Review of Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald (2018) by Jocelyn C — 20 Nov 2018

First off, screw all the so called critics' reviews. I read these reviews, before watching this movie, which basically claimed this movie was bad and not worth the time. And now, after having watched the movie, I believe these critics have only ever watched the first Harry Potter film, and from then on simply decided they are well informed enough to pass critique on rest of the future films from the franchise. (If some these critics are the same people who praised The Last Jedi as cinematic masterpiece and best storytelling ever seen on screen, then more reason for me to ignore RT critics.).

Now the movie, it is not perfect. It has its flaws and stumbles along the duration of its run. But it is far from being a complete mess, or waste of time altogether. The movie introduces new characters to further the world and hence the narrative. They are all woven, each given just enough time for the viewer to see and understand the characters' current standing in their lives, in the story, and their dilemmas.

I don't know what everyone expected from the 2nd movie of a 5-part story arc but all I have to say is this movie gives the pieces and builds up for future events to take place. Why anyone expected this movie to give full resolution for every plot line or character arc this early, in a clearly larger arc story, is beyond me. The movie was well paced enough to not make any portion to boring. Patience is something people need to exercise if you want a satisfying story.

It's too early to make harsh comments like JRK has lost the plot, or has ruined the story. Harry Potter was a 7 book series and even in the final chapters revelations for the earliest details were made. If you've read her other books outside of HP books, you'll know how JKR plays with her story telling devices and leads them all for a final conclusion. I would like to give her a chance and will refrain from passing final judgements, it's still her world and story to tell, we can all act entitled as much as we like. She created this and we should let her have her say before we decide if we want it or not.

The actors do their jobs admirably. Eddie as Newt Scamander is just as charming as in the first, his character is beginning to find his footing in the story narrative, and I'm curious to see where and how he goes from here. Jude Law as Dumbledore is hands down the impressive performance of this movie for me. Johnny Depp as Grindelwald is good, he can go places with this character given the time and screen time, seeing as his villain is not just a villain for the sake of it. Grindelwald is an interesting character, who play of people fear and insecurities, and is cunning in the way he goes about taking advantage of them for his gains. His reasons for his actions makes you want to listen to his side of things. I look forward for Johnny's future performances. Tina, Quenie, Jacon, Theseus, Credence, and Nagini are all still interesting and have the potential for great story arcs individually.

I'm willing to hope and wait to see where JKR will take this story.