For those of you who have not seen "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them," there may be some spoilers in the article below.
A few weeks ago I had the pleasure of seeing a movie that has really lingered with me. Not many films have the capacity, or staying power, to become a part of you as a person. The movies that do have this capacity are special. For me, "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" is one of these movies, solely due to its main protagonist Newt Scamander.
Newt Scamander is very different from a lot of modern "heroes." Anyone who has seen the movie, regardless if they liked it or not, could probably tell you that Scamander is different. He's different from the lightsaber wielding warriors of Star Wars, the gun-toting generic protagonists of movies like Die Hard, and he is even different from the superheroes of comic book movies. Scamander is unique in that he is likely the most compassionate, pacifistic hero put to film (with the exception of the Doctor, from Doctor Who).
If you look at most of the heroes put to film, you will start to notice some commonalities, especially if you look at the male heroes. They are all warriors, they are often "mans-men," the pinnacle of the American male identity of strength and the ability to kill without care. And while the topic of violence as it relates to our society is a topic for another day, it plays a huge role in not only the uniqueness of Scamander but why he is so valuable to me.
Now don't get me wrong, I love Star Wars, comic book superheroes, and Die Hard; yet, I often find that I can ultimately relate to few of these characters. I like Luke Skywalker, and Obi Won Kenobi, but I find myself unable to fully relate to them. I enjoy them as characters, can relate to parts of them, but they don't seem to represent me. I am a compassionate man, who abhors violence in the real world. Yet, all of these characters seem to go to violence first, rather than last, as I would. Even Spiderman, perhaps the most relatable superhero, stops all of his villains by fighting them. Scamander is different from these heroes in that he is the one that I feel like I can identify with the most. He is kind, caring, compassionate, intelligent, a little shy, thoughtful, and only resorts to violence as a last resort.
In the film, Scamander does use spells and does do some "fighting," but he does so only as a last resort. He is not the most powerful wizard, he is not the strongest man, he is simply one of the most caring and thoughtful. His superpower is that he'll do whatever it takes to protect the fantastic creatures he protects. He tries to save the obscurus, a "monster" that in all reality is just a young boy who is scared and alone when most heroes would just find a way to kill the monster. Scamander is one of two characters that I feel like could actually be a good representation of who I am. I won't say that I am exactly like Scamander, as we have some different personality traits, but he is one of the closest I've seen on screen.
There is something really important and valuable in having someone you can relate to on so many levels be considered a hero. I know how much of an impact that can have because there is one other character I can really identify with, and that is the Doctor from Doctor Who. The Doctor is a pacifist who refuses to use weapons. He abhors violence and will try everything in his power to save even his enemies. The Doctor, like Scamander, doesn't fall into the stereotypical ideals of masculinity. The Doctor uses his intelligence and compassion to solve problems, never his strength. This is the antithesis of what most of our society would say is heroic for men, considering the fact that almost all of our heroes would refuse to show any compassion. The Doctor and Scamander break the stereotype of the emotionally unaware, and insensitive male that is commonly seen in fiction.
The first time I saw that there were characters like the Doctor in fiction, changed my life. I was in junior high when I first met the Doctor, and saw that being smart, emotional, intelligent, and compassionate was just as much, if not more, heroic than being strong and emotionless. It takes a strong man to kill a monster, it takes a stronger man to forgive one. When I was in junior high I felt alone and depressed. I wasn't good at sports and I didn't care about how much I could lift. These were all things I felt that "men" should do, yet I could do none of it. Feeling that way was deeply painful, but fortunately, I stumbled upon Doctor Who and found that I was just as important and heroic as anyone else could be. The Doctor taught me many lessons, but this was probably the most important to me. Newt Scamander fills the same exact niche, and I really welcome it. I hope that Scamander does for others what the Doctor did for me, and I hope even more that Scamander inspires a new generation of heroes.
We desperately need heroes like them.
