From what we learned in the past two installments, there are many twists and turns that are developing into a much larger story that as we expect will eventually end in a bang. The early years of the Ministry of Magic still have more to entertain us and hovers around who will win the battle of good versus evil. With five total books planned for this story you know every installment is critical to develop the final outcome.
In the 1930’s, during the early years of Albus Dumbledore’s (Jude Law) tenure as Headmaster at Hogwarts, the war between good and evil was beginning. Sides began to develop as Gellert Grindelwald (Mads Mikkelsen) began to form his alliance. A plot to have Grindelwald elected as the Prime Minister of the ministry is in the works. Dumbledore would do anything to stop him and assembled a team to stop this from happening.
As we already know, sides began to appear at the conclusion of the second film. Queenie Goldstein (Allison Sudol) , sister of Tina and girlfriend to Jacob has now chosen to follow Grindelwald, as did Credence Barebone (Ezra Miller), an American half-blood wizard that developed into an obscurial. These changes affected the members of the team and things went quiet for a while.
Dumbledore met with Newt Scamander (Eddie Redmayne), a British Ministry of Magic employee in the Beasts Division and convinced him to gather a team together. With Tina Goldstein (Katherine Waterston) off working as a ministry officer, US Division, Newt needed to find his other close friend Jacob Kowalski (Dan Fogler) , a mogole baker and boyfriend to Queenie and convince him to join the team. By adding his brother, Theseus Scamander (Callum Turner) ministry officer London Division, Newt had the makings of a good team. Once he is able to assemble his team the true adventure begins that leads them on an awkward path that is very unpredictable.
Director David Yates continues on the path of the first two installments by not only building the storyline of his project but also developing the intriguing over-all design of all the books to come. David keeps with the overall theme, pushes forward with the narrative and then builds everything up to an explosive end. By adding the special effects of the magic, the interesting creatures, and the time period, he puts together a fantastic tale that will get the audience fascinated throughout.
This spectacular fairytale goes much further than the original Harry Potter series and brings us a world more astounding than what we all could have imagined. Each time I experience these masterpieces I am more impressed as they come along.
Final Comment: I based my grade on the remarkable storyline, the marvelous performances, and the incredible special effects.
Stars 4.5 out of 5 Stars
Additional Film Information
Cast: Mads Mikkelsen, Ezra Miller, Katherine Waterston, Jude Law, Eddie Redmayne, Allison Sudol, Dan Fogler, and Callum Turner.
Directed by: David Yates
Genre: Adventure, Family, Fantasy
MPAA Rating: Rated PG-13 for some fantasy action/violence.
Running Time: 2 hours and 22 minutes.
Release Date: April 15, 2022
Distributed By: Warner Bros.
Release In: Digital Intermediate (4K), Panavision, Dolby Atmos & Digital, IMAX, and Standard.
