Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore

A youngish Albus Dumbledore (Jude Law – Captain Marvel) knows that the most dangerous wizard in over a century, Gellert Grindelwald, is planning to use a fantastic beast to manipulate the democratic process and take over the wizarding world.

Given his past relationship with Grindelwald, he has to trust in Newt Scamander (Eddie Redmayne - Les Miserables) to assemble a team that can stop Grindelwald before he can succeed in his plan for world domination. A magizoologist, their assistant, a wizard from a very old wizarding family, a schoolteacher and a muggle may seem like an unlikely army, but they are the only chance to stop Grindelwald on his quest to take over the world, and enslave all non-magical people…

Replacing Johnny Depp with Mads Mikkelsen as Grindelwald was a vast improvement, which adds much depth and nuance to the character’s relationship with Dumbledore. A lot of screen time is spent with Jude Law’s dapper and twinkly-eyed Dumbledore, which is time well-spent, despite having a strong supporting cast. This film is definitely more fun than the last, though it doesn’t detract from the tension.

Gail Marshall