"Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald" (2018) is the second movie in the Fantastic Beasts-franchise and aims to expand a bit more compared to its predecessor. If you want to get as much out of it as possible, there are a few things you need to keep in mind before watching:

This movie asks a lot of its viewers. You need to pay attention to names and connection, which may become a challenge if you're not overly familiar with the Potter-verse. The main quests this movie present are (1) to find out the identity and history of a character, and (2) defeat Grindelwald. Needlessly to say, there are loads of references to people, events and places, which again require attention.

Visually and audibly, this movie is in line with its prequel. The monster designs are playful and enjoyable, but they are given less screen time compared to the first movie, and not quite as much as one could have hoped for.

The Crimes of Grindelwald is also a very grim and dark movie. There are a lot of on-screen deaths and some off-screen deaths that can be very unsettling and disturbing. Sensitive watchers should be warned.

Finally, the characters in The Crimes of Grindelwald is not quite as interesting as in its prequel. Character arches are almost non-existent, and some choices made can feel extremely unmotivated and alienating. Depending on how much you appreciate this franchise, this can be more or less overlooked to a degree, but don't expect a masterpiece in terms of dialogue and characters.

My personal grade: a confused 5/10. If you found this helpful, check my profile for more reviews.