Movie Man Darian Watching All Night Long

Fantastic Beasts : The Crimes Of Grindelwald 

This film is is a mixed bag and I’m genuinely shocked that it is. This film is a follow up to the first fantastic Beasts and I have been anxiously awaiting this sequel and was I let down? No but I was more confused  more then anything as this film tries to juggle so much in one film and I’m a massive fan of the Potter series from the  books and movies I know everything about Potters universe when watching this film it was very hard to keep up with the story as it becomes incredibly convoluted and overstuffed with material. It tells so much in just under a 2h runtime and their are some things I would of fixed. First being the side plots  the film has a interesting plot but it gets sidetracked or added onto by this side plots that even though they are interesting is to much to take in all at once and at times can feel like it veered off from the plot if they kept it more narrow and simple I think it would of not been as overstuffed and messy at parts. 

The film also suffers from visual over story, the film shows these big grand visuals but favours that instead of showing a concrete plot. As the films director David Yates who has directed the potter films since 2007 I was surprised with the style and execution he went with this film. This definitely my least favourite Harry Potter universe film and it’s a shame cause I had some high hopes for this film. This film dose have a massive amount of flaws but another one I couldn’t ignore was the presence of Grindelwald who the film is named after is hardly in the film. I thought he would of been a massive part of the film and he is he’s talked about a lot but not shown that much he probably only has 15 or less time of screen time same for Albus Dumbledore both who heavily were shown in the marketing for this film but fall into the background of the story which is a shame as they are the only two interesting characters in the film. 

Now the positives, the film has amazing visuals and set design and costumes it’s a gorgeous looking film followed by a terrific score by James Newton Howard that’s hauntingly brilliant. Also the casting of Young Dumbledore was brilliant Jude Law dose an amazing job as the well known figure bringing charm to the character that leaves you smiling. Johnny Depp also brings a great menacing performance as Grindelwald even though he doesn’t have much screen time he dose the best with what he’s given and is great in every scene he’s in elevating the story.

Overall Fantastic Beasts The Crimes Of Grindelwald is a overstuffed film with enjoyable moments with messy execution but is still a joy to be had  even with its flaws I recommend this film

This film follows the events after the first film Grindelwald has broken out and seeks to get credence on his side to dominate the wizarding world 

Rated PG - 13 : some sequences of fantasy action

Johnny Depp: Johnny dazzles in this film! Depp isn’t in the film much but makes his presence known giving a menacing performance that is incredible to behold. He really gives the character such life with such a mysterious tone and eerie voice Johnny truly shines in this film almost stealing the show with his great work. He captures Grindelwald in fantastic fashion bringing such sinister screen presence and being truly haunting. He goes through a great array of emotions he could go from calm and collected and so soft spoken that give you chills and then outburst in anger that terrify you and he expresses it in such complex and layered ways. He just really relishes in the part and has a great amount of fun in this role he’s not onscreen as much as I wanted as he has very little screen time but makes the most of what he’s given and chews up every scene with his terrific performance. He never really has played a villain before and to see him go with such dark places emotionally it was brilliant to watch unfold as we have never seen that side to Depp before besides in Black Mass. he brings this mysterious and unpredictable side to him that makes him truly unsettling it’s a performance that haunts, captivates and steals the show Johnny Depp is truly fantastic giving a solid performance and great contribution to the Potter universe. 

Jude Law : Jude Is perfect as Dumbledore! This is perfect casting and Jude law much like Depp is not onscreen that much which is really unfortunate as Jude captures the wit and charm of Dumbledore so perfectly. He has this quality he brings to the character that was so fitting whenever he pops up onscreen you can’t help but smile and it’s all due to Jude’s fantastic performance as the great wizard. He didn’t do a imitation of the actors that played the role before him but really made it his own and gave it his own spin on the character. Jude was able to be so complex with his emotional range by at one moment being utterly charming and then could be deadly serious and he makes the switch mid way through the scene and makes it look effortless. You can see the weight on Dumbledore’s shoulders and Jude law steps up the the plate and dose the character justice delivering a charming and emotionally well captured performance that shows us more but not to much about the great wizard Law really dominates the screen when he is onscreen with his great performance and is truly scene stealing. I can’t wait to see him reprise the role in further instalments and see where he brings the character from what I’ve seen in this film it makes me very excited overall Law is amazing in this film. 

David Yates : David gives a very different sense of direction then what he’s done in the past. This man has directed the Potter films since 2007 and is the longest running director to helm the most potter films and he also directed the first fantastic Beasts. So my question is why change things now not to say I don’t like new things but David is so experienced in the potter world but his style on the film here felt very different Bringing the wizarding world into a totally different arena. He creates great magic and visuals throughout the film as well it’s a amazingly good looking film from The music and the sets but it’s the plot that suffered from the amount of information being stuffed into one film. I don’t think it’s David’s fault or J.K.’s either it’s just whoever wanted this film to put so much material into one film it didn’t work as you can see David try’s his hardest to get a great film for this sequel but it’s the messy execution of side plots that go on in the film that made the film suffer a great deal. He makes the film very tone wise dark now that’s not new as the Deathly Hollows film went very dark but this film has very little funny moments their still their but the tone he set for this one was s very serious and bleak one that I enjoyed I just would of liked if he used Jude Law and Depp more in the film as they felt underused and I felt they contributed to the film greatly so if they were in it more that’s the one problem I had with his direction but besides that I think  he set the tone he had the magic and wonder it’s just the writing that clashed with his direction as both visions were totally different and so it resulted in a messy execution. David brings the enjoyment of the Potter universe even if the plot suffers from its fair share of flaws he brings new things to the table that pay off greatly bringing the wizarding world into interesting new places. Overall I cannot wait to see what Yates will do in the next further instalments overall Yates gives great direction even if the screenwriting was a problem he tries to veer the film back onto course and makes it work great job David. 

The Cinematography : This is a gorgeous looking film the camera work was so well done in the film. It uses so many landscape and overview shots that fill the frame and can express the emotion and sheer tone that is set in the film. It uses breathtaking angles that really capture the film perfectly and it’s great scope and scale. 

Score : The music composed in the film was beautifully composed by John Newton Howard creating a very ominous and haunting sound to the film that really set the tone and was so expressive through its music. it could be soft melodies then heavy and very dark sounds to really capture the emotion needed to evoke from the audience. Overall a greatly composed score