J.K. Rowling stuns fans again with a mind-blowing ending to “Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald.” Audiences are immersed in the Harry Potter universe, where viewers are even treated to a visit to the majestic Hogwarts campus.
The “Fantastic Beasts” movies are part of a five-film series that is meant to be a prequel to the eight-film Harry Potter saga. “The Crimes of Grindelwald” is the second film in the series.
It follows the adventures of the author of the book “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them,” Newt Scamander. This book is first introduced by Harry Potter and his classmates at the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry when they use it for class at the infamous wizarding school. The book is a sort of encyclopedia of the types of creatures one can encounter in the Harry Potter universe.
The movie starts off with Gellert Grindelwald’s dramatic escape from prison. He was imprisoned because he and his followers committed mass slaughter of no-majs (humans) and no-maj-supporting wizards across Europe in an attempt to make pure blood wizards rulers of all. Grindelwald’s goal is to find Credence Barebone, who is believed to be dead after the epic battle in New York, where the first film, “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them,” ended.
Scamander was considered a danger to both wizarding and human communities alike by the Ministry of Magic, after the disastrous battle in New York against Barebone, the Obscurus.
An Obscurus is a dark and parasitic force that manifests when wizards try to suppress their magic after being victims of either physical or psychological abuse. It causes them to lose control when they reach their emotional and mental breaking points. According to Dumbledore, they can be healed by giving the Obscurus a sense of belonging.
Scamander was banned from international travel after New York. But a young and handsome Albus Dumbledore, played by the one and only Jude Law, recruits his former student, Scamander, in his plan to stop Grindelwald’s plot to create a pure-blood wizarding community to rule over all non-magical beings.
Scamander is generally an inconspicuous character that minds his own business. He initially refuses Dumbledore when he approaches him with the task of going to Paris to find Credence, rumored to still be alive, and get to him before Grindelwald.
Scamander is visited by possibly the cutest couple in the Harry Potter universe, Queenie Goldstein and Jacob Kowalski. They let him know that Tina Goldstein, now an auror, is in Paris.
Queenie and Tina Goldstein are witches from New York that meet Scamander in the first film. Kowalski meets Scamander and falls in love with Queenie Goldstein in the first film, but their love is forbidden because at that point in time, wizards and no-majs, were not legally allowed to be together. Tina Goldstein and Scamander clearly are attracted to each other but aren’t able to explore their relationship.
With this information in mind, Scamander decides to accept the adventure Dumbledore proposed. He goes to Paris with the intention of finding Goldstein and adding her to the race to find Credence Barebone.
Other characters beloved to fans also make a cameo in the movie such as Professor Minerva McGonagall and Nagini the snake. The movie is a treat for all Harry Potter fans and the stunning ending leaves viewers impatient for the next film.
