Some movie titles, like “Titanic” and “Venom” and “Halloween,” are easy to pronounce. Others, like the new “Fantastic Beasts” movie? Not so much. Mr. Fantastic, Chris Van Vliet, worked his magic with the cast.
So I went to Los Angeles to see “Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald” and talk to the cast. I thought it was pronounced, “Grin-del-wald.” The cast says, well, that might not exactly be the case.
Jude Law (as Albus Dumbledore): “You underestimate your talents, Mr. Scamander.”
“Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald” is the second installment in the “Fantastic Beasts” series. The movie is set in J.K. Rowling’s Wizarding World, but many years before Harry Potter ever got there.
Before we get to any of that, we need to address something very important.
Chris Van Vliet: “I thought it was pronounced ‘Grin-del-wald.’ Am I completely incorrect here?”
Jude Law: “You’re opening a big…”
Eddie Redmayne: “…can of worms right there.”
Jude Law: “I think the key is to say it very quickly. ‘GRIN-uhwald.'”
Katherine Waterston: “Go hard at the top and then just mumble.”
OK, now that we’ve got that out of the way, the title of this movie begs the question…
Chris Van Vliet: “What are these crimes that Grindelwald has committed?”
Zoe Kravitz: “It’s a lot, it’s a lot. He’s a bad guy. Fashion crimes, for sure. What is that outfit? The fashion crimes of Grindelwald.”
It’s true: Grindelwald is a bad guy and a bad dresser. He’s played by Johnny Depp, and he wants to destroy the world. It’s up to Eddie Redmayne’s character to stop him.
Eddie Redmayne (as Newt Scamander): “You want me to hunt him down? To kill him?”
Now, you don’t have to be a Harry Potter fan to enjoy this movie, but as Ezra Miller tells me…
Ezra Miller: “It wouldn’t hurt if you watched all the Harry Potter movies on some sort of binge marathon and then watched ‘Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them,’ like, four times.”
If you are a Harry Potter fan, you’ll love seeing characters like a young Dumbledore, played by Jude Law.
Jude Law: “The fun was the challenge of trying to take a little bit of the Dumbledore that we know and love from the Potter films and books, and keeping a few of those characteristics and also going back and looking at how he became the person that we know and love.”
Johnny Depp (as Gellert Grindelwald): “Do you think Dumbledore will mourn for you?”
Chris Van Vliet: “What magical power would you guys have if you could have any power?”
Jude Law: “Well, just to be able to conjure spells gives you a whole arsenal of options.”
Katherine Waterston: “Oh, good answer.”
Jude Law: “Not at all greedy.”
“Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald” apparates in theaters on Friday.
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