Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (2016)

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (2016)

5/10

Starring

Eddie Redmayne

Katherine Waterson

Dan Fogler

Alison Sudol

Colin Farrell

Directed by David Yates

For lack of better words, “I don’t know.”

I don’t know how I feel sitting through a long ride of the magic world acting rather dumb.

I don’t know how I feel about the many, many magical creatures that this movie never ran out of.

I don’t know how I feel about the acting of the lead and the supporting cast.

I don’t know if this movie will make it through a trilogy and if I would want to see such a trilogy.

I don’t know if I can say J.K. Rowling has mastered the act of screenwriting, but for a first timer good attempt.

What I do know is this was a long ride of a movie which as a Harry Potter fan I was hoping to enjoy for the desire of not seeing children learning magic, but adults who have mastered it. The movie had that which is why I will give it a 5, but the story that surrounded it was not captivating enough.

The movie did have many scenes where I got to see wonderful magical events, but after dealing with the ending of Doctor Strange (2016) the day before when all the villain had to do was ignore strange and his silly time loop and avoid killing him and just take over the world.

Here is another ending where the villain just had to ignore the hero.

(Spoiler Alert)

The man behind all the chaos in the movie was in disguise from the people of the magic world. The lead Newt and his fighting companion Tina were the one that knew he had bad intentions. When the problem was allegedly destroyed by the Aurors, the villain got mad and exposed himself.

I watched wondering why did he do this?

Here is an act you will expect in a children’s book, but Rowling who is writing this for a more matured audience could have found a better way to expose the disguised villain.

Visually captivating? The answer will be yes.

This movie was visually captivating and although it looked like ground work for a bigger story with the introduction of Johnny Depp as the lead villain, I have to say Warner Bros. Harry Potter first movie had a better intro to this.

In this movie, we are introduced to a new set of characters, with four being the main and they are led by Newt Scamander (a magizoologist) who came to America to release a creature native to America. He is the future author of the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry textbook, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. He is accompanied by a demoted/former Auror Tina who was in search of a way to gain back her position as an Auror. As she was in pursuit of Newt when she noticed he released some creatures into the outside world. At present America is being under attack by what the magical world believed to be magical creatures. Tina thought Newt was the person responsible.

Along for the ride was Jacob Kowalski a muggle whom Newt met in the bank when he was trying to catch a creature he mistakenly allowed to get out. Kowalski and Newt latter became friends as they went together to hunt down Newt’s creatures that got out of his Zoo suitcase. The group also had a forth party in Queenie (Tina’s sister) an accomplished Legilimency who had taken a liking into Kowalski.

The movie is about the discovery of the creature terrorizing the muggles and responsible for the death of one.

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them is not a movie I will be looking forward to seeing the next part.

Doctor Strange (2016)

Doctor Strange (2016)

7/10

               

Benedict Cumberbatch

Chiwetel Ejiofor

Rachel McAdams

Benedict Wong

Directed by Scott Derrickson

I was blessed to have seen Doctor Strange yesterday, blessed to have witnessed the growth of a man who I admired in the British Series Sherlockto become one of my favorite actors to go see.

Doctor Strange in itself is a good movie the storyline did have a lengthy growth phase of Dr. Stephen Vincent Strange the egotistic neurosurgeon to Doctor Strange: Sorcerer Supreme. You do have to bear with the transition, but you will not notice the time passing because the whole development stage is full of visual pleasure, some comic relief and many mysteries.

Disney/Marvel went all out in the way the story and the buildup to the way Doctor Strange used intelligence, science and magic to save the world. The movie’s visual effects are so fluid you will think you are in Doctor Strange’s world. The movie casting is also off the hook, the wonderful performance by the supporting casts in the movie made sure when Strange was not hugging the screen you are not missing his presence.

Doctor Strange is a superhero film from the Marvel Cinematic universe and the fourteenth movie from that universe. The movie is doing very well in the box office and has high approval ratings from critics and audience.

The movie plot starts by introducing us to an above average, intelligent and egotistic neurosurgeon whose life got turned inside out when a tragic accident damaged the nerves in his hands making it impossible for him to continue in the profession he reigns as god.

After spending everything he has on finding a cure and healing to his hands, he decided to go searching for a cure in Kathmandu, Nepal. He heard of a man who could not walk again and started walking after getting teachings from a person called the Ancient One.

His arrival was expected to his surprise and his teaching began, but his ego always got in his way and his constant know it all attitude almost ruined the world he desperately wants be the best at doing something in.

I have seen little to nothing of Benedict Cumberbatch’s movies even then just seeing movies like War Horse (2011), Star Trek: Into Darkness (2013) and Imitation Game (2014) I have to admit he has grown to become a leading man in the movie world.

His portrayal here is memorable and he did it so well it was hard for me to imagine anyone who could have fit and done a better performance.

The movie ended with the sighting of an infinity stone, all of this is a build up to Marvel’s Infinity War storyline.

Also in the post credit scenes, we can see glimpse of what could be a sequel to this Doctor Strange introductory movie.

If you are waiting for any more reasons to go and see this movie you are probably never going to see it. For me this is one of the best Marvel Cinematic movies out there.

Sully (2016)

Sully (2016)

7/10

Starring

Tom Hanks

Aaron Eckhart

Laura Linney

Directed by Clint Eastwood

Sully is a full Tom Hanks show, with a perfect execution by the star director Clint Eastwood. Hanks snowy hair and moustache to match jumps at you from the moment the movie gets going.

Based on a real-life incident this biographical drama makes the best of its story, and raises a glass to the heroes of the skies whose job has been to get us from one destination to another.

The plot is based on the book Highest Duty which was written by Chesley Sullenberger (Sully) and Jeffrey Zaslow.

Like I said above, it is a full Tom Hanks show with him taking control of the movie and every scene he was in was masterful. Not that the supporting cast of Aaron Echart and Laura Linney were not also good in their delivery, but Hanks stole the show.

Everyone involved made sure you had a safe flight from the first scene to the last. The movie received accolades from critics and did well in the box office making more than three times its production cost. The movie however faced criticism from the NTSB (National Transportation Safety Board) who saw the movie portray them as villains, as they were placed in the negative – as prosecutors of the innocent.

They are right about how they were portrayed in the movie as the villains, but it is hard to take any sides as I have not read the book portraying the incident.

The many CGI and effects that this movie had on display is worth seeing, the movies pace is well done.

The movie focuses on the event that happened on January 15, 2009. US Airways Flight 1549 (an Airbus plane) took off from New York’s heading to Charlotte Douglas International Airport. Barely after takeoff the plan strikes a flock of Canadian geese and damaging the planes two engines.

With no engine power, Sully could not follow the directions from the tower to land the plane on the possible tarmacs given and had to land the plane on the Hudson River.

All 155 lives on the plane were saved so were the flight crew, but the plane was damaged. After the incident, the NTSB was querying Sully’s decision to land the plane on the river and argued that one of the engines was still operational.

Sully stood his ground and stuck to his story, but has to face a board which will determine if the incident will be deemed heroic or a pilot error.

Sully is a good movie to go see, that is certain.