Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald

The sequel to Fantastic Beasts is quite a stylish film. It looks very nice, and all those pre-war aesthetics and costumes spiced up with witch elements are pleasing to the eyes. But the drama is a bit lazy, Mlok and the animals don't play a major role, Grindelwald appears for only a few minutes... Somehow, it failed to add life to these refined images. (12/08/2022)

The production is so well tailored to patient Potter fans that it's killing me, as it doesn't stand a chance of being heartfelt for anyone else. It has everything, but most of it in such trace amounts that anyone who isn't satisfied by the fact that it's mostly just a glimpse at historical parallels and genealogical research will be disappointed. Once again, the most introverted action hero of all time takes us through the world of both magic and non-magic, but for those who haven't spent the past two years exploring diverse fan theories, the moments when new species of animals want to enchant us again in a hundred and one ways are not enough. The world of the audience has understandably begun to forget, and it will be even worse in two years' time. Although Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald lends tension and anticipation to the story wonderfully, this time it isn't the usual closed dramatic arc that we are accustomed to from the wizarding world. It is explicitly assumed that the viewer remembers even the more fleeting emotional moments from the first installment and the third installment again leaves a very precarious foundation for an open ending, a narrative betrayal unknown to the Hogwarts saga. I understand the audience's confusion: it is not possible to turn to the books for hints and answers, which many of them still consider a betrayal by J.K. Rowling. I don't, because I am extremely grateful that this world can open up to us again and again, and I barely breathed during the touching nostalgia of the outlines of that most beautiful castle. The change of scenery is finally complete, the deceit is over. (03/12/2018)

Every sequel between the first and potentially last installment of Fantastic Beasts (not only) has the unfortunate function of being a connector between the adventures – something that must be taken into account when watching the film. After two years, we return to a magical world that is slowly beginning to split into two camps, which includes close friends. The film sees the return of many old familiar characters and animals (Niffler is the Scrat of feature films) and the addition of others we've met many times in the Harry Potter saga (Dumbledore, Flamel, Nagini), so we come a little closer to the films we basically grew up on. Personally, I'd cut back on the relationship peripeties, they aren’t entirely necessary (Newt + Tina, Leta + Theseus, Queenie + Jacob) and add where it has more potential (Dumbledore + Grindelwald), which hopefully we'll see in future installments. I liked the unraveling of the story around Leta and Credence, though in the latter case it was a bit overdone by the end, but we'll be see how it develops further. It should be noted, however, that they have failed to significantly tap into the potential that this series abounds with, which in this case is a shame. In the end, this is a sequel that I had fun with in the cinema, and I was treated to some impressively shot scenes, but all the time I had in mind the fact that it could have been done in a different way than as a sequence of a few plot twists and new questions, which, although it set the stage for the next film, made the whole thing feel a bit sketchy – a thankless function of the middle films in a series, but one that can be avoided. P.S. I wonder how it is that IMDb lists McGonagall, who should be -8 years old at the time, among the characters? (15/11/2018)

I'm very satisfied, unless you count the fact that I went to the cinema three times, as I didn't get to see the film because tickets were sold out. I liked the world of Harry Potter because great wizard fantasy is scarce, so when it was discontinued I had no choice but to hope something similar would come along, and Fantastic Beasts is a great substitute (like The Hobbit for Lord of the Rings). Compared to Harry the casting is much better. Johnny Depp as the bad guy is excellent and finally appears in a film that won't flop financially, Jude Law as the young Dumbledore is great, and though I don’t Eddie Redmayne’s weird expression, he is a young undoubtedly talented Oscar winning actor, so it's worth a try. The production design is great and the return to the familiar world is pleasantly nostalgic, the numerous Easter Eggs are a delight, the action is decently handled, although there isn't much of it, and the finale with the blue fire dragon is spectacular. I can strongly feel that the cards are still being dealt and something big is being promised, but I don't mind it at all, because the first two episodes of Harry Potter were similar and since Azkaban it's was a ride. I'm looking forward to the pentalogy. 75%. (29/11/2018)

I didn't expect that. After the previous film, which I really liked, came the second installment from the very same creators... And it's so much worse. Boredom, familiar characters who suddenly didn't matter to me, and new characters who were quite similar, their shallow dialogues, action scenes without many ideas and the attractions named Johnny Depp and Jude Law are barely used. While the previous film revealed new chapters of the Harry Potter world and enlarged it pleasantly, this one just strangely tangles it. Two and a half. (23/11/2018)