Are you ready for the new Fantastic Beasts?! Here's my take

If you were like me, you probably forgot this movie was coming out, or you saw the first installment of Fantastic Beasts and thought this series wasn't for you, of you have no idea what the heck I'm talking about. Well this Wednesday, April 6,  Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore will be released in theaters, but I had the opportunity to see it last week. 

To begin, this movie is the best of the three by far. It gave us a look into the wizarding world, allowing to see witches and wizards outside of the U.S. and England and how they operate. The movie was a lot of fun to watch with lots of laugh out loud moments from New and of course Jacob, and many questions popped up as you watched it, keeping you engaged but don't worry, your questions do get answered. And all those questions you had about Dumbledore from the books ALMOST all get answered. 

Jude Law still makes a great Dumbledore, Eddie Redmayne plays his role as Newt perfectly and as much as I hated that Johnny Depp got snubbed as Grindelwald, I think Mads Mikkelsen played the role well for this movie and to be honest, I'm not sure Johnny Depp's Grindelwald would've fit this part for the film. When you see it, you'll understand why. 

When you finish this movie, you'll want to read the books again, and see if Rowling left anything in them about this story. You'll also be curious to see if all of your questions were answered about Dumbledore, which is a major reason why I'm rereading them. 

Now for a deeper dive with possible spoilers: 

Another thing that's well done in this film is the villain of Grindelwald. He's the type villain you fear because he truly believes what he's doing is right. He believes he is making the world a better place by wiping out muggles, and he still believes that Dumbledore wants the same thing. After relearning more about Dumbledore, I had to wonder if at one point he hated muggles that much, and he may have after what some Muggle boys did to his sister. So I wonder if at one point Dumbledore as a teen was all about helping Grindelwald taking out all non-maj. 

We also learn more about Credence and where he comes from and he's actually a large part of the story and helps in another characters story arch, that some Potter fans will be familiar with and will come to learn more about.

The movie gives a lot of nods to the Harry Potter series, including the use of the Room of Requirement, students eating lunch in the Great Hall, quotes like "choosing between what is right, and what is easy", and even a visit to Hogsmeade. These moments do make it a little special and made the Potter fan within me giddy, and just enough that I didn't feel like they were overdoing it.  

When you leave the theater you'll leave with a smile on your face if you're a Potter fan... I hope, but I hope you catch the message that I took from the film. Newt at one point is alone with Dumbledore, and after a very telling conversation tells Dumbledore something like, "we all mistakes, but it's important that we go back and try to fix them the best we can." And that's what this whole move is about, making amends and fixing mistakes of the past. Dumbledore made an unbreakable vow and he needs it to be broken, Newt and his brother Theseus become closer, and to avoid spoilers there are more mistakes that are healed during the film. There is one however that Dumbledore knows that can't be fixed, no matter how much he wishes it could be and it's heartbreaking. It's a theme you sort of catch in the Potter films and books, where Dumbledore wishes he could've been a better brother, and in some ways he heals some wounds but there's still some he can't. 

I hope you enjoy the film as much as I did, and for those who are bigger Harry Potter buffs than me, let me know what you think. From all the critics I saw it with, including the Potter fans, they all enjoyed it.  

P.S. James Newton Howard is such a fantastic composer, I know you'll love the score!