J. K. Rowling - Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald (The Original Screenplay)

I enjoyed the first Fantastic Beasts film. Just enough wizarding world nostalgia with compelling characters and performances by a talented cast, however, I felt like it should have been a stand-alone, rather than a beginning of a series. That being said, I approached the sequel with low expectations, and was right in doing so. I thought that reading the screenplay might elevate my enjoyment of the story, however, this was not the case at all. 

Grindelwald escapes custody, leaving him and his followers free to pursue their agenda - rallying pure-blood wizards with the goal of ruling all non-magical beings. Albus Dumbledore, his old friend, is forced to enlist Newt Scamander on a mission to save Credence Barebone from a ministry-hired bounty hunter. He joins forces with Tina, although they have to work past a number of misunderstandings stemming from unsaid feelings. Credence himself is on a mission to unravel his past and identity, with a new ally, Nagini, seemingly unaware of the danger that may befall him...

If anything positive is to be said about the Fantastic Beasts series, it’s the characters. The screenplay manages to introduce compelling characters into a well-developed world with already existing beloved heroes. Newt isn’t your typical protagonist, the Goldstein sisters are a delightful juxtaposition of each other and Jacob introduces an outsider’s point of view, which leads to some levity in a rather dark story. That being said, this was established in the previous instalment, with Crimes of Grindelwald simply carrying on. The characters do face obstacles, however, there is little character development, as many plots remain unresolved. 

The pacing works relatively well, as we catch up with the characters in the beginning, which slowly leads to the final showdown at the end. Of course, as Crimes of Grindelwald is a screenplay, it reads incredibly fast, being focused on the dialogue and stage directions. Interestingly, the major reveal was saved for the aftermath, and there is not much justification provided. This leads me to believe it was either a lie, or just poorly executed. Unfortunately, I think the latter scenario is true.

 

As mentioned above, in my opinion, Fantastic Beasts should have remained a stand-alone. The story was compelling enough and little was left unresolved. The Credence plot could have ended as it did, and as for the Grindelwald conflict, we already know how it ends. I suppose that is the issue with most prequels, there is little to be surprised by as the major events were already outlined previously. This leads the author into the trap of trying to surprise the reader by any means necessary, which is what dictated the major reveal of this story (at least in my opinion). Furthermore, stretching the story to establish a side franchise negatively impacts the character development, pacing, and just how enjoyable the work is. 

Crimes of Grindelwald suffers from the same drawbacks as the film itself, which makes it an unenjoyable read, boring at times. I wouldn’t recommend it to even most avid Potterheads, unless they thoroughly enjoyed the film first. Anyone else - just watch it, for the adorable CGI magical beasts and the acting talent of the leads, which elevates the story to some degree. 

Rating: 2/10