Crimes of Grindelwald attracts Harry Potter fans, anticipate next film

Harry Potter fans eagerly waited for Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, released Nov. 18, 2016. But it was not the end of the story. The long-anticipated sequel “Fantastic Beasts and the Crimes of Grindelwald” released in theaters, Nov. 16.

Even with the release of this Fantastic Beasts movie, the Harry Potter film crew made an announcement that the franchise anticipates a five-movie series, Oct. 2016. The Crimes of Grindelwald is the second out of five films.

This movie takes place nine months after its preceding movie, set in 1927. The movie begins in New York, where the first Fantastic Beasts movie was set, and shifts to Paris, France. The antagonist criminal Gellert Grindelwald (Johnny Depp) escapes from police custody while he’s being transferred from America to Europe.

The protagonist, Newt Scamander (Eddie Redmayne), is a magizoologist, which is, in short, a zoologist of magical beasts. He carries around what seems to be a regular suitcase in his travels, but it’s enchanted to have literal depth to it, so that inside, there is a zoo of magical beasts.

In the first movie, many of Scamander’s magical beasts escape. Newt teamed up with the unlikely acquaintances of Jacob Kowalski (Dan Fogler), Tina Goldstein (Katherine Waterston) and Queenie Goldstein (Alison Sudol) to clean up the mess he made by coming to America. But during their travels the group encounters a beast beyond their control – an obscurus.

The obscurus is a beast created by collective dark magic, but the one they discover is more powerful than any other Newt has seen. He, like most others, sees it as a creature to stop, but Gellert Grindelwald seeks to harness its power. The dark theme that continues through both Fantastic Beasts movies is perhaps the central contributor to why the movies are rated PG-13.

Each obscurus likes to take possession in children. This particularly powerful obscurus makes its home in a boy named Credence Barebone.

The main wizarding force of Britain, the Ministry of Magic, is on a hunt for Credence Barebone, but so is the escaped criminal Gellert Grindelwald and his band of followers. Albus Dumbledore (Jude Law), professor at the wizarding school Hogwarts, sends Newt to protect Credence and ultimately defeat Grindelwald.

Because of the already announced plans for three more sequels, Fantastic Beasts and the Crimes of Grindelwald does not draw a final conclusion to the main conflict. The individual plot, theme and climax all amount to suspense and anticipation for future films. Details about Fantastic Beasts 3 are very vague, but its release date is Nov. 20, 2020.

As for the overall rating of the movie, The Crimes of Grindelwald has received many different reactions because it is quite a controversial matter. There is the aspect of the plot, which has a few stumbling points worth noting. There are minor issues in the timeline of the story and places where unclear scenes needed to be explained.

Take other aspects of the movie into consideration, such as the action, the special effects, and the entertainment. View the movie in this lens and the positive sides become very clear.

The action in this film is undeniably present. From the prison breakout that introduces the film to the intense magical battles throughout the movie, the suspense entices viewers. The special effects relate to this aspect as well, using alluring visuals to draw more attention. The magical beasts and their special effects sway the audience to believe in the impossible. It is because of these factors that the entertainment of the film, supported by light touches of humor, is masterfully executed.

This movie is difficult to compare to its prequel, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. In the first, the main characters and plot are introduced, which is foundational to a great series. And yet, the second continues to lay on the foundation of the final resolution, coming in Fantastic Beasts 5.

A certain group called the Super Carlin Brothers compared this movie to Star Wars: The Last Jedi in their full movie review of The Crimes of Grindelwald. They put it this way: while The Last Jedi was a good movie, many Star Wars fans hated it; whereas with the Crimes of Grindelwald, it wasn’t a great movie in the little technicalities, but many Harry Potter fans love it.

Hollywood Reporter discusses their thoughts on the Crimes of Grindelwald film.

#FantasticBeasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald review: “The sequel has better and at times galvanizing special effects, a darker tone and a high-stakes battle between good and evil” https://t.co/TOZTkJMpIT

— Hollywood Reporter (@THR) November 18, 2018

The development of characters like Newt, Tina, Queenie and Jacob is portrayed marvelously by the actors and actresses and masterfully thought through by the director, David Yates, the Warner Bros. Company, and creator of the Harry Potter world, J. K. Rowling.

The theme that continues throughout the two movies is also quite compelling – the idea of manipulative deceit for personal gain versus doing what is right for all people. The protagonists seek to protect the peace, which means protecting the people, but the antagonists seek only power. Overall, this movie appeals to Harry Potter fans. The creative references and entertainment portion of the film makes it worth a watch to all.

I saw the movie at the Sierra Vista Cinemas 16, for about $10, and tickets are still available at many local theaters, such as Maya Cinemas, Edwards Fresno Stadium 22 and Imax, and Regal Manchester Stadium 16.

For more movie reviews, read the First Man movie review. For more articles, read Stuffed animal drive to benefit Valley Children’s Hospital.

David Tuck can be reached via email.

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