his pets somewhat affect all this; however, their connection is flimsy. Even Newt’s reason for being in America seems a more random plot point.

One wishes the Jazz Age, the dark forces, and especially Newt’s suitcase full of friendly beasts would come together into a major finale. This never happens.

Not that the film isn’t big, right up to the huge final scenes. Beasts is full of eye-popping magic.

For the most part, the actors also do a damn fine job. Waterson is fantastic as Tina, the pedantic do-gooder who wants to bring Newt to justice and gain her job back. Fogler delights as Kowalski, the non-magical shlub dragged into this. Sudol steals the show as Tina’s ditzy, sweet, mind-reading sister Queenie. Finally, Farrell exudes debonair evil, and Ejogo is regal as the American magical president.

I wish I could say as much for Redmayne. He looks at everyone – absolutely everyone – with a sneaky, distrustful side eye. He pulls his lips and talks through the side of his mouth for the entire film! This gimmick wears thin very quickly; Redmayne goes on to noticeably overuses it. Even though we have bits and pieces of Newt’s history, we never truly know him, or why he loves these beasts so much. The film cries for more time with his love for his creatures, more affection, and more interaction. It just feels Redmayne and director David Yates (who directed the last four Harry Potter films) missed the magical mark.

[rating-key]

They and Rowling give us lots of wonder. They also provide a few really touching moments, mostly with Fogler and Sudol. However, the filmmaking team also misaims their charm when they don’t create a plot that pulls everything together tightly and succinctly.

Still, for us Potter fans, the magic and miracles that are here will keep us while Rowling learns how to apply her immense talent for writing to the specific, pointed art of screenwriting. They’ve announced four more Beasts films for her to get her spells right.