Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (2016)

Most people think so. 81% of audiences gave it a thumbs up based on 19,564 votes. Critics gave it 70%.

In 1926, Newt Scamander arrives at the Magical Congress of the United States of America with a magically expanded briefcase, which houses a number of dangerous creatures and their habitats. When the creatures escape from the briefcase, it sends the American wizarding authorities after Newt, and threatens to strain even further the state of magical and non-magical relations. Wikipedia ↗

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them is a 2016 British-American fantasy film directed by David Yates and written by J.K. Rowling in her screenwriting debut. Set in 1926 New York City, decades before the events of the Harry Potter series, the film follows Newt Scamander, played by Eddie Redmayne, a British magizoologist who arrives in America carrying a magically expanded suitcase filled with an extraordinary collection of magical creatures.

When several creatures escape into the city, Newt must recapture them while navigating the rigid laws of the Magical Congress of the United States of America and uncovering a dark conspiracy threatening both the wizarding and non-wizarding worlds. The film represented an ambitious expansion of the Wizarding World franchise beyond Hogwarts and the British Isles, introducing American wizarding culture with its own terminology, institutions, and social dynamics. Eddie Redmayne's portrayal of Newt — an introverted, socially awkward naturalist more comfortable with magical creatures than people — was a deliberate departure from the traditional heroic protagonist model.

The 1920s New York setting allowed production designer Stuart Craig to create sumptuous period environments, from speakeasy-style wizarding establishments to the Art Deco grandeur of MACUSA headquarters. The film's most innovative sequences took place inside Newt's suitcase, which contained complete ecosystems for his menagerie of creatures. Fantastic Beasts earned $814 million worldwide, though the franchise would face increasing commercial and critical challenges in subsequent installments.

The film's visual effects, particularly the creature designs, were praised and earned an Academy Award for Best Visual Effects.