Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them is the first spin-off from the hugely popular Harry Potter series of movies. I was invited to a special screening by Novo Cinemas, DFC, where hordes of fans were waiting to get mesmerized by the on-screen magic and wizardry.
The movie takes place 70 years before Harry Potter and focuses on the creation of the “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them”, a textbook which is used at the fictional Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry in the Potter-universe. Rowling takes us through a journey of the textbook’s origins and its author’s life and times.
The movie is filled with “fantastic beasts” such as Niffler, a mole-duck-billed platypus hybrid, which goes on a crime spree while greedily stuffing shiny objects such as coins and gems into its belly pouch. There’s a giant Thunderbird, which looks majestic, every time it spreads its eagle-like wings.
You will also find a teeny leafy twig-like critter known as a Bowtruckle, which looks very much like a shrunken version of Groot from “Guardians of the Galaxy”. And oh yes, there’s also an amorous Erumpent, which looks like a cross between a hippo and an elephant, who causes a ruckus at a zoo in search for “true love”.
As we go along with the story, we find out that due to some misunderstandings, Scamander is accused of being responsible for the catastrophe in New York. Scamander then joins Porpentina “Tina” Goldstein a former auror at the Magical Congress of the United States of America (MACUSA), Tina’s younger sister Queenie, and a no-maj (or muggles in Potter-speak) factory worker named Jacob Kowalski who yearns to be a baker, to set things right.
It’s now up to Scamander to rescue his creature friends from the clutches of humans and at the same time, try and put an end to the evil force that’s destroying the city. Full marks to David Yates for bringing Rowling’s imagination to life effortlessly. Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them is a treat for your eyes… and your ears!
