Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald review — Unless you’re a die-hard Harry Potter fan, you will not be charmed

Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald is the perfect film to see with your favorite Harry Potter fanatic. Without him or her by your side, and without having seen Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them within the last three days, you will be completely lost.

Believe me. It was difficult enough to sort out what was going on with my friendly neighborhood Harry Potter expert patiently explaining powers, potions and people as the film furiously unfurled. And now, after a lengthy post-movie explanation, (fueled by Sprinkles cupcakes—it was the least I could do for the guy) I’m still having a hard time unpacking all the intricate details.

The film is fine when Eddie Redmayne, as Newt Scamander, bemusedly uses his gifts for taming the wild and impossibly adorable fantastic beasts. But throw in all the intrigue involved in the icy Gellert Grindelwald (Johnny Depp) attempting to take over the world for the pure-blood wizards, while the stifling and stuffy Ministry of Magic tries to foil his efforts, and it’s relentlessly hard to follow.

If you’re not familiar with the spells and the relationships and the family trees and the ancient rivalries and who has what powers, you will, as I was, be totally lost. If I had a nickel for every time I said to myself, “Wait! What?” I would have enough money to take myself to a regular movie, instead of attending free critics screenings all the time.

Anyway, Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald is bearable if you’re just willing to sit back and be dazzled by the special effects, which are delightful and flawless. Any efforts at deep understanding will leave you in a trance that even Dumbledore can’t break.

Rated PG-13

2 Hours 14 Minutes

If, after having read this Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald review you still want to see it, get times and tickets at Fandango.com.