Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald, spoiler-free review

The second Fantastic Beasts is a wonderful moment of cinema, exciting and gripping.

TF1 is rebroadcasting this Sunday evening The Crimes of Grindelwaldthe second episode of the saga derived from Harry Potter, released in November 2018 in cinemas. At the time, the editorial staff of First had been conquered by this sequel, even if in the end, quite a few questions remained unansweredand since then, Johnny Depp was fired from the saga and replaced by Mads Mikkelsen…

Honestly, even without being a fanatic Harry Potter (books and/or films), we were a little disappointed by Fantastic Beasts. The exciting promise of leaving the walls of Hogwarts, exploring the past of the universe of Rowling was above all the promise of going into the unknown. To leave the tracks of a more or less faithful adaptation of the books and the destiny of the wizard with glasses. Result, Fantastic Beasts really resembled what it was: a prologue not really mastered, curiously messy and clumsy, like its autistic and clumsy wizard-hero, lost in the new universe of the New York of the roaring twenties. The success of Crimes of Grindelwald firstly due to its effect of contrast with the first film: where the first is clumsy, a little slow and not really thrilling, the second is fluid, controlled and completely thrilling. This is where this review risks venturing, like the film, into uncharted spoiler territory. Because, in fact, JK Rowling knew very well where she was going.

Can you watch Fantastic Beasts 2 without having seen the first one?

Rest assured, therefore. Visually exciting, and dramatically powerful, The Crimes of Grindelwald is satisfactory on almost all levels (a few dross like the opening in the form of a big show that is a little too banal and the too rapid treatment of the Arcanus circus, for example). We won't say any more just to preserve the surprise until the theatrical release, but just know – to answer fans' most pressing questions – that Jude Law is great as a mature and mocking Dumbledore like a big brother that we would all like to have, and that Johnny Depp delivers his best performance in ages, giving the big bad Grindelwald a powerful interiority reminiscent of Ichabod Crane in Sleepy Hollow. An Ichabod Crane who went to the side of evil, but not to follow his destiny. A villain, but a villain as if with regret.

Jude Law: “The goal is that I can play Dumbledore unconsciously”

The Crimes of Grindelwald is the success of its mastermind JK Rowling and the director David Yateswho perfectly master the visual and especially narrative codes of their wizarding world. With its last fifteen minutes that are simply incredible in terms of a great spectacle, and this cliffhanger which will cause discussion, fans and muggles are finally united hand in hand to follow the magician Rowling in the continuation of the saga that we imagine at the height. In a few words, The Crimes of Grindelwald is one of the best in the franchise Harry Potter with The Prisoner of Azkabanand for the moment, by far, the best blockbuster of the year 2018. Even if now, we are waiting for the sequel with far too much impatience.

Trailer for Fantastic Beasts 2: The Crimes of Grindelwald :

Jude Law – Fantastic Beasts 3: “This is not Dumbledore's final form”