-
Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.
What do you think of 'Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore' ?
Dark Star
Member
I saw it last night with a couple friends. I liked it more than the 2nd movie. We thought it was overall a good movie with good ideas, but it lacks action and is kind of slow. If you're looking for a movie with lots of CGI magic, you'll probably enjoy it, but these Fantastic Beast movies aren't even in the same class as Harry Potter. The acting is probably the best part of these movies, though, Mads Mikkelsen was great, he's good in everything he does.
Last edited:
V1LÆM
Gold Member
haven't seen it yet but i've seen some say that it's the best one yet. to be fair, it wouldn't be hard to beat the 2nd movie. that was such a boring mess. the first movie was interesting but i'm not sure they knew what they were doing. the crossover between newt, "fantastic beasts", and the whole dumbledore/grindelwald story seems weird. i love HP so will go watch anything related to it. they should've just gone all in with the dumbledore/grindelwald story arc because it was actually an interesting part of the HP books. fantastic beasts in the HP world is just a school textbook and newt is only mentioned a few times.
i'm going to see it tomorrow but if you're not a big HP fan i'd recommend going to see something else. go see the northman...unless you're in the US as it's not out yet.
i'm going to see it tomorrow but if you're not a big HP fan i'd recommend going to see something else. go see the northman...unless you're in the US as it's not out yet.
Last edited by a moderator:
pauljeremiah
Gold Member
I saw it last weekend and I still have no idea what Dumbledore's secret even was.
balls of snow
Member
Accidently cause death of his sister ( the huge one as it retcons Deathly Hollows), knew who Clerence really was, in love with Mads Milkenson.
Movie was wayyyyyy better than the second because pacing actually exist. Jude Law is the best incarnation of Dumbledore so far and yhe chemistry with Mads was palpable.
Nobody_Important
“Aww, it’s so...average,” she said to him in a cold brick of passion
Seeing it tomorrow.
Jude Law makes a fantastic young Dumbledore though.
Jude Law makes a fantastic young Dumbledore though.
Vicetrailia
Banned
It’s an enjoyable movie, but I think that the story is boring and typical. That said it is still an entertaining movie.
Last edited:
Nobody_Important
“Aww, it’s so...average,” she said to him in a cold brick of passion
That's good to hear. It's what I was expecting. The whole series in terms of plot is pretty vanilla. Good vs evil. The usual stuff. No shocking twists. Hero wins in the end and gets his gal. That was the original series and now the FB series seems to float along the same lines. Not quite as formulaic, but still not shocking in its plot.
It's predictable, but in a way that my inner teenager enjoys. I grew up on the books and I still enjoy the universe despite Rowling's issues. It's been a fun entry.
Last edited:
V1LÆM
Gold Member
i'm not meant to see this movie lmao. had tickets booked for release day and had to cancel because i was not feeling well. was going to go on thursday but was so tired there was no way i could stay awake to watch it. i was at the cinema on friday to see the northman but i couldn't sit and watch two movies in one day lol. was going to go this morning but feeling ill again. been doing covid tests but all negative.
i suppose i'll just wait for it to come out digitally and rent it.
i suppose i'll just wait for it to come out digitally and rent it.
Last edited by a moderator:
Urban
Member
Ive watched it last night.
It was meh for me 6/10.
It had some funny moments and jude law is awesome but thats about it.
I dont understand some points of the movie:
It was meh for me 6/10.
It had some funny moments and jude law is awesome but thats about it.
I dont understand some points of the movie:
So Kowalski is referred as the "guy who tried to murder Grindelwald" and his face is all over the newspaper but he can walk freely at the magician voting site xD?
What was the point of the Black Dude!? Lestrange was his name i think? Should we just assume that Gina was reading his mind and he said to her: "Dumbledore sends me. im a double agent, trust me and lie to grindelwald". Movie explain pls!
Where did all the followers of Grindelwald go? At the End we can see him escape but all other persons just left? The whole Plateau was just empty. It would be good if they just show a scene where they "blip" away or something like that.
The subplot with father and son was so unnecessary. So you build this up for the huge redemption for his father and all they did was look each other in the eyes and the father goes "I was thinking about you all the time. lets go home"
How about: "Im sorry my son, for that i failed you. Please let me atleast at the end, be a father to you. Lets go to our home
What was the point of the Black Dude!? Lestrange was his name i think? Should we just assume that Gina was reading his mind and he said to her: "Dumbledore sends me. im a double agent, trust me and lie to grindelwald". Movie explain pls!
Where did all the followers of Grindelwald go? At the End we can see him escape but all other persons just left? The whole Plateau was just empty. It would be good if they just show a scene where they "blip" away or something like that.
The subplot with father and son was so unnecessary. So you build this up for the huge redemption for his father and all they did was look each other in the eyes and the father goes "I was thinking about you all the time. lets go home"
How about: "Im sorry my son, for that i failed you. Please let me atleast at the end, be a father to you. Lets go to our home
Rat Rage
Member
I liked the second one, too, and enjoyed the third one a lot. I'd say, go watch it.
Rockondevil
Member
They are just so forgettable and I don't really care to ever watch them again and I'm a Harry Potter fan.
Definitely could've been a 1 or 2 movie deal.
Also I get the movies are "Fantastic Beasts", but they beasts just more and more get shoehorned in.
Definitely could've been a 1 or 2 movie deal.
Also I get the movies are "Fantastic Beasts", but they beasts just more and more get shoehorned in.
Big Baller
Al Pachinko, Konami President
All your bigot are belong to us.
DKehoe
Gold Member
There’s setup for a 4th. Although it seems like this one hasn’t been doing well at the box office.
SlimySnake
Flashless at the Golden Globes
I really disliked it. Im a fan of the second movie. It was dark and had a great fucking finale, but the finale here is so lame. nothing happens. I went in thinking JK would pull an Azkaban here. a third movie that is kind of a detour but still excellent but this is mostly a detour that goes nowhere.
David Yates is a boring director. he needs to leave the franchise and give it to someone else. JK botched the story here which is all on her, but some of the scenes here couldve been way better in the hands of a better director. the finale is just the most deflating thing ever.
David Yates is a boring director. he needs to leave the franchise and give it to someone else. JK botched the story here which is all on her, but some of the scenes here couldve been way better in the hands of a better director. the finale is just the most deflating thing ever.
WhatDidHeSay?
Member
Both me and the missis enjoyed it .. a solid 7/10. Easy enough watch. We weren't expecting an Oscar fest per say so our expectations were middling.
Rentahamster
Rodent Whores
This movie is terrible, good lord they've really fucked this franchise.
Bitmap Frogs
Mr. Community
Jude Law kills it.
But the plot sucks, essentially everything they do all the movie is useless and the “winning move” at the end could have perfectly happened without the heroes intervention.
They justify it saying the bad guy can see the future so they need to confuse him, but that doesn’t make the movie entertaining.
As a result there’s tons of things happening that have no payoff.
But the plot sucks, essentially everything they do all the movie is useless and the “winning move” at the end could have perfectly happened without the heroes intervention.
They justify it saying the bad guy can see the future so they need to confuse him, but that doesn’t make the movie entertaining.
As a result there’s tons of things happening that have no payoff.
NeoIkaruGAF
Gold Member
Main problem with the whole movie franchise, really. The quality of the HP movies nosedived when Yates took charge of direction. Piss filter everywhere, terrible pacing, and boring, completely unimaginative direction. All of his HP movies also feature quirky acting from basically everyone, to the point that I suspect it’s a deliberate request of the director.
Alcibiades
Member
Wow surprised at all the hate (EDIT: cause I really enjoyed this). Before watching this I had only seen the first Fantastic Beasts and the first Harry Potter (never seen the sequels nor read the books, it really wasn't my thing).
I had trouble getting into Harry Potter, but I was entertained by the first FB so I watched this one and really enjoyed it. The "political thriller" aspects had me wondering for a second whether this was some Trump commentary or something (since everything is overly on-the-nose political nowadays like Star Trek using Stacey Abrahams to play President of Earth, or Don't Look Up's son-of-female-President saying "If she wasn't my mother..." directly ripping off Trump quote), but it wasn't off putting at all and I enjoyed the story overall.
I do wonder about whether a political election setting is too boring for little kids and families. This movie seems much more suitable for YA audiences that enjoyed Hunger Games or Maze Runner. I recently watched the first Harry Potter movie again and it seemed almost Disney-like in it's fun and fish-out-water approach. Secrets of Dumbledore had a completely different tone, very dark and complicated.
I did go back and watch Crimes of Grindenwald after watching this, and it was just as dark and even more brutal than this movie. My main problem with the last two movies is how complex the plot is. I guess I watched them in the wrong order, but I've seen CoG twice and want to go back to watch SoD a third time, and even then I still don't think I'll have a complete grasp of everything.
Still, it's way more interesting to me than Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone which seems more to me like a really well-made Disney Channel movie.
I had trouble getting into Harry Potter, but I was entertained by the first FB so I watched this one and really enjoyed it. The "political thriller" aspects had me wondering for a second whether this was some Trump commentary or something (since everything is overly on-the-nose political nowadays like Star Trek using Stacey Abrahams to play President of Earth, or Don't Look Up's son-of-female-President saying "If she wasn't my mother..." directly ripping off Trump quote), but it wasn't off putting at all and I enjoyed the story overall.
I do wonder about whether a political election setting is too boring for little kids and families. This movie seems much more suitable for YA audiences that enjoyed Hunger Games or Maze Runner. I recently watched the first Harry Potter movie again and it seemed almost Disney-like in it's fun and fish-out-water approach. Secrets of Dumbledore had a completely different tone, very dark and complicated.
I did go back and watch Crimes of Grindenwald after watching this, and it was just as dark and even more brutal than this movie. My main problem with the last two movies is how complex the plot is. I guess I watched them in the wrong order, but I've seen CoG twice and want to go back to watch SoD a third time, and even then I still don't think I'll have a complete grasp of everything.
Still, it's way more interesting to me than Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone which seems more to me like a really well-made Disney Channel movie.
Last edited:
AJUMP23
Parody of actual AJUMP23
It was Meh-diocre. I like the parts with Newt, I thought he is a great character. I really liked Queenie in the first movie, but her turning and redemption is a weird arc. The whole blood pact because I love a person was weird and Creedance being a long lost nephew of Dumbledore was weird too.
PaddyOCanager
Member
Couldn't agree more. As a huge HP fan growing up I noticed the difference when Yates took over, it blew my mind they handed him the keys.
SlimySnake
Flashless at the Golden Globes
Sad to say but the series peaked with Prisoner of Azkaban. It's shocking to me that they didnt bring him back for the last one after producing a masterpiece.
PaddyOCanager
Member
Yes! Azkaban was my favorite. It's the one movie I really felt captured what I wanted in an HP movie.
SlimySnake
Flashless at the Golden Globes
It's the movie that turned me into an HP fan. The first two were too kiddie for me. I was like why is this series of novels such a big deal. LOTR had been releasing around the same time, and it was far more epic and adult themed. Then Azkaban came out, it was dark, gritty, and several scenes like the quidditch game set during a thunderstorm, the dementor scene in the train, and the final expecto patronum spell were shot with such intensity that we still havent seen in any HP movie since. Not many directors can squeeze out that much tension from a scene, and Yates certainly isnt one of them.
I still get chills from the score when Harry finally realizes he has to conjur the patronus spell, it's John Williams best track in the series, but Cuaron's decision to cut off all sound for a split second before the soundtrack kicks in is why this series needed auteur directors instead of workman directors like Yates. It's those little touches that make all the impact in the world.
PaddyOCanager
Member
Damn....time for a rewatch.
TaylorSwiftFan
Member
Does he start wearing robes in this movie?
It peaked with PoA, took a nosedive with GoF, then picked itself up again with OotP, then bombed again forever with HBP and DH. As it's been stated, Yates really fucked the franchise up.
V1LÆM
Gold Member
I eventually got to see it. It wasn't that good. The new actor that took over from Johnny Depp is quite good but it should never have happened.
I can't remember shit from the 2nd movie except the creepy looking dude was meant to be a Dumbledore and that Nagini was a witch (which apparently isn't important at all in this movie). So I was confused why Queenie was with Grindelwald. Forgot WTF was happening with Newt's GF Tina.
There didn't seem to be any build up to Grindelwald wanting to be the leader of...the magic world? Don't remember the name of it. But again...I can't remember what Grindelwald did in movie 2
I will say that I've warmed up to Jude Law as Dumbledore. It has a great cast but they are all wasted. The whole thing is a mess and I'm done with it. I'm not interested in the 4th or even 5th movie now. They should shit can the whole thing and start thinking about turning the books into a TV show. What I'd give to get a season for each book with 10x 1hr episodes.
GoF/HBP were disappointments but I think DH was mostly fine. They fucked up the final battle and Voldemort's death though.
I can't remember shit from the 2nd movie except the creepy looking dude was meant to be a Dumbledore and that Nagini was a witch (which apparently isn't important at all in this movie). So I was confused why Queenie was with Grindelwald. Forgot WTF was happening with Newt's GF Tina.
There didn't seem to be any build up to Grindelwald wanting to be the leader of...the magic world? Don't remember the name of it. But again...I can't remember what Grindelwald did in movie 2
I will say that I've warmed up to Jude Law as Dumbledore. It has a great cast but they are all wasted. The whole thing is a mess and I'm done with it. I'm not interested in the 4th or even 5th movie now. They should shit can the whole thing and start thinking about turning the books into a TV show. What I'd give to get a season for each book with 10x 1hr episodes.
Kinda agree...
GoF/HBP were disappointments but I think DH was mostly fine. They fucked up the final battle and Voldemort's death though.
Last edited by a moderator:
Umbasaborne
Banned
Its crazy that this is the first hp
Movie that bombed. Those other two fantastic beasts really left a sour taste in my mouth. Still havent seen this one
Movie that bombed. Those other two fantastic beasts really left a sour taste in my mouth. Still havent seen this one
Rentahamster
Rodent Whores
Trying to shoehorn the backstory of the rise and fall of Grindelwald into the container of the minor book "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" was a terrible idea. Would the Chillin creature even be a thing if they didn't have to cram as many magical beasts in the movie as they could?
BattleMonkey
Member
It's amazing how far off the track they got with the idea of Fantastic Beasts and the tone of the series. They had a simple fun premise that should have followed the rest which was primarily a fun family adventure series. But they really seemed to have lost their focus and gone for more serious topics that kids have zero interest in while also just abandoning the whole Fantastic Beasts idea. The new characters becoming side characters in another serious wizard nazi war plot... wtf happened
DKehoe
Gold Member
Been a little bit since I saw the film now, but wasn't it that
the Dumbledore whose secret it is is actually Aberforth, Albus' brother, and the secret is that he is Creedence's father?
Last edited:
AJUMP23
Parody of actual AJUMP23
That works. It was a little forced.
DKehoe
Gold Member
Oh yeh for sure. It seems much more like they just picked the title because it sounds like a good way to catch people's interest rather than it actually being a reflection of the plot.
AJUMP23
Parody of actual AJUMP23
Fantastic beast: and the plan to stop Wizard Hitler.
stickkidsam
Member
J.K. Rowling hasn’t outed him yet.
Darkmakaimura
Can You Imagine What SureAI Is Going To Do With Garfield?
He likes Eastern European men.