Spoilers Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them: Discussion Thread

[Doom Shepherd]

I enjoyed it, but I'm afraid I figured out both the "twists" very early on. That's what I get for putting all those ranks into "Genre Savvy."

My wife thought they were trying to tell too much story in too short a movie... but then again, she fell asleep (out of tiredness, not boredom) in places, so she probably missed stuff I didn't.

 

[M.A.C.O.]

True. It isn't only him though. Many of the characters throughout Potter lore seem to only use teleportation powers when the story-line calls on it. Just a nitpick.

It's possible the American wizard community enforces restrictions on non-citizens teleporting into the U.S. It may be a way to a) help prevent the immigration of magical creatures and b) keep the no-mages from getting suspicious about newcomers unable to explain how they arrived.

At the same time though, we never see any character in the HP books or movies use Apparition to travel great distances. All instances we saw, were in the UK and remained in the UK.

J.K. Rowling posted this on her twitter about the subject.
https://twitter.com/jk_rowling/status/799666899021766658

Apparition is one of the last spells taught to students because of the dangers in performing it. Getting splinched (teleporting to one place and leaving some part of your body some place else) can be fatal. Ron nearly lost his arm in Deathly Hallows because he performed the spell wrong. We of the Trek community know what happens to people in transporter accidents.

 

[Tora Ziyal]

I liked it - B +. It doesn't seem to have the grandiosity that the Potter films did though. We'll see.
Can someone explain to me why the magical are forced to take steamships/trains/cars etc. to travel when they have the ability to teleport themselves anywhere?

If I remember correctly, Rowling has said that there are limits to how far one can apparate. I also like Snaploud's explanation.

 

[marillion]

Well, I must say I liked it more than I thought I would. It was pretty good from start to finish... The Doctor Who parallels were undeniable, which I guess is the result of being such a Who fan. Bigger on the inside, and such... Plus, if Eddie really does have designs on being the Doctor, then this is his CV, in a nice box with pretty wrapping. My wife even commented on how much he was acting like a "Doctor" throughout the movie..

 

[Tora Ziyal]

Yes, I didn't think about it until you mentioned it, but Newt was a bit Doctor-ish.

Rowling's used "bigger on the inside" before -- Hermione's evening bag and the tent Mr. Weasley borrowed.

 

[JD]

I saw this a few days ago and I really enjoyed it.
I knew that Grindelwald was in the movie somewhere after seeing a spoiler on the HP Wiki, but I wasn't sure who he was until just a few minutes before he was reveal. For a Johnny Depp character, Grindelwald is pretty normal looking. I have to admit, I was kind of expecting another over the top, Jack Sparrow or Mad Hatter kind of look.
The reveal of who the Obscurus was was a surprise for me.
The characters in this were really likeable. I was really kind of disappointed they did obliviate Jacob at the end, I was really hoping he'd get to keep his memory. At least the end did hint that something could still happen with him and Queenie. I really hope they can at least work Tina and Queenie into more of the movie.
I've seen a few references to no-mages, but it's actually no-maj with a j.
The FBaWtFt page on the HP Wiki does list all of the beasts in the movie:

• The Niffler[38]
• The Swooping Evil[38]
• The Bowtruckle[38]
• The Billywig[38]
• The Occamy[38]
• The Demiguise[38]
• The Thunderbird[38]
• The Murtlap[39]
• The Erumpent[40]
• The Nundu[12]
• The Doxy[12]
• The Mooncalf[12]
• The Fwooper[12]
• The Diricawl[12]
• The Graphorn[12]
• The Grindylow
• The Giant Dung Beetle[12]
• The Ashwinder (Mentioned only)[41]
• The Phoenix (Appears as statue)[42]
• The Appaloosa Puffskein (Mentioned only)
• The Ukrainian Ironbelly (Mentioned only)
• The Griffin (Mentioned on a poster)[43]
• The Nogtail (Mentioned on a poster)[44]

I give it an A.

 

[Captain of the USS Averof]

Thunderbird and Nundu for the win… Niffler and Bowtruckle for the laughs!

 

[Captaindemotion]

Ive only seen 3 of the Harry Potter movies (the first two one when they came out, the fourth only a fortnight ago. Still haven't seen number 3). Quite liked them but just never got time to see them all. My daughter is reading the books and because this is a prequel, we figured we could go see it without them being spoiled for her. I really enjoyed it. Probably more than the HP movies; somehow magic in New York seemed way more exotic and original than in an English boarding school (even though I saw Doctor Strange not long ago) and the grown-up cast held my interest more than Harry and co.

I've never had any particular view of Redmayne one way or the other; I didn't see the Theory of Everything or The Danish Girl as I dislike biopics. But he was great in this - I can definitely see the Doctor Who comparisons (oddly enough I felt that the ending of Dr Strange was also totally Whovian).

I'd definitely go to the sequels for this.

 

[Timelord79 (he/him)]

Yeah, the ending of Strange was done last year in Doctor Who Heaven Sent. Only they dedicated an entire episode to the concept of what Strange did in 2 minutes screen time.

 

[DBR]

Y'know, I liked it a lot more than I thought I was going to like it.

Never being a big Harry Potter fan, I wasn't in a big hurry to see Fantastic Beasts. But I liked Redmayne a lot, his muggle-cohort was great, and some of the imagery was brilliant (like inside his suitcase), and I was really glad to see it wasn't kids saving the world again.

It felt like a movie for adults who grew up on Harry Potter, which is probably exactly what they were going for.

Curious, though, was Warner Bros' decision to reveal the Johnny Depp ending surprise a week before release. Marketing push? Were they afraid the movie was going to bomb? Was it a,' well, the internet is going to ruin it anyway, so why not?' situation? Seemed a bit odd.

 

[M.A.C.O.]

Y'know, I liked it a lot more than I thought I was going to like it.

Never being a big Harry Potter fan, I wasn't in a big hurry to see Fantastic Beasts. But I liked Redmayne a lot, his muggle-cohort was great, and some of the imagery was brilliant (like inside his suitcase), and I was really glad to see it wasn't kids saving the world again.

It felt like a movie for adults who grew up on Harry Potter, which is probably exactly what they were going for.

Curious, though, was Warner Bros' decision to reveal the Johnny Depp ending surprise a week before release. Marketing push? Were they afraid the movie was going to bomb? Was it a,' well, the internet is going to ruin it anyway, so why not?' situation? Seemed a bit odd.

Likely the last one. As soon as the first audiences saw it, the word would've been out about it. Announcing Depp for the sequels presumably gets the focus off his limited role in the first one.

 

[M.A.C.O.]

Fantastic Beasts updated BO gross is now $680 million worldwide. Overtaking Dr Strange (the other magic film released this winter) internationally. Dr Strange still has the lead domestically by about $23 million.

 

[Tom]

Best Doctor Who episode I have seen in a while! Eddie makes a good 13th Doctor and they finally fixed the chameleon circuit so the Tardis is now a suitcase.

 

[Captain of the USS Averof]

Best Doctor Who episode I have seen in a while! Eddie makes a good 13th Doctor and they finally fixed the chameleon circuit so the Tardis is now a suitcase.

Agreed! And what great companions as well! If I had to nitpick something I would say I didn't like the new sonic screwdriver so much. Too slender and elongated for my tastes.

 

[Tom]

I was hoping Frobisher was in the suitcase as well...

 

[Mr. Adventure]

Caught this at the early matinee and was surprised to find the theater completely packed. Granted it's a holiday week but still! I went by myself and could only find a single open seat other than in the front row.

Thought it was quite charming and entertaining though I got a little lost on the villains and their motivations. I will have to catch it again and fill in the gaps.

Agreed! And what great companions as well! If I had to nitpick something I would say I didn't like the new sonic screwdriver so much. Too slender and elongated for my tastes.

And only half as magical as usual.

 

[Mr Light]

FB passed Suicide Squad to become 8th highest grossing movie of the year with $748 million. It still hasn't surpassed any of the Harry movies though.

 

[M.A.C.O.]

FB passed Suicide Squad to become 8th highest grossing movie of the year with $748 million. It still hasn't surpassed any of the Harry movies though.

That's great for FB. It still has Japan to open for in theaters. Sucks it didn't out gross any of it's sisters films, but it made a good mark.