SPOILERY RANT FOR FANTASTIC BEASTS AND WHERE TO FIND THEM
ok no but I really, really, love how Credence Barebones and Percival Graves were portrayed? Not particularly in the shipping way, but just how every scene in which they interacted were super INTENSE.
You could see how Graves manipulated Credence by offering him the affection and love that his mother never gives. Not just through words (like his promises of how Credence would be honoured and praised among the wizarding world), but also through physical affection (healing Credence’s hands, holding him close) and through gifts (the deathly hallows necklace). He definitely came off as the kind of man kids yell “STRANGER DANGER” about but that just further proves how effectively Graves was portrayed, because he IS a bad, bad man who emotionally manipulated a love-starved boy for his own means.
And don’t get me started about Credence. I LOVED Credence simply because of how human he was. Like whenever Graves offers him comfort, the way he never quite meets Grave’s eyes shows that either 1) Credence does not want to admit that he craves Grave’s affection or 2) he knows that Graves is manipulating him, or 3) both. But the fact that Credence kept coming back to meet Graves just shows the extent of his desperation for love. All of his pent-up anger and sadness that culminated in the Obscurus really hits you because of it sheer destructive power. Credence’s full range of emotions were shown best NOT through his words or expressions (he’s pretty stone-faced throughout), but through his silence and actions, which is absolutely human and raw and genuine.
I was pretty upset that Credence was killed without any chance to reform. But at the same time, I LOVED it. Because the lesson here is that society is unrelenting towards misunderstood and misguided people, and if Credence had lived happily and learned to find proper emotional support, the ending would be terribly cliché and unrealistic. Especially as Newt tries to tell him that he is not alone in his anger and loneliness, Newt offers another form of support in the form of equality and mutual understanding, rather than the one Graves offered of a highly-dependent power imbalance. But just as soon Credence is offered this new insight, he is killed by MACUSA. It’s tragic, heartbreaking, and all the more vivid because of it.
It also struck me that towards the end, Graves yelled that “he only listens to me” (or something along those lines) when chasing down Obscurus-Credence, all the while calling to him and telling him that they will be powerful together. I’m certainly glad Credence didn’t listen to him again. Graves naturally thinks that his hold over Credence is absolute. He isn’t really fazed when Credence rejects him for the first time, because he is so sure the Credence would always come back to him. Not particularly sure of what I’m getting at, but just wanted to point it out.
But in the end, Credence is dead and Graves/Grindelwald is simply arrested. There is not much justice for Credence, and while he certainly deserves much, much better, I’m glad the movie didn’t do it that way. So yeah, I love how the movie portrayed their relationship and how impactful it was. By no means was it a healthy relationship, nor was there redemption for either character. But it hit me in the heart real good, and I personally feel that it was wonderful storytelling.
Also: Why didn’t Grindelwald just use a spell to make Credence to do his bidding? An Imperius Curse would do the job faster and more efficiently. My guess is that 1) Credence is actually a powerful wizard in his own right, as seen by the strength of his Obscurus, and cannot be commanded, or 2) Grindelwald just wanted to play with his emotions, which is sad in the way that Grindelwald never needed Credence’s dependence even in the slightest.
If you’ve somehow read til this point, what do you think?
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