Public Enemies (2009)

This sat on my list for a long time before my friend and I were looking at possibilities. The same friend had rewatched Road to Perdition with me, so I'm not surprised he wanted another gangster flick that briefly includes Frank Nitti (Bill Camp herein).

As the title implies, the story concerns multiple notorious criminals, but they've been pared down quite a bit from the Bryan Burrough novel. Most of the focus is on John Dillinger (Johnny Depp in one of his last normal-looking roles), starting with his 1933 arrival at -- and immediate break from -- Indiana State Prison, so he's already notorious. When he's not committing armed robbery or having standoffs with law enforcement, he's wooing one Billie Frechette (Marion Cotillard) from the moment he lays eyes on her. The other major focal character is FBI Agent Melvin Purvis (Christian Bale), in charge of the pursuit.

Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald (2018)

This movie is not getting ratings as high as I thought when my dad and I went to see it. Part of that may be backlash against now-scandalous Johnny Depp as the title character, but that's not the only reason. Things get pretty different from the immediate predecessor.

The year is 1927, and most of the events take place in Paris. If you were hoping to see Voldemort forerunner Gellert Grindelwald go on trial, I'm afraid he escapes in the midst of extradition to Britain early on. (Even when playing a wanted murderer laying low, Depp refuses to look ordinary on screen anymore.) His objective is to find Credence Barebone (Ezra Miller), the young adult wizard finally in control of his immense powers, and recruit him to slaughter or subjugate all muggles. Albus Dumbledore (Jude Law), presently a Defense Against the Dark Art professor, taps beast collector Newt Scamander (Eddie Redmayne) to reach Credence and talk him out of that crusade. In addition to the obvious challenges, Newt must contend with a distrustful Ministry of Magic and one Yusuf Kuma (William Nadylam), who wants to kill Credence for personal reasons.

The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus (2009)

Much as I dug Monty Python in my teens, I get nervous about checking out Terry Gilliam-directed movies. I liked Twelve Monkeys but found Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas unwatchable. This one, despite its so-so reception, intrigued me with the visual artistry shown in the preview; I could at least expect that much.

The titular object is a sort of magic mirror that allows you to step into a realm shaped by the imaginations of you and whoever else is there. Despite this fascinating quality, few modern Londoners show any interest in the old-fashioned carnival-style presentation by Dr. Parnassus (Christopher Plummer) and his comrades. Those who do enter tend to be given a choice between a tough self-improvement plan and the seductive path of sin...to death, which may explain why the police keep showing up. But these aren't the heaviest things weighing on Parnassus' mind: The devil (Tom Waits), going by "Mr. Nick," is about to call on him for an immortality fee, namely daughter Valentina (Lily Cole), because this is one of those stories where you can sell others' souls. Things start to look up when Mr. Nick offers a new wager: The first to draw five souls to the corresponding goal in the Imaginarium wins Valentina. And the souls start coming fast with an enigmatic new barker, Tony (Heath Ledger*).

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (2016)

Dr. Strange is a tough act to follow, and here I am following it with another major studio's massive spectacle about sorcery. But as a fan of both the Harry Potter books and the accompanying booklet of the same title, I eagerly accepted my parents' invitation to see it with them on Thanksgiving.

Given the booklet's existence as a mere fictional bestiary, this could not really be an adaptation in the same sense as the HP movies. Instead, it's about a brief adventure of wizard Newt Scamander (Eddie Redmayne) in 1926, the year before his bestiary is said to be published. Since Harry's main set of adventures takes place in the '90s, we get none of the same actors and very few familiar names -- apart from Newt, just occasional mentions of headmaster Albus Dumbledore and his fugitive former friend Gellert Grindelwald. Author J.K. Rowling did write the story, so we can still count on it for fidelity -- and indeed, it still feels like the same realm.

At this point, Newt's not doing any biology research exactly. He comes to New York City in order to look for a rare beast to acquire. Unfortunately, he brings several other magical beasts in a magical suitcase that is not as secure as needed. This garners the undesired attention of random non-wizard Jacob Kowalski (Dan Fogler) and disgraced policewitch Tina Goldstein (Katherine Waterston), the latter of whom would have Newt punished and Jacob's memory wiped immediately if not for compromising circumstances. The bigger problem comes when something publicly kills in a way that no normal animal could. Newt insists it's none of his pets, but he takes it upon himself to determine what it is and how they can stop it before the whole city knows that magic exists.

Into the Woods (2014)

Yup, a second mashup of kiddie folklore featuring Chris Pine in the same day. My family has a strange habit or inadvertent tradition of seeing unhappy musical movies on Christmas: Sweeney Todd, Les Miserables, even Inside Llewyn Davis in a pinch. I wanted us to see something else but was narrowly outvoted, partly on the basis of schedule. At least this one has a partly happy and victorious ending.

I'd seen the play as a teen and reacted as many viewers do: The first act is cute fun, but the second is uncomfortably dark to subvert the idea of "happily ever after." The junior version understandably drops the second act, thereby missing Stephen Sondheim's point. If you already know the story, you may well wonder why Disney would dare touch it. I figure the company has been trying to subvert its own history at least since Enchanted in 2007, no doubt inspired by the likes of Shrek. The results are usually pretty popular, but that doesn't stop Disney from reverting to standard fare, as evidenced by a trailer for a live-action Cinderella. In the case of ItW, things have been toned down slightly in questionable good-guy ethics and body count, but it still feels about as dark as Disney ventures.