Review of Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald (2018) by Weekend_Knights — 19 Nov 2018

Whilst calling Crimes of Grindelwald ‘filler’ would perhaps be unfair, on any view it is a film which scrapes by on the good name of its forebears – like an indolent child born of a prestigious family.

There is a definite sense that the lacklustre plot is held together by little more than the audiences’ collective anticipation of what is to come (i.e. the greatest wizarding duel of all time, the famed clash between Dumbledore and Grindelwald).

With that said, however, for those who enjoyed Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, this sequel is indubitably essential viewing. Whilst it’s not a wholly satisfying film in its own right, there’s enough of the old magic for it to be enjoyable, and it does what it needs to do to further the series; laying the foundations on which the subsequent instalments will stand.