I thought I was going to dislike this film from the start because I heard that the beasts were less of a focus and this was easily the strongest part of the first film, while the Credence plot meandered and wasn't particularly that compelling.

However, I was pleasantly surprised that the film had quite a complex plot that develops the characters further along and builds upon character motivations.

This is a darker sequel in that it doesn't shy away from the darker parts of Harry Potter lore with some particular scenes that might be a bit shocking. However, Newt, Jacob and the beasts do lighten up the tone when it calls for it which I actually found pretty amusing, much like the first one.

There are still enough moments with the beasts to satisfy fans of the first film with some interesting new beasts introduced (which I won't spoil here) though they could have been integrated much more. Grindelwald is a somewhat compelling villain but as I fan I want to see the plot call for Newt to use his beast taming abilities against Grindelwald a lot more. This plot very much sets the franchise up for the next film but leaves a firm mark to invest in the next movie.

Visuals are excellent with magic looking really impressive (especially with its destructive nature) and the score is of course excellent as to be expected with the Harry Potter series,.

Some audience members might dislike some of the more complex scenes as it can be confusing at times and kids will especially find it hard to keep up with conversations.

7.5 / generous 8 out of 10