Eavesdropping At The Movies

The second Fantastic Beasts film, J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter spin-off series, has numerous pleasures, but makes it hard to appreciate them thanks to a pointlessly convoluted plot and unimaginative character goals. Jude Law stands out, bringing a calm control and gravity to Dumbledore, and Eddie Redmayne, while typically a little irritating, is cast well in the role of a near-autistic, nerdy zoologist who connects far better with animals than people. The question of who the film is aimed at is an interesting one - the animal designs and elements of performance are quite cartoony and broad, and the film as a whole is borne of a world-renowned children's fantasy series, but in this film alone two infants die, and there's almost no levity to be found anywhere. Certainly, as a middle child of a forthcoming five-part series (how!?), it's a bit of a holding pattern, interested primarily in making situations worse so as to provide the foundation for future triumphs. Two of the film's love stories provide food for