If ” Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them ” did not raise many questions after watching, then the ending of the second part of “Fantastic Beasts”, on the one hand, baffled the fans, on the other hand, it caused a lot of discussion and reflection. Is Credence Barebone a relative of Albus Dumbledore? And if so, who exactly are they to each other? I offer my analysis of the interesting, unexpected and mysterious moments of the film “Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald.” For immersion in the atmosphere, I recommend the official soundtrack.
Credence Barebone – Aurelius Dumbledore
Most believe Credence is Dumbledore’s brother, according to Grindelwald’s final phrase. But according to all the available evidence and facts from the life of the Dumbledore family, nothing is known about the birth of Albus’ brother, Aberforth and Ariana. Moreover, according to the official timeline, Aurelius’ alleged parents, Percival and Kendra Dumbledore, died before he was born. Who, then, is Credence? One can only guess. Fans have several versions of this:
Option 1 – Son of Honoria
According to this version, Aurelius is the son of Honoria’s aunt Albus. In this case, they are cousins to each other.
Option 2 – Aurelius Ariana’s dark twin
In Fantastic Beasts 2, young Albus Dumbledore says: “I know that the Obscurus grows up in the absence of love, like a dark twin, his only friend. If Credence has a real brother or sister who can take the place of the obscura, then the young man can be saved. ” After the tragic death of Ariana, her counterpart continued to exist in the guise of Aurelius.
Option 3 – Grindelwald manipulator
Perhaps Gellert once again deceived the young man for the sake of his goals. Credence Barebone may turn out to be a relative of the main villain of ” Harry Potter “, Voldemort. This is evidenced by his close relationship with Nagaina. The Obscura is reminiscent of the Death Eater movement shape in Harry Potter. The boy grows up in an orphanage like Tom Reddle.
The only thing that is confusing is the phoenix Fawkes appearing in the last frames. This indicates that Aurelius belongs to the Dumbledore family. But it is possible that he also had the bird before the scene at Nurmengard Castle. It was for the phoenix that the young man could buy bird food in the market. Deception on the part of a dark wizard is not excluded.
It is possible that Grindelwald’s task is to “pump” the magical powers of Creedance, preparing him for the battle with Dumbledore. The suffering of the young man plays into the hands of the evil magician, as was the case with the nanny. It’s hard to imagine how Creed can get angry if he finds out that his family rejected him?
An important detail is the prophecy voiced in the first part of Fantastic Beasts. In the original, it looks like this:
A son cruelly banished
Despair of the daughter
Return, great avenger
With wings from the water.
– Prophecy 20 by Tycho Dodonus
What can be said about the fact that the second child, allegedly killed in a shipwreck, actually survived. Did Grindelwald know about the substitution of children on the ship? And that Corvus might have survived? The director of the film, David Yates, revealed the secret that in the third part of the saga we will learn more about the relationship between Lita and Newt. I think this also applies to the Lestrange family as a whole.
What is Lita Lestrange’s relationship to Bellatrix?
Zoe Kravits, who played the role of Lita Lestrange in The Crimes of Grindelwald, said in an interview that she was the great-great-aunt of Voldemort’s famous comrade-in-arms. How exactly the branches of the family tree intertwined will become clear in the continuation of the saga.
Albus Dumbledore’s orientation
J.K. Rowling has repeatedly mentioned that Dumbledore is gay. But there are no specific facts proving this. I think the author had his own reasons for such a development of the plot. For example, add realism, the more unexpected details, the more real the world seems. I would not be surprised if this was done to please the Film Academy, tk. movies about Harry Potter has never received an Oscar.
In The Crimes of Grindelwald, Dumbledore says they were more than brothers. In the reflection of the mirror of desires, Albus sees young Gellert. There are many hints that he had some feelings for Gellert, but he did not share them. As Eddie Redmayne, the performer of the role of Newt Scamander, said on this occasion: “This is not such a movie, not about this.”
References to the Harry Potter saga
The events of Fantastic Beasts expand and complete the picture of the wizarding world of Harry Potter. It’s hard not to notice the episodes linking the spin-off to the Harry Potter series of films and books.
Gellert Grindelwald
For the first time we hear about this evil wizard in the movie “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone”. On their first trip to the Hogwarts Express, Harry and Ron buy a bunch of candy. One of them, on a magic card, depicts Albus Dumbledore. The signature to it says that he is known for his victory over Gellert Grindelwald.
Grindelwald is one of the strongest Dark Mages of all time. His influence and power was eclipsed only by Tom Radle. Gellert studied at Durmstrang, where he was expelled for experimenting with dark magic. He remained a friend and ally of Albus until the three-way battle between Aberforth and Albus and Gellert, in which Ariana died. After that, Grindelwald left England, took possession of the Elder Wand and continued to fight for his ideals. Its habitat and, in combination, a prison for enemies, became the Nurmengard castle in Austria. At the height of his magical powers in 1945, Grindelwald fought Albus Dumbledore in a legendary duel. The winner was Dumbledore, becoming the next owner of the Elder Wand. For the victory over Grindelwald, Albus was awarded the Order of Merlin First Class.
Thestrals
Many recognized these unusual creatures at the very beginning of the film. The carriage on which Grindelwald escaped from prison is drawn by the festrals. They are first mentioned in Goblet of Fire, Harry Potter sees them after witnessing the death of Cedric Diggory in the Triwizard Tournament. Palumna (Luna) Lovegood explains to Harry that only people facing death can see them. They look like a cross between a skeleton, a bat and a horse.
Elder Wand
Gellert Grindelwald is known as one of the owners of the Elder Wand, which is one of the three Deathly Hallows. The core of the Elder Wand is the hair from the festral tail. Grindelwald took possession of it by stealing it from the previous owner, Maikya Grigorovich. The mark of the Deathly Hallows is a symbol of Grindelwald, who devoted his life to finding them. This is evidenced by the logo of the second part of Fantastic Beasts and the story of Viktor Krum, who studied in Durmstrang, whose grandfather was killed by Gellert.
Nagaina
In The Crimes of Grindelwald, we first see a woman who can transform into a snake and become one of Voldemort’s Horcruxes. The film tells that one day Nagini will forever remain imprisoned in a snake body.
Water devil
One of the unusual creatures in the Arcanus circus that Creedance Barebone and Nagini traveled with. Remus Lupine taught his students about the Water Devil in Prisoner of Azkaban. The water devil became the way to test Harry in Operation 7 Potters.
Hogwarts
In the second part of “Fantastic Beasts” we see the same Hogwarts where young Newt and Lita are studying. The familiar “Hedwig’s Theme” from Harry Potter, used in this moment, evokes special nostalgia.
Scene with Bogart
In The Crimes of Grindelwald, we see Albus teaching at Hogwarts, he teaches the Riddiculas spell against the boggart, which takes the form of the enemy’s greatest fear. The class is very similar to the one taught by Professor Lupine in Prisoner of Azkaban. In both films, this moment is one of the key moments in the story. Boggart Harry who takes the form of a Dementor. According to one version, Letha sees the Cloak of Invisibility, one of the three Deathly Hallows that Harry inherited from his father.
McLaggen
Cormac McLaggen is a Quidditch player and one of Hermione’s admirers. In The Crimes of Grindelwald, young Dumbledore refers to one of the students with the same last name. This is probably a relative of the same character.
Polyjuice Potion
An immutable vow
Yusuf Kama, Leta Lestrange’s alleged brother, made an unalterable vow, promising revenge, much like Severus Narcissa in The Half-Blood Prince, that he would protect Draco and help complete his cause.
Professor McGonagall
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Minerva is well preserved. In 1927, she already worked at Hogwarts, it is her, according to Rowling, we see in “Fantastic Beasts” 2. It turns out that during the events of “Harry Potter” she was at least 90 years old.
Rattlesnake willow
The magic tree, the Rattling Willow, is vividly represented in The Chamber of Secrets and The Prisoner of Azkaban. We continue to meet her in the early years of Newt and Lita. Their relationship is very reminiscent of the friendship between young Severus Snape and Harry’s mother Lily, which we see in Deathly Hallows Part 2.
The very mirror in which young Albus sees Grindelwald draws a parallel with the Philosopher’s Stone. Harry sees in him his parents, and in the finale it helps to find the cherished stone in his trouser pocket.
Winda Rosier
The right hand of Grindelwald, the mysterious Vinda Rosier, a representative of a powerful magical family. It was she who provided her house for the organization of Gellert’s headquarters and supported all of his ideas. Her relative became a death eater and was killed by Alistor Moody in a fierce battle. There is an assumption that she will connect the Black and Lastrange families in the future.
Nicholas Flamel and the Philosopher’s Stone
Nicholas Flamel’s appearance is a clear reference to Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. We catch a glimpse of the stone itself in Flamel’s office. The artifact is used to create the elixir of immortality and is capable of turning any metal into gold.
Questions for the film
Especially picky fans of the universe of “Harry Potter” and “Fantastic Beasts” in particular, were able to find some inconsistencies in the plot of the film. What questions arise after watching The Crimes of Grindelwald:
- Why wasn’t Gellert shown how he took possession of the Elder Wand?
- Why did Nanny Credence’s killer Grimmson survive the Obscura fight?
- Who was Aurelius with on the ship?
- Why couldn’t Queenie read Gellert’s mind, or could she?
There are more questions than answers. We are waiting for “Fantastic Beasts” 3, but for now you can revisit Harry Potter to refresh some points. I personally liked the film, I will look forward to the continuation
