There are eight fantastic films set in J.K. Rowling’s Wizarding World. Unfortunately, the last of those was released seven years ago.
“Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald,” hit theaters with high expectations, with Rowling once again writing the screenplay to her Harry Potter prequels.
However, Rowling — the creator of the most successful fantasy franchise in history — single-handedly obliterated much of what made the original stories so magical.
The most unforgivable curse of “Crimes” is simply the writing, something Rowling is solely responsible for. The abundance of her characters, each complete with their own overly intricate storyline, should have made for a film packed with imaginative action.
Sadly, “Crimes” was a convoluted mess, incapable of pleasing even the most die-hard Potter fans.
The film opens with Gellert Grindelwald, a villain first introduced in the original series. For all the hype of his crimes, we see Grindelwald imprisoned for indiscriminate misdeeds. Johnny Depp’s passable portrayal — a pleasant surprise after his replacement of the more talented Colin Farrell — wasn’t enough to salvage this travesty of a plot.
Brandon Hill | Argonaut
His most heinous crime of this film is spurning his followers to action. His motivation — bringing wizards back to power — is somewhat validated by the backdrop of an impending second world war. This intriguing storyline, capable of carrying a franchise on its own, is sidelined by the fact “Fantastic Beasts” revolves around Newt Scamander, a charming yet bumbling protagonist.
In actuality, this franchise should center on the approaching conflict between Albus Dumbledore and his childhood lover Grindelwald. Yet, we’re two movies in to this five-film story, and Dumbledore barely graced the screen, resorting to brooding inside Hogwarts for most of the film.
Instead, Newt and his gang of shallow supporting characters have to once again track down the mysterious Creedence in what turns out to be a confusing, canon-destroying twist.
Newt himself fails to develop as a character. Outside of suitcase of immensely more interesting creatures, Rowling begs the question of why Newt is even here at all. For a movie entitled “Fantastic Beasts,” there seems to be hardly any present.
Accompanying Newt is the returning cast of Tina, Jacob and Queenie, along with newcomers Theseus (Newt’s brother) and his fiance Leta Lestrange.
Max Rothenberg | Argonaut
Each of these characters have stories worth telling, just not in this movie. However, when their adventures are crammed into a two-hour romp, the end result is a tale better kept in the depths of Rowling’s imagination.
Flashbacks, meanwhile, serve as the main vessel for which backstory is delivered. Leta offers a glimpse of what this movie could have been. Her troubled past and relationships with the Scamander brothers feels misplaced and underutilized — the ending payoff offers little room for further development.
Queenie and Jacob grabbed the audience’s attention with their dynamic acting and plotline, but again felt misplaced, with their darkly humorous love story awkwardly juxtaposed with the threat of Grindelwald.
This movie has no idea what it wants to be, and with the third installment planned for 2020, this drawn-out series lacks a clear path forward. Potter fans will have to trust the writing chops of Rowling to bring this story to a satisfying conclusion.
After “Crimes,” that trust is swiftly deteriorating.
Brandon Hill and Max Rothenberg can be reached at [email protected]