Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald
Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald

Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald

2018Movie134 minEnglish

Gellert Grindelwald has escaped imprisonment and has begun gathering followers to his cause—elevating wizards above all non-magical beings. The only one capable of putting a stop to him is the wizard he once called his closest friend, Albus Dumbledore. However, Dumbledore will need to seek help from the wizard who had thwarted Grindelwald once before, his former student Newt Scamander, who agrees to help, unaware of the dangers that lie ahead. Lines are drawn as love and loyalty are tested, even among the truest friends and family, in an increasingly divided wizarding world.

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Insights

IMDb6.5/10
Rotten Tomatoes36%
Metacritic52/100
Google Users56%
Director: David YatesGenres: Fantasy, Adventure, Romance

Plot Summary

In an effort to thwart Gellert Grindelwald's plans of raising pure-blood wizards to rule over non-magical beings, Albus Dumbledore enlists his former student Newt Scamander. The mission, however, proves more treacherous than anticipated, forcing Dumbledore and Scamander to confront dark forces and question where their loyalties truly lie. As Grindelwald gathers followers, the wizarding world teeters on the brink of war, and old alliances are tested.

Critical Reception

Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald received a mixed-to-negative reception from critics and was considered a disappointment by many fans compared to its predecessor. While some praised the visual effects and certain performances, the film was widely criticized for its convoluted plot, excessive characters, and a perceived lack of focus. It performed below box office expectations for the franchise.

What Reviewers Say

  • The film suffers from an overstuffed plot and too many characters, leading to a muddled narrative.
  • While visually impressive, the story fails to engage, often feeling like a mere setup for future installments.
  • Performances, particularly from Jude Law as Dumbledore, are a highlight, but not enough to save the film from its narrative shortcomings.

Google audience: Audiences were divided, with many finding the plot overly complicated and lengthy. Some enjoyed the expansion of the wizarding world and character developments, while others felt it strayed too far from the charm of the original, citing a lack of clear direction.

Fun Fact

The character of Yusuf Kama was originally conceived as an older African wizard, but the role was later rewritten for actor William Nadylam and the character's backstory was significantly altered during production.

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My Review

TMDB Reviews

9 reviews
CinemaSerf

CinemaSerf

In order to thwart the evil "Grindelwald" (Johnny Depp) from creating his own Arian version of enforcers for the wizardly world, "Dumbledore" (Jude Law) drafts in his talented understudy "Newt" (Eddie Redmayne) to help him out. Unfortunatel...
GenerationofSwine

GenerationofSwin...

Well, there was one too many twists here and I only say that because it was unnecessary. The plot would have been cleaner if they just let that one go...and don't worry, you'll know what is being mentioned when you watch it. It would hav...
Martha

Martha

Confused, lost, Johnny Depp always awesome. I think the days of me playing in the Harry Potter world are over.
r96sk

r96sk

Better than its predecessor, even if I still didn't really dig it. <em>'Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald'</em> has more of a vibe about it, especially early on, and is marginally better paced. Overall, though, I'm kinda split ...
Gimly

Gimly

I re-watched the original _Fantastic Beasts_ today to prep for _Crimes of Grindelwald_ and it made me realise that the only reason I gave that first film a positive review was because of Queenie Goldstein. She's just **such** a sweetheart. ...
trineo03

trineo03

First of all, just like in the last movie the acting in this film is excellent but with a few exceptions. Eddie Redmayne was still excellent as Newt but I think he did a better job in the first film. Same thing with Dan Fogler who didn’t se...
Per Gunnar Jonsson

Per Gunnar Jonss...

The first Fantastic Beasts movie was excellent. It was a bright and magical adventure. This one is going down another path and I cannot say that I was overly thrilled by that. This movie is putting emphasis on political machinations, div...
Per Gunnar Jonsson

Per Gunnar Jonss...

The first Fantastic Beasts movie was excellent. It was a bright and magical adventure. This one is going down another path and I cannot say that I was overly thrilled by that. This movie is putting emphasis on political machinations, div...
geekr

geekr

_By JD Phillips, geekr.org_ The Harry Potter movies are great but one of the main flaws of the original franchise was the struggle the films had condensing the lengthy novels into movies under three hours. Despite the Fantastic Beasts se...