Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them

Set seventy years before the events of Harry Potter and the Philosophers stone, Fantastic Beasts and where to find them follows the adventures of Newt Scamander, a wizard with a love for magical animals, as he tries to recapture the animals which have escaped and also maintain the delicate relationship between the magical and non-magical communities. When a series of strange and unusual magical events take place in New York City which threatens to uncover the existence of wizards and spark a war it is up to Scamander to try and resolve the situation. However, all is not as it seems as a familiar face from the Harry Potter franchise threatens to destroy the fragile peace. Full of the magic which we all came to associate with J.K.Rowling’s earlier writing, fantastic beasts is a visually superb film with some truly memorable animals - in particular a very mischievous and utterly adorable kleptomaniac. Yet perhaps the most entertaining character is Scamanders ‘no-maj’ (American for muggle) sidekick who helps him re-capture the animals and whose main ambition in life it to become a master-baker. Though it is not Rowling’s most engaging storyline, it is a very enjoyable film and well worth a watch.

Hamish Brown