We are STILL raving about Rowling’s new film! In this film, Rowling encases the life of the author of one of Harry Potter’s school books, titled “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them.” In a 1926 New York scene, Hufflepuff alumni, Newt Scamander, arrives to America with a bottomless suitcase filled with exotic beasts of all sorts. Some include a naughty Niffler, a mischievous mammal with the bill of a duck, and a thunderbird, a bird that causes storms as it flies. The Magical Congress of the United States of America (MACUSA), which is the American version of the Ministry of Magic, has a strict penalty against any magical creatures due to the tensions between No-Majs (Muggles) and Wizards– the Salem Witch trials kind of left a bad taste in the mouths of wizards and witches. To add more problems to the MACUSA’s long list, a dark force is wreaking havoc all over New York.
When the creatures are let out, Scamander must retrieve them with the help of an outcasted MACUSA employee, her charming sister and a muggle. With MACUSA tracking their every move and a clear advocate for the persecution of witches, the magical team must find a way to track down their creatures to keep them out of harm’s way.
Freddie Redmayne encapsulates a great Scamander as he sports a tweed jacket and looks at his shoes while he holds conversations with others. His clear admiration and love for the creatures in the film gives the movie goer a sense of understanding toward the creatures as well. Watching our favorite Bowtruckle and Pickett cling to Scamander, or the Demiguise whose job was protecting his dear friend, the Occamy, by filling its own little purse with knick knacks and candy, warmed our dear hearts.
“Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them” reminds Harry Potter fans why we love the Wizarding World so much. With the endless forms of magic presented to us, it’s hard not to get sucked into the magic world. The next five movies expected will all give us something to look forward to for the next few years. J.K. Rowling has never left her fans in the dark. With the launch of her website Pottermore, her play, “The Cursed Child,” and now with the edition of a new franchise, you could only imagine what it must be like in her mind– her wonderful and glorious mind.