FANTASTIC BEASTS: THE SECRETS OF DUMBLEDORE

Back to the Wizarding World we go with Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore, a film that comes with a distinct lack of fanfare considering it belongs to one of the most beloved franchises of all time. Dark times are ahead for those involved, both characters and names attached to the project, but can it work its magic in making this a world people will want to come back to?

With Gellert Grindelwald's (Mads Mikkelsen) power rapidly growing, Albus Dumbledore (Jude Law) entrusts Newt Scamander (Eddie Redmayne) and his friends with a mission leading to a clash with Grindelwald's army. Dumbledore must also decide how long he will stay on the sidelines in the approaching war.

The Secrets of Dumbledore is yet another weak entry into the Wizarding World following the rather forgettable Crimes of Grindelwald in 2018. J. K. Rowling didn't do great with the aforementioned predecessor and things get off to a rather bumpy start here as we get a flashback to Dumbledore and Grindelwald meeting before the latter goes down the dark path, alluding to their romance while uttering some lines audience members mistook for innuendo.

Rowling is joined by Harry Potter alumni Steve Kloves in the writing department and while he manages to steady the ship a little, this is a film that, despite the intentions, feels like it's lacking any kind of stakes or anything of interest happening throughout. Save for one scene featuring Newt and some lobster-like creatures, there isn't much charm to this film, slapping the audience in the face with an unsubtle visit to Hogwarts as John Williams' iconic score begins to blare out.

The Harry Potter films felt like they had a sense of threat and danger about them, children growing up throughout their school years while facing off against dark forces, whereas this just doesn't. The spark has gone from the magic and it's a real shame they can't find a way to truly reignite it here. In fact, the most majestic thing about The Secrets of Dumbledore is James Newton Howard's wonderful score, sweeping yet elegant when it needs to be.

Coming to the performances, The Secrets of Dumbledore finds some solace with an ensemble trying to inject some fun into the material given to them. Eddie Redmayne may not be the most charismatic actor but his Newt Scamander has been a bit of a shining light throughout this trilogy, both his innocence and quirkiness providing some much needed relief from all the darkness. Dan Fogler's Jacob Kowalski brings a fair share of the film's comic relief and he is once again one of the better things about one of these films while Jude Law stumbles in and out of accents as a Dumbledore out to stop a former love from destroying the world.

Mads Mikkelsen becomes the third actor to play Gellert Grindelwald, rather jarring itself, and he is suitably conniving yet never feels to have such a great presence in the film, a real shame with an actor of his calibre in the role. Don't get me started on how dirty they did Katherine Waterston here either.

It's an improvement on The Crimes of Grindelwald for sure however, The Secrets of Dumbledore takes a lot of time to get anywhere and when it does it never feels as if the story has progressed much at all. With how this trilogy has panned out, they'd have been better of making it a trilogy about Dumbledore trying to stop Grindelwald from the off.

Verdict: ★★½