A Reel Review - FANTASTIC BEASTS: THE SECRETS OF DUMBLEDORE

THE SECRETS OF DUMBLEDORE is the mid-point of a planned five-movie series, spun off from the HARRY POTTER franchise that ran from 2001-2011. Set decades before Harry was born, the series got off to a charming start in 2016 with its quirky characters and magical creatures. The second film, THE CRIMES OF GRINDELWALD (2018), started to veer off in one too many directions, and set the stage for this new entry. 

 

Dark wizard Grindelwald (Mads Mikkelson), is looking to take control of the Wizarding World. Standing in his way is his former friend and lover Albus Dumbledore (Jude Law). Unable to confront Grindelwald directly, Dumbledore recruits a group of wizards and non-wizards to thwart him; including magizoologist Newt Scamander (Eddie Redmayne), and his muggle friend Jacob Kowalski (Dan Fogler). 

 

Directed by David Yates, THE SECRETS OF DUMBLEDORE picks up plot threads from the previous films that are still hanging around, including the troubled young Credence (Ezra Miller), who lives with a dark magical parasite inside of him, and may (or may not be) a part of the Dumbledore family. Meanwhile, hapless Kowalski is heartbroken after his former fiancée Queenie (Alison Sudol), followed Grindelwald to the dark side. The bigger plot at hand is Grindelwald looking to hijack an upcoming election by using a bewitched creature…which would set him at the head of the Wizarding World. 

 

The stakes of the film don’t seem very high, as it all boils down to Grindelwald trying to steal an election. Grindelwald isn’t seen doing very many bad things, so it’s hard to care if he gets into office or not…and we just have to trust the many characters telling us over and over again how evil he is. The rest of the film suffers from the same issues the 2018 film did with too many characters and too many half-baked plots with flimsy resolutions. The use of a magical creature to “select” a worthy candidate seems to be there just to justify Newt’s involvement…who still seems ill-equipped to handle an upcoming wizarding war. The sub-plot of Kowalski and Queenie is useless in the grand scheme of things, and both characters could have been omitted from this film and it would not have affected anything.

 

There is still much to love in DUMBLEDORE for long-time fans of the Wizarding World. The magic and the fantastic beasts are wonderfully realized, and the trips back to beloved locations such as Hogwarts and Hogsmeade alone make it worth a trip to the theatre. The place-setting of late 1930’s (or early 1940’s, the film isn’t’ clear on that), is wonderfully realized, and plenty of easter-eggs for Potter fans are there for the finding. 

 

The cast does an admirable job with the slightly convoluted script, and although no one is terrible, no one seems to fully understand what they’re talking about. Eddie Redmayne is still excellent in his role, even though his character blends in here and doesn’t stand out. Dan Fogler is once again a blast and brightens the screen every time he appears. 

 

After all the wand-pointing, spell-casting, globe-trotting, and dealings with adorable and deadly magical creatures, DUMBLEDORE doesn’t resolve very much, and lives up to its assignment as a middle-chapter and simply sends a lot more down the line for more movies. This Wizarding World backstory is being stretched thin, and it’s exhausting to think there’s two more to go. THE SECRETS OF DUMBLEDORE has its magical moments, but falls short of fantastic. 

 

BOTTOM LINE: Rent it