Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore film review
Third movie in the Harry Potter spin-off series mostly delivers
I loved Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, the first film in this Harry Potter spin-off series, but found its 2018 follow-up, The Crimes of Grindelwald, “devoid of magic”, said Brian Viner in the Daily Mail. Now a third film (of the five planned) is here, and though it’s “overlong”, it marks a “return to form” for the franchise.
With the “excellent” Mads Mikkelsen replacing a disgraced Johnny Depp as the dark wizard Gellert Grindelwald, the movie confirms what was merely hinted at before: that he and his arch-enemy, Albus Dumbledore (Jude Law), were once lovers. The action, meanwhile, has moved from 1920s Paris to 1930s Berlin, where Grindelwald has become a “charismatic demagogue”. It is up to Dumbledore and his “magizoologist” protégé Newt (Eddie Redmayne, “a study in tousle-haired, lip-biting diffidence”) to thwart Grindelwald’s plans. The film has energy and wit in spades, but “you’ll need to have seen the first two” to keep up.
This is quietly radical stuff, said Kevin Maher in The Times: a studio blockbuster that “revolves around the emotional lives of two lovelorn gay men” (albeit without “hot snogs”). It hits all the right notes: there are lots of action set pieces, chases and some “thrilling wand-offs”; performances from the supporting cast are “tip-top”.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
I’m afraid I found it “less than wizard”, said Robbie Collin in The Daily Telegraph. It’s completely incoherent. Many sequences feel like “free-floating trailer fodder: surplus to plot requirements, but too expensive to cut”. There are some bits of Potter nostalgia shoved in to give the “bamboozled viewer something to cling to”. Such moments do provide some brief “jolts of delight” – but overall, “for these particular beasts, the glue factory beckons”.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
'Good riddance to the televised presidential debate'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Harold Maass, The Week US Published
-
Caitlin Clark the No. 1 pick in bullish WNBA Draft
Speed Read As expected, she went to the Indiana Fever
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Today's political cartoons - April 16, 2024
Cartoons Tuesday's cartoons - sleepyhead, little people, and more
By The Week US Published
-
6 serene homes in Vermont
Features Featuring a four-level Shaker barn in Hartland and a Scandinavian-inspired home in Stowe
By The Week US Published
-
Amanda Montell's 6 favorite books that will expand your knowledge
Feature The linguist recommends works by Mary Roach, Alice Carrière, and more
By The Week US Published
-
Rowan Beaird recommends 6 compelling books from the 1950s
Feature The author recommends works by Patricia Highsmith, Shirley Jackson, and more
By The Week US Published
-
6 spacious homes with great rec rooms
Feature Featuring a suspended fireplace in Arizona and a marine-themed home in Maine
By The Week Published
-
Recipe: gnocchi di spinaci (spinach gnocchi)
The Week Recommends Forget the potatoes for this gnocchi made of the 'classic combination' of spinach and ricotta
By The Week UK Published
-
Stephen Graham Jones' 6 scary books with deeper meanings
Feature The best-selling author recommends works by Stephen King, Sara Gran, and more
By The Week US Published
-
6 stylish homes on the top floor
Feature Featuring a 1925 art deco high-rise in San Francisco and a factory-turned-home in Los Angeles
By The Week US Published
-
The Anxious Generation: US psychologist Jonathan Haidt's 'urgent and essential' new book
The Week Recommends Haidt calls out 'the Great Rewiring of Childhood' phenomenon
By The Week UK Published