Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them is simply...Fantastic

Movie Title:    Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them

Grade:  A

Rating:  PG-13, 132 minutes

In a Nutshell:  The beasts are truly fantastic.   J.K. Rowling’s imagination is limitless.  She personally wrote this script, and David Yates, who directed the last four Harry Potter movies, shows he clearly understands the Harry Potter universe and is the one director who is uniquely qualified to successfully bring this new spin-off franchise to the Big Screen.  

If you’re a fan, you’ll love it.  If you’re not, you still have to appreciate the child-like wonder of this magical world.  The film is successful as a stand-alone film and you don't have to know anything about the previous Harry Potter films to be entertained. 

That alone is an amazing feat. This is the 9^th film in this Harry Potter universe, so I’m especially impressed that we’re still being surprised and introduced to fun, interesting characters and creatures.  Well done!

Uplifting theme: 

•  Friendship, love, respect, wonder, tolerance.
• Be yourself. 

Things I liked:

• Eddie Redmayne is fantastic, as always.  It’s impressive how he changes his posture to appear like a different character in each movie he is in. The audience laughed with delight while watching him do a mating dance with one of the fantastic beasts that looked like a bloated, glowing rhinoceros.
• "Fantastic special effects and where to find them."  (I saw the movie in 3D.)
• The musical score was noticeably very good.
• Ron Perlman as Gnarlak. ha ha
• There are a lot of little things to see within each screen, such as the shoe shiner who shines wands instead of shoes.
• I really like the logo on the movie poster.
• That struedel looked delicious.
• It’s cute how Newt and Jacob climb in and out of that suitcase.
• The little bowtruckle creature is ADORABLE!  He's kind of like a miniature Groot on Guardians Of The Galaxy and a sure-fire merchandising hit.
• Dan Fogler is terrific and never feels like a side-kick character.  He is us.  We muggles have always wanted to enter Harry Potter's world, and now, we get to experience it through Jacob's eyes.  He is the classic "Every man."
• That little platypus-looking creature thief was adorable and creative.
• I thought the invisible umbrella was so sweet.
• SPOILER ALERT:  Johnny Depp!  Yes!
• I like the origin story that takes place 70 years before Harry Potter is born.  I got a kick out of the idea that the movie was based on a book that later becomes required reading for students at Hogwarts.
• I thought it was fun to see the wizarding community in America, as compared to England's.  For example, the Brits call humans "muggles", whereas in the USA, they're called "No-maj".  Personally, I think the British name is more creative.
• If you're a Potterhead fan, you'll get a kick out of brief mention of things from the past films and books, such as erumpents, and nifflers.

Things I didn’t like:

• The newspaper headlines scrolled so fast in the beginning that I actually got dizzy.  They'll be hard for kids to read quickly too.

• Even though this time period is around the 1920's, several of the guys had modern-looking haircuts.
• It’s sometimes hard to understand what people say between the mumbling and the British accents.  Newt Scamander’s personality requires some mumbling, but it makes it difficult for an audience who wants to hear what he’s saying.
• There are a few bad editing moments.
•  Samantha Moron’s character was just creepy and disturbing.
• Sometimes the sound was too loud and distracting.

Easter Eggs:

• The "Deathly Hallows" necklace that is given to Credence (Ezra Miller).
• Newt has an old-fashioned Hufflepuff scarf in his suitcase.
• The Congress clock looks similar to the one the Weasley family has in their house to keep track of everyone's whereabouts.
• Newt was expelled for the same reason that Hagrid was: they supposedly couldn't control their animals.
• There is a picture of a man that has reference to the Lastrange family.
• Newt mentions he worked with Ukranian ironbellies.
• Obscurus Books is the name of the publisher of the book.
• Mention of Dumbledore.

Interesting lines:

• “Are you a seeker after truth?” – Mary Lou (Samantha Morton)

“I'm more of a chaser, really.” – Newt Scamander  (seeker/chaster = clever reference to Quidditch!)

• “The most vicious creature on the planet…humans.” – Newt
• “That’s why I want to make pastries…makes people happy.” – Jacob  (I teach classes at the famous Le Cordon Bleu Culinary College and that’s how I feel about baking!)
• “People are easiest to read when they’re hurting.” – Queenie Goldstein (the lovely Alison Sudol who has a fantastic singing voice!)
• “She was a taker.  You need a giver.” – Queenie
• “My philosophy is that worrying means you suffer twice.” – Newt 

Funny lines:

• “Why do I have to wear this?” – Jacob

“Because your skull is susceptible to breakage under immense force.” – Newt

• “I don’t think I’m dreaming.  I ain’t got the brains to make this up.” - Jacob

Tips for parents:   

• There are parts of each Harry Potter movie that would frighten young children.  Fantastic Beasts has similar scary moments.
• No profanity, sexuality, nudity. 
• There are some forms of physical and mental parental abuse. 
• It has some dark themes, peril, and destruction. 
• 
  

Can't get enough?  Relive the magic and wonder:

Can't wait for Eddie Radmayne in Harry Potter prequel!

REDMAYNE CAST IN HARRY POTTER PREQUEL: Actor Eddie Redmayne has signed on to star in the forthcoming Harry Potter prequel,Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, the Warner Bros. studio announced that Redmayne will play Newt Scamander, the magizoologist of the wizarding world, who was introduced in J.K. Rowling’s best-selling series. 

The movie will be directed by David Yates, who was also behind the final four installments of the Harry Potter series. Fantastic Beasts is slated for release on November 18, 2016 in 3-D and IMAX.

I thought Eddie Redmayne was fantastic in The Theory of Everything and he definitely deserved the Oscar his performance won.

Paddington's warmth and charm make it from paper to the silver screen

Movie:  Paddington

PG, 1 hour 35 minutes

Grade: B+

In a Nutshell: This family-friendly tale begins with an amusing background story that sets the humor and tone for the film, which is based on the popular children’s books by Michael Bond.  Paddington bear is made entirely out of CGI and successfully exudes the warmth and charm his character is known for.

It feels very British and has some of the magical wit brought to us by the producers of the hugely successful Harry Potter movies.  Its tumble-of-fun action sequences are perfect for small children. Parents will be mildly entertained too.

Uplifting Theme:

·         Families stick together…with marmalade or without.

·         Families come in all shapes and sizes.   “Mrs. Brown says that in London everyone is different, but that means anyone can fit in.” – Paddington (voiced by Ben Whishaw)

Things I liked:

·         I loved how Paddington literally steps into a film, entering into a new world.  That’s what movies do for me and why I love them so much.

·         Great aerial and street views of London.  I’m going there in June with the fam!  So excited!

·         I love their spiral staircase in the Brown’s home.

·         I thought Mrs. Brown, the mother, (Sally Hawkins) was very sweet and optimistic.  She turns to jelly when Mr. Brown does something heroic.  Don’t all wives want to admire their husbands for great acts of courage and kindness?

·         I love how the flowers on the painted tree mural reacted to news.

·         Millicent calls the Natural History Museum “a cathedral of knowledge.”  True.

·         Some of the transitions were pretty clever, such as the doll house view of the Brown’s home at the end.

Things I didn’t like:

·         The bathroom scene when Paddington was “freshening up” after his travels was disgusting and messy, but evoked lots of squeals of delight from the young audience members.

·         The humor is pretty juvenile, although there are some funny lines that will go over children’s heads.

Interesting tidbits:

·         The fictional train station “Westbourne Oak” is actually the Maida Vale station.  Look closely and you’ll see the name clearly written on the red tiles.

Funny lines:

·         “Embarrassing, but tasty.” – Uncle Pastuzo (voiced by Michael Gambon)

·         “A wise bear always keeps a marmalade sandwich in his hand in case of emergency.” - Uncle Pastuzo

·         Seven percent of childhood accidents start with jumping.”  - Mr. Brown

·         “Stranger danger.  Keep your eyes down.  There’s a bear over there, probably trying to sell something.” – Mr. Brown (Hugh Bonneville)

·         “Grizzly?  Not particularly.  Mind you, I haven’t seen him in the morning.” – Mr. Brown while on the phone with the insurance agency to add coverage for the bear on the first night

·         “I gave up being surprised when they came up with the microwave oven.” – Mrs. Bird

·         “That was amazing.” – Jonathan Brown (Samuel Joslin)

·         “In one hundred yards, bare left.”  - Andre the Thief looks up and sees Paddington bear on his left

·         “It’s a hard stare.  My aunt taught me to do them when people have forgotten their manners.” - Paddington

Tips for Parents:

·         The villain (Nicole Kidman as Millicent) is a woman who wants to kill and stuff Paddington to keep in a museum.

·         There is an odd, sexual innuendo interaction between Mr. Brown and the guard of the archives in the museum.

·         Mrs. Bird (Julie Walters) gets a guard drunk.

Vampire Academy now on DVD for those suffering Twilight withdrawals

The newest DVD to hit store shelves this week is:

Movie Title:   Vampire Academy

PG-13, 1 hour 45 minutes

Grade:   C-

 

In a Nutshell:   Juno meets Harry Potter meets Twilight meets Mean Girls meets terrible movie.  It could have been fun if it were designed to be a spoof.  Alas, brothers Daniel and Mark Waters have created crass characters with lots of hormones and little class.  It could be considered a guilty pleasure if you’re a teenager girl who has read the book and can’t get enough of vampire flicks.

 

Uplifting theme:   In the words of (NO spoiler alert): “Blood is what connects us all.  Blood is sustenance.  Blood is family.  Blood is pain and blood is death.” 

Things I liked:

• Ummm…

 Things I didn’t like:

• Snarky dialogue that tried too hard to be cool.
• Monologuing villains
• The ending leaves an opening for a sequel.  Please, no!

 Funny lines:

• “Stopping is for losers.”  -  Rose
• “A female, especially one who lives off of blood and magic, is going to have her mood swings.”  - Rose
• “They say Dimitri is a God.  Well, I’m an Atheist…an atheist with a big gun.” = Spiridion
• “Please don’t say Vampire Academy.  You know how I feel about the V word.” – Lissa Dragomire
• “Weird doesn’t begin to cover it.” – Rose
• “Stop staring at each other all gooey-like.”  - Rose
• “There’s a fine line between concerned and stalker.” - Rose

Tips for parents:   Lots of sassy words on the verge of profanity, inappropriate topics for young kids, pre-marital relations, talk of losing virginity, blood, violence.  Maybe the books are better?

Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters gets a big waterlogged

Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters movie review

One of the best words to describe this sequel to PercyJackson and the Olympians: The Lightening Thief is “demi-good.”  If you enjoyed the first movie, you’ll get a kick out of seeing the characters move on to another adventure.  If you felt the first movie was mediocre, I’ll warn you that this sequel is more cheesy than ever.

If you’re completely unfamiliar with the Percy Jackson books by Rick Riordan or the first movie, it helps to know that they’re based on Greek myths, bringing classical characters to life with a modern twist.  Unfortunately, the characters in the movie are a bit one-dimensional and the acting certainly won’t win anyone any Oscar nominations.

Kids between 6 and 15 will probably enjoy it, but most adults will experience a mixture of mild humor and rolling of the eyes. The dialogue is pretty lame, such as when the Greek god Hermes says “Rome wasn’t built in a day….trust me, I was there.”  On the other hand, he later tosses a golden nugget when talking about the “Hercules Show” and says “It was the best TV show ever.  So, of course it was canceled.”    Who hasn’t experienced that?  I laughed out loud during one of his sycophant moments when he said “I am killing these shorts.”

The entire movie felt like I was on a Disneyland ride.  Now, I enjoy the “Pirates of a Caribbean” ride at Disneyland, but you have to admit it’s pretty cheesy and tired.  There is some mention of “half-bloods” and this movie franchise seems to try a little too hard to replace our beloved “Harry Potter” flicks.

Die-hard Percy Jackson fans say the movies aren't completely true to the books, yet satisfying enough to make for a fun ride.

Grade: B-

Parental guidance:  The language is clean, and appropriate for family viewing, but small children may be frightened by some of the scary scenes.

Percy Jackson and the Olympians creates a teen following

 
The newest teen movie Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters is in theaters nationwide and before I review it, I felt like I had to at least watch the first one.  Better late than never, right?


Directed by Chris Columbus, who loves to make movies where teens are the heroes who save the day, The Lightning Thief (Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Book 1) is the popular book series' first venture onto the big screen.  Like Percy says: "It's like high school without the musical."

 In a nutshell, a teenage boy suddenly discovers that he's the son of the mighty Poseidon and he sets off on a journey to save his mother (a mere mortal) and prevent a terrible battle between the other Greek gods on Mount Olympus. Percy is taken to Camp Half-Blood (sounds like Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince , right?) where he learns fighting skills and shows that he has what it takes.

It's a fun mixture of mythical characters and modern exploration into various dimensions.  It doesn't quite capture the Harry Potter magic that Chris Columbus is now famous for, but your pre-teens will enjoy it, especially if they've read any of the fantasy books by Rick Riordan.  Fans will tell you that the movie franchise is loosely based on the books, but it's close enough to leave them satisfied with the effort.

Logan Lerman plays the gutsy Percy who can stay under water for over 7 minutes in a swimming pool at the beginning of the movie because that's the place where he "can think."   Brandon Jackson (Grover) stars as Percy's best friend/comic-relief/secret guardian/half goat/junior protector who tries to earn his horns for watching over Poseidon's son.  The lovely Alexandra Daddario plays the aloof love interest (Annabeth) and Jake Abel provides the twist in the plot.  (Spoiler alert)

I loved seeing the beautiful Uma Thurman as the snake-covered Medusa and the gorgeous Rosario Dawson as Persephone, the bride of Hades.  Two beauties who are terrific actresses who can also sing very well.  I have a hard time with Pierce Brosnan, however.  I used to think he was so handsome, sophisticated, and charming when he played 007 in several James Bond flicks, but after his singing fiasco in Mamma Mia! The Movie , I just can't look at him the same.  He plays a wise centaur and, luckily, there is no singing.  The special effects in the film are a bit rough, but still pretty fun.

Because I currently live in Las Vegas, I got a kick out of the three teen heroes' visit to Sin City where they were sucked into the glitz and glamor of the Lotus casino.  The sign on the casino says "You Will Never Want To Leave" and the teens realize, after 5 days of partying, that their senses have indeed been dulled and that they lost track of time.  So true of Vegas.  By the way, there really was a Lotus Casino in Las Vegas, but it closed in 1978.  Casinos in Vegas don't have windows, so you really do lose track of time.   The Unofficial Guide to Las Vegas 2013 (Unofficial Guides)

On a spiritual note, it's the father's voice that finally reminds them to get back to their mission.  Can you recognize your Heavenly Father's voice?  Do you know what your mission is?
 
As the teen trio enters the Underworld, they are told it is a pace where "wishes never come true, a scrapheap of human misery, and a place of lost hopes and dreams."  While the Percy Jackson films may not be as complex and artistic as those deserving Oscar wins, they keep the young-at-heart dreaming of adventurous fantasies and noble accomplishments.  Dreaming is good.


Grade = B

Parental warning: No bad language.  Scenes entering Hades are a bit scary for young children, including bodies grabbing at the teen heroes. Hades appears as a frightening and fiery monster twice.