FILM: Le Visiteur

So you thought The Princess Bride was silly?
This is of the same ilk but sillier. 
A 12th century knight get accidentally sent to the end of the 20th Century by a wizard (who looks suspiciously like Merlin). 
Hilarity and chaos ensues. Our knight, Godefroy, finds the descendent of the woman he was supposed to marry, who is convinced he is her estranged cousin (they look so alike) who has gone mad and thinks he's a 12th century knight.
The descendent of the servant, Jacquouille, is rich and owns a large hotel and the two families still work closely together.
Jacquouille befriends a woman who lives on the streets.
While trying to convince everyone of their true identity, Godefrey and Jacquouille must find the descendent of the wizard to give them the right potion and send them back in time. 

The film is done brilliantly. It is a hilarious, light-hearted fun watch. 
Jean Reno, the wonderful french actor (who is known for much more serious roles!) is fabulous, somehow managing to keep a straight face. 
If you like Monty Python and The Princess Bride, I guarantee you'll like this film! Don't be put off by the fact that it's in French. If you're put off by subtitles, you're going to miss some of cinema's greatest films.

FILM - Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them

The wizarding world's new story - based on the non-fiction book referenced in Harry Potter, Fantastic Beats and Where to Find Them, written by Newt Scamander.
It explores the coming together of his to-be-written book which, later, makes him a famous magi-zoologist.
However, the writing of this book isn't the focus of the story. Newt has come to New York to find a rare creature for his suitcase - a suitcase which holds a huge sanctuary for endangered species and injured animals that Newt has saved and learned about in his travels.
His simple plan to retrieve one creature soon spirals out of control and his creatures manage to find their way out of his suitcase...in a society where wizards and muggles are more divided than ever.
The plot is set up nicely, with promise of a hilarious adventure, and the great Eddie Redmayne playing our main character.
However, I felt that the film didn't quite live up to the hype. There comes a time when a successful franchise just needs to stop - I think the world of Harry Potter has already gone on too long (don't get me wrong - I am a big HP fan).
There are two main characters in the film that I think they could have done without (the mind-reading flapper girl, and the baker); they're not very fleshed out characters. There are also quite a lot of plot holes - how is our detective woman an auror in the American ministry of magic when she's such a bumbling mess all the time? There are wizards and witches who can read minds (without having studied occlumency)? There are also a few issues with the rules set out in the wizarding world - eg wand law (but I won't go into that now as it's super-nerd stuff).

FILM: Miss Peregrine's Home For Peculiar Children

This film starts off really well.
Our protagonist, Jake, is a teenage boy with, what seems, quite a dull life and not very nice parents. We don't see much of his life at home other than one encounter with the 'cool kids' from school, which makes us assume he hasn't really got much of a life.
He was very close to his Grandfather growing up, who told him many fabulous stories about a home for children with special abilities.

The background to the plot is set out well. It does take up a bit too much time and introduces us to some unnecessary characters (I consider characters unnecessary when they haven't contributed to the development of the characters/plot), but we quickly understand the relationship between Grandfather and Grandson, and the essence of the film's plot. The Grandfather is played brilliantly by Terence Stamp. Unfortunately, this excellent choice of casting doesn't last long - Terence Stamp's character is frequently discussed but not seen very much.