FANTASTIC BEASTS: THE SECRETS OF DUMBLEDORE
Third time’s a charmer
RELEASED OUT NOW!
12 | 143 minutes
Director David Yates
Cast Jude Law, Eddie Redmayne, Mads Mikkelsen, Alison Sudol
As the third part of a five-film saga, it stands to reason that the latest Fantastic Beasts should leave us on a cliffhanger. Wrong! With almost all the franchise’s plot arcs tied up by the time the credits roll, it seems Warner Bros have decided to bin parts four and five. It’s an understandable choice, no doubt prompted by everything from middling reviews to the opprobrium directed at JK Rowling for her views on gender.
Final film or not, The Secrets Of Dumbledore is a step up from the meandering, unfocused Crimes Of Grindelwald: pacier, plottier and more charming. It’s great fun to follow Eddie Redmayne’s Newt and his pals as they try to figure out what their dastardly foe wants with a Qilin (a magical deer-like creature). Cue stunningly beautiful wand battles, some lovely Hogwarts nostalgia and Jude Law’s Dumbledore kicking serious arse.
Unfortunately there’s still clunky characterisation and illogical plotting. It’s disappointing that after a huge build-up in the first movie, Ezra Miller’s Credence is now nothing but an underused parody of Noel Fielding’s goth from The IT Crowd; worse, former Muggle-murdering bastard Grindelwald is defanged by a sidestep into politics.
Worst of all, there’s barely any Tina, with only a throwaway line explaining her absence. Luckily the final scenes will ease this pain... and ironically, by the time all of Dumbledore’s secrets have been aired, you may even be left wanting more. Jayne Nelson
Qilins have existed in Chinese mythology since the fifth century and are a cross between a giraffe and a unicorn.