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Rating: B+
Many have come to know and love the wonderful imagination of J.K. Rowling through books and films depicted via the Harry Potter franchise. In 2016 fans were delighted to see that her creative juices didn’t stop with the Harry Potter adventures when her 2001 novelFANTASTIC BEASTS AND WHERE TO FIND THEM came to life on the big screen. The film, which is the first of five, delighted moviegoers across the globe. Just in time for the 2018 holiday season, the second installment is hitting theaters. Will FANTASTIC BEASTS: THE CRIMES OF GRINDLEWALD: continue to delight moviegoers and become another JK Rowling’s classic?
The film picks up with the under-handed and shape-shifting wizard Grindelwald (Johnny Depp) escaping from prison so he can rally his followers and start a movement to take over the world. Grindelwald believes that wizards are the superior race and should rule over the mugglles (mortal humans). With aspirations to lead an army against the human race, Grindelwald flees to Paris where he believes lies the key to a dark force that will give him the power he needs to take over the world.
Albus Dumbledore (Jude Law), Hogwart’s teacher of the dark arts, approaches his former student Newt (Eddie Redmayne) and convinces him to go to Paris to stop Grindelwald from creating havoc. The shy lovable whisperer to magical creatures is reluctant at first but then decides to honor his teacher’s request. Once in Paris, Newt’s mission gets complicated because his former love Tina (Katherine Waterston) is also in Paris investigating wizarding business. Tina proves to be a distraction because Newt is still in love with the beautiful young enchanter who mistakenly thinks that Newt is engaged to someone else. Joining him in Paris are Queenie (Alison Sudol), an adorable mind-reader, and her fiancé the kind-hearted endearing Jacob (Dan Fogler) Theseus (Callum Turner), Newt’s brother who is trying to help restore his brother’s battered reputation in the wizard community, along with his girlfriend Leta Lestrange (Zoë Kravitz) also wind up in Paris which only complicates things further. There are many twists and turns in the storyline that answer many questions that in turn lead to more questions as the battle between Grindelwald and those who oppose him begins.
One of the best things for the Beast Franchise is the introduction of Jude Law as Dumbledore. Perfect for the role, Law does not try to recreate the role that was played by Richard Harris and Michael Gambon as the older version of the character. Instead Law brings to light Dumbledore’s charisma, charm and mystery with elegance and finesse. Johnny Depp, playing the radical Nazi like villain, doesn’t get enough screen time and he has comes off as very stereotypical. There is a missed opportunity to create a memorable character with various layers to what motivates his actions. Hopefully in the next sequel more attention will be paid to developing the Grindelwald‘s character. Eddie Redmayne is still as likeable in this second installment as he was in the first. He plays a man with an innocent trusting quality that never waivers no matter what craziness are going on around him. Reprising their roles as Queenie and Jacob, both Alison Sudol and Dan Fogler is a welcoming site as the actors bring more depth to their roles.
True to form director David Yates and his team bring plenty of visual wonders for the eye to absorb. The prison escape, capturing large menacing mystical creatures, and an ice fire battle at the end all make for some great special effects that audiences have come to expect from fantasy films. Some of the quieter moments, which include the escapades of a pick-pocketing Nifffler ( a small cute rodent creature), the mantis called Pickett that loyally sticks to Newt like glue, and a lion like cat called a Zouwu that turns into a kitten when a toy is waved in front of its eyes, also offer up some memorable CGI effects.
At times there is so much going on that the film feels a bit maniac and confusing. The storyline strays during much of film and thankfully manages to come somewhat back together by the end so that moviegoers will be able to make some sense of what is actually going on. Overall FANTASTIC BEASTS: THE CRIMES OF GRINDLEWALD is an engaging and entertaining film. All the mysteries left unsolved in the tale leave lots of room for excitement for what’s to come in upcoming sequels.
