The second installment of the Fantastic Beasts series was released Nov. 16, 2018. However, “Crimes of Grindelwald” was not met with quite the same excitement as the first one. Why?

Audiences fell in love with J.K. Rowling’s “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them”. This was thanks to three main elements: Newt Scamander’s (Eddie Redmayne) awkward charm, the intricacy of magical New York City, and of course, the beasts.

Two out of three disappeared in “Crimes of Grindelwald”. Although Newt still spends much of the movie endearingly addressing his shoes, this movie took place in both Paris and London. Neither city was developed well enough to mesmerize audiences in the same way New York did. Even Paris’s Circus Arcanus (an enchanting “freak show” complete with a tasteless ring master and slave labor) doesn’t do the trick.

The movie also failed to introduce a new cast of lovable beasts. The first movie introduced viewers to fan-favorites Pickett the bowtruckle, Frank the Thunderbird, Newt’s niffler, and more. “Crimes of Grindelwald” added only one main beast to the series: a lion-like creature called the Zouwu. However, even this beast had very little screen time over all, and I didn’t walk away from the movie feeling particularly attached.

Even though the plot was somewhat chaotic, the combination of powerful acting and beautiful cinematography saved this movie, not to mention the well established die-hard fanbase. Along with Redmayne’s lovable portrayal of Newt, Jude Law’s accurate and powerful role as a young Dumbledore, tortured and morally gray Credence played by Ezra Miller, and Queenie’s (Alison Sudol) continuous emotional struggle made this movie one worth seeing.