The third installment of the franchise, Secrets of Dumbledore is the brainchild of legendary author J.K Rowling and directed by David Yates.
For those of you who aren’t aware of her, she is the creator of the hugely popular Harry Potter series, which has become somewhat of a cult classic.
There was palpable anticipation before the release of the film which hit the big screen on April 15. Needless to say, the feedback has been mixed from fans across the globe.
The cast of Fantastic Beasts is comprised of a stellar crew, the likes of Jude Law (Dumbledore), Ezra Miller (Credence Barebone), Eddie Redmayne (Newt Scamander), Dan Fogler (Jacob Kawolski), Alison Sudol (Queenie Goldstein) and Mads Mikkelson (Grindelwald).
The plot follows the endeavors of Newt and Dumbledore who are trying to thwart the plans of the evil Grindelwald from becoming something of a public figure and gaining control of the Ministry of Magic and the wizarding world.
There are mixed feelings regarding the use of magical creatures. Although there are a fair number to be seen throughout the movie, it hardly compares to the original installment which was packed to the rafters with fanciful creatures great and small. With that being said, the main creature which permeates throughout the film is the “Qilin”. A deer looking creature sporting golden dragon scales which serves as the wizarding community’s tool when deciding who to elect as the ruler.
In the first 2 installments, the villain, Grindelwald, was actually played by none other than the infamous Johnny Depp. Sadly, the Pirates of the Caribbean star, Jack Sparrow, was unable to reprise his role due to a continuing court case with Aquaman actress, Amber Heard.
To be completely honest, Mads has done a superb job of making the character his own. He seems to thrive in his role of being the villain.
Just as he did in the James Bond film Casino Royale, where we saw Bond take on the world in style and get in on the casino action with roulette, Black Jack and other games.
The Secrets of Dumbledore was meant to answer all the questions the first 2 movies had left many fans pondering. But, it seems that it may just have overlooked some details which have left much of the Harry Potter community and wizarding world scratching their heads.
The initial release was bombarded with fans and saw the film grossing just over $90 million at the box office.
Rotten Tomato critics gave the film a measly score, far below that of its predecessors; however, fans seem to have enjoyed it, for the most part.
It seems that one of the major flaws many of the Harry Potter fans picked up was that of the Hogwarts teacher, Minerva McGonagall, played by Fiona Glascott in Fantastic Beasts.
Mcgonagall was only born in 1935 in the Harry Potter books, and the events that take place in the Fantastic Beasts movie are around 1927 or so which means she shouldn’t even have been born yet. A small mishap, but something that seems to have irked the hardcore fans nonetheless.
Here are some of the responses from fans who have already watched Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore:
“A good watch, among the series it was one that hit the nail on the head when it comes to the technical aspect of things. However, when it comes to the magical side, it fell short of its predecessors and lacked any new additions to the fantastic beasts side of things”.
“The opening scene was a little on the dark side. Something that would not be suitable for a movie that was rated PG13. Smaller kids would been terrorized initially, but it soon lightened up and became more of what we have come to expect from the series”.
‘I got more out of this than the previous two movies in the series. I really enjoyed the connection to Hogwarts”.
‘I cannot wait for the next installment in the series. The film exceeded my expectations and hopes. The fantastic beast series is more than a worthy follow up to the Harry Potter saga”.
“Predictable plot line of rigged election. Boring chunks of film mixed in with a bit of magic here and there”.
So as you can see, the movie was received differently by all and in all honesty, I’m somewhat on the fence myself. I recommend you go and watch it, on the big screen preferably, so that you can get the full experience and then decide for yourself.
