Why didn't people go see "Fantastic Beasts"?

DaCosta

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I didn't go because my opinion on the Harry Potter movies ranges from fucking awful all the way to meh, and considering I never mustered the courage to power through either of the Deathly Hallows to complete the set, I wasn't going to take a chance on a spin off.

I really loved the books. Even if I haven't read them ever since Deathly Hallows came out, the only one I never re-read, I guess the conclusion has kind of made me feel like I was done with it too, that doesn't change the love I did have for them. The movies on the other hand are rushed, lack characterization and world-building, focus too much on the action for my taste and, this was somewhat a problem in the book but it's exacerbated in a visual medium, the battles they love so much lack a sense of wonder and of magic really, and are essentially just pewpewpew lasers back and forth.

For what it's worth, I watched Fantastic Beasts after it came out on DVD and streaming and it was easily the best Harry Potter film I saw. It was the only one that felt like a complete story, as opposed to a rushed abridged version of a story that was told properly elsewhere, which makes sense since it was the only one that was written to be a movie from the start. Even Newt's animals helped make the action scenes more lively than usual.

When the sequel comes out I might actually check it out on theaters, something I haven't bothered to do ever since Prisoner of Azkaban.
 

bjj hero

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I felt it was a cash grab to base it i America when everything about Potter was so very British.

They missed a trick really. I would have made a faux documentary like Atenborough or March of the penguins. Only with Griffons, Manticore and Chimera. That is a film worth seeing.
 

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bjj hero said:
I felt it was a cash grab to base it i America when everything about Potter was so very British.

They missed a trick really. I would have made a faux documentary like Atenborough or March of the penguins. Only with Griffons, Manticore and Chimera. That is a film worth seeing.
Americanising something usually turn me off. Also, splitting the last book into two movies felt like a cash grab as well
 

Kae

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I was never into Harry Potter so even though I did watch the mainline movies with my friends, well with a spin-off, who cares?

I mean a spin-off of a franchise that I feel Lukewarm about at most that received middling critical reception, pretty much seems like a skip movie.
 

Saelune

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Cause it wasnt a Marvel film nor made by Key and/or Peele.
 

Natemans

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Samtemdo8 said:
Thaluikhain said:
The idea of a prequel spin off set in the US is a bit "meh" to begin with, but in the run up to the film it looks like they made quite a few dubious casting and plot choices that put people off.
If anything derseves a prequal its the life of the major adult charcaters and the events of the First Wizarding War.

Severus Snape, Lily and James Potter, Voldemort, Sirius Black, Lucius Malfoy, Dumbledore, etc.
That's what the sequels are for since they announced it.

Also I'm probably the only one who felt like Fantastic Beasts felt like an episode of Doctor Who.
 

Samtemdo8_v1legacy

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Natemans said:
Samtemdo8 said:
Thaluikhain said:
The idea of a prequel spin off set in the US is a bit "meh" to begin with, but in the run up to the film it looks like they made quite a few dubious casting and plot choices that put people off.
If anything derseves a prequal its the life of the major adult charcaters and the events of the First Wizarding War.

Severus Snape, Lily and James Potter, Voldemort, Sirius Black, Lucius Malfoy, Dumbledore, etc.
That's what the sequels are for since they announced it.

Also I'm probably the only one who felt like Fantastic Beasts felt like an episode of Doctor Who.
I thought it was fan film that was being made? They confirmed a major hollywood film about such a concept?
 

Cowabungaa

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I didn't see it, but I can't really tell you why, honestly. I was very much sold on the concept, but for some reason excitement dried up? My physical therapist didn't exactly drum up excitement either when she said it felt too American. Not a good thing for a British series, so I never ended up watching it and don't really plan to either.
Samtemdo8 said:
Because at this point they are now milking the cow dry.
One spin-off film counts as 'milking the cow dry' already, huh? Sheesh...
 

Natemans

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Samtemdo8 said:
Natemans said:
Samtemdo8 said:
Thaluikhain said:
The idea of a prequel spin off set in the US is a bit "meh" to begin with, but in the run up to the film it looks like they made quite a few dubious casting and plot choices that put people off.
If anything derseves a prequal its the life of the major adult charcaters and the events of the First Wizarding War.

Severus Snape, Lily and James Potter, Voldemort, Sirius Black, Lucius Malfoy, Dumbledore, etc.
That's what the sequels are for since they announced it.

Also I'm probably the only one who felt like Fantastic Beasts felt like an episode of Doctor Who.
I thought it was fan film that was being made? They confirmed a major hollywood film about such a concept?
I mainly say that because the film reminded me of Doctor Who. You have a main British guy who looks like Matt Smith's 11th Doctor, travels to a new location, meets a human companion who is meant to be the audience's perception of this reality, gets into a conflict that involves trying to help a bad guy to be good and an object bigger on the inside.
 

Arnoxthe1

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Wow, there's a lot of hate in this thread. I must be the only one that really liked it.

No, it doesn't have any of the usual Potter cast, but you know what? GOOD. We've had 7 whole books and 8 films about those people. It's time to move on FFS. That arc is finished. Why can't we start another one?

We complain that Hollywood doesn't take enough chances but when they did take a chance with this movie, people didn't want to see it or they just got mad. Some are even throwing it overboard simply because it doesn't have the Potter cast in it. Really? Are we for real here?
 

scw55

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Concern it was a shallow cash grab.
I had that concern with Rogue One and loved that film.
So I am a hypocrite.
Still sceptic about seeing the film. I didn't adore the Harry Potter films, to begin with.
 

springheeljack

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I saw it and I thought it was a good movie. I loved the book Fantastic Beasts so it was cool to see how many creatures I could recognize in the film. I thought the story and setting was okay. I wasn't blown away by it but I did enjoy it.
I think the sort of lukewarm response was probably due to the 6 year time gap and the fact that Harry Potter was not in the tittle. Honestly the movie earned over 800 million dollars so people definitely saw the movie.
The fact that the movie was able to do that well while only being a spin off that's hardly connected in any way to the original source material is nothing if not a success
 

Samtemdo8_v1legacy

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Natemans said:
Samtemdo8 said:
Natemans said:
Samtemdo8 said:
Thaluikhain said:
The idea of a prequel spin off set in the US is a bit "meh" to begin with, but in the run up to the film it looks like they made quite a few dubious casting and plot choices that put people off.
If anything derseves a prequal its the life of the major adult charcaters and the events of the First Wizarding War.

Severus Snape, Lily and James Potter, Voldemort, Sirius Black, Lucius Malfoy, Dumbledore, etc.
That's what the sequels are for since they announced it.

Also I'm probably the only one who felt like Fantastic Beasts felt like an episode of Doctor Who.
I thought it was fan film that was being made? They confirmed a major hollywood film about such a concept?
I mainly say that because the film reminded me of Doctor Who. You have a main British guy who looks like Matt Smith's 11th Doctor, travels to a new location, meets a human companion who is meant to be the audience's perception of this reality, gets into a conflict that involves trying to help a bad guy to be good and an object bigger on the inside.
They split a movie into 2 parts man. They should have nutted up and made it a 4 hour movie like the ones from the pass that had intermissions like Lawrence of Arabia.
 

Tsun Tzu

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I read that as "Fantastic Breasts and Where to Find Them."

I will be disappointed if that's not the porn parody title.

But yeah. It's not 'Harry Potter and the Etc.' So, automatically lower interest from general movie-going audiences.

Personally, I forgot the movie even came out.
 

Johnny Novgorod

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Because it looks like an obvious cash grab aimed at the USA demographic (you're part of the wizarding world too, Charlie Brown!). Ten bucks says China follows. Also who gives a shit about Eddie Redmayne. Also who cares about Harry Potter anymore. Also Rowling licensed her creation to some hacks to churn out Harry Potter 8 and the reaction probably affected the enthusiasm for the movie.
 

Shoggoth2588

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I didn't go to see this movie because I'm upset that it was an aciton-adventure sort of movie that just happened to feature the titular fantastic beasts. I've said from the very first announcement that this movie should have been a Planet Earth/Walking with Dinosaurs/March of the Penguins style documentary style film. It never would have happened but what I think of when I hear "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" is a series of vignettes showcasing a mixture of creatures from classical mythology/religious texts mixed with the handful of original creatures made up for the Harry Potter series. Just give me a movie where Newt Scamander or his Grandson (accompanied by Luna Lovegood) are talking over footage of their latest expedition to find a Lethifold (for Mr. Scamander-Lovegood) and a Crumplehorned-Snorkack (for Mrs. Scamander-Lovegood). Just give me great, high-quality nature scenes of Unicorns, Dragons, Hippogriphs, Doxies, etc in their natural habitats doing their Predator/Prey thing with a narrative track over it and I'm golden! Show me a Unicorn giving birth! I've never seen that in a film before and the HP Universe puts Unicorns on a nice pedestal, it would have been great to see them as fresh-born...baby...Fowls(?)

Instead of seeing a Harry Potter themed Planet Earth though we got what looked like a pedestrian, run-of-the-mill, action-adventure thing that tacks on new continuity to the Harry Potter universe that nobody asked for.
 

Wrex Brogan

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I didn't go to see it because I'm just... bored with the Harry Potter universe, honestly. JK's constant updates post-finish and the pretty... low-quality of those updates really burned me out on any interest, and the rather 'Standard Hollywood Design' of the movie killed the rest of it.
 

gorfias

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Thaluikhain said:
The idea of a prequel spin off set in the US is a bit "meh" to begin with, but in the run up to the film it looks like they made quite a few dubious casting and plot choices that put people off.
I tend to dislike prequels to begin with. They seem lazy but worse: they don't advance the story. (Latest exception is "Better Call Saul" but that may be working for me as the later stories seem irrelevant.)

Now, give me a Harry Potter Universe that moves the story forward...
 

Natemans

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Samtemdo8 said:
Natemans said:
Samtemdo8 said:
Natemans said:
Samtemdo8 said:
Thaluikhain said:
The idea of a prequel spin off set in the US is a bit "meh" to begin with, but in the run up to the film it looks like they made quite a few dubious casting and plot choices that put people off.
If anything derseves a prequal its the life of the major adult charcaters and the events of the First Wizarding War.

Severus Snape, Lily and James Potter, Voldemort, Sirius Black, Lucius Malfoy, Dumbledore, etc.
That's what the sequels are for since they announced it.

Also I'm probably the only one who felt like Fantastic Beasts felt like an episode of Doctor Who.
I thought it was fan film that was being made? They confirmed a major hollywood film about such a concept?
I mainly say that because the film reminded me of Doctor Who. You have a main British guy who looks like Matt Smith's 11th Doctor, travels to a new location, meets a human companion who is meant to be the audience's perception of this reality, gets into a conflict that involves trying to help a bad guy to be good and an object bigger on the inside.
They split a movie into 2 parts man. They should have nutted up and made it a 4 hour movie like the ones from the pass that had intermissions like Lawrence of Arabia.
I'm not really saying the 2 part thing. I'm just pointing out the similarities. Also most films nowadays don't need to be 4 hour movies. A problem with that is regarded to the story, its pacing and the extra fat in it based on that runtime. The first Fantastic Beasts doesn't need to be 2 parts or even a 4 hour movie. My biggest problem with Fantastic Beasts And Where to Find Them is that it feels like too much setup for a franchise with not much for interesting characters or story. That and the similarities kinda distract me.