By: Jahanzaib Khokhar

Review| Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore is the best film of the Fantastic Beast franchise

The lingering stares, the mournful remembrances of a love that could not be, the simmering desire amid the polite setting of an afternoon tea: "Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore's" first "'s scene is steamy. And it's all the more impressive because the actors opposite one other, Jude Law and Mads Mikkelsen, are both handsome guys with a strong screen presence and a delicate sense of feeling.

In Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore, one of our wizarding leaders promises their fellow wizards that "the best plan is no plan." While that line is crucial to the film's plot, it also appears to encapsulate the Fantastic Beasts franchise's overall strategy: Take a novel that is only tangentially related to Harry Potter and turn it into a five-part (or possibly three-part) film series, then worry about the details later.

The Secrets of Dumbledore suffers from the same flaws as its forerunners. There are far too many characters and subplots to keep track of. The plot revolves around two supernatural MacGuffins. And you can sense the desperation to reproduce the enchantment of the much better films from which Fantastic Beasts arose.

However, credit where credit is due: The Secrets of Dumbledore is at the very least superior to The Crimes of Grindelwald (which isn't a particularly high standard to meet). There are some genuine laugh-out-loud moments, and Mads Mikkelsen's Grindelwald is an improvement over Johnny Depp's. Unfortunately, the more engaging portions of The Secrets of Dumbledore get lost in the intellectual property sauce, leaving you more

There are too many movies in this movie

It's a political drama about the emergence of fascism in the wizarding world, a comedy about magical creatures, a Harry Potter tie-in, a prison robbery (briefly), and a romance (barely). If you remove a handful of these elements, you'll have something intriguing. If you keep them all, the audience will be perplexed as to what is going on and why it matters. The plot revolves around Albus Dumbledore's (Jude Law) attempts to fight the dark wizard Grindelwald (Mikkelsen). They can't fight each other directly because of a blood contract they made when they were young and in love.

A supernatural creature known as the Qilin, is the glue that holds all of these plot lines together. He appears in the film primarily to justify the film's Fantastic Beasts title. The Secrets of Dumbledore is far more concerned in wizarding world politics than magical creatures, yet it has to keep shoehorning them in for IP reasons. My personal favourite sequence in the film is a swarm of strange crab-scorpion hybrids, but it feels more like it belongs in a zany adventure picture than whatever The Secrets of Dumbledore is attempting to be.

Mads Mikkelsen is a worthy Grindelwald

Mikkelsen may be a newcomer to the Fantastic Beasts franchise but he is unquestionably one of the film's highlights. His Grindelwald has a terrifying sense of righteous indignation as well as a lethal manipulating instinct. One of the most powerful scenes in the film is when he interacts with his enraged fans and smiles triumphantly. He's also unexpectedly funny: one well-timed eye roll near the end of the film almost makes up for the picture's flaws.

The rest of the cast also does a good job. Fogler, who steals practically every scene he's in, and Jessica Williams, whose fast-talking Charms professor Eulalie Hicks is an instant standout, are two particular highlights. While Dumbledore's character is infuriatingly secretive, Law's portrayal of the character combines tenderness with power in a way that is reminiscent of Richard Harris' and Michael Gambon's versions of the character.

Harry Potter remains Fantastic Beasts' worst rival

The shadow of Harry Potter looms over practically every scene in Fantastic Beasts. Characters swing at Hogwarts and Hogsmeade for some good old-fashioned nostalgia in between trips to Berlin and Bhutan. The Quidditch field and the Great Hall are shown, as well as a truly groan-worthy reference to the Room of Requirement. "Hedwig's Theme" is accompanied with magnificent vistas of Hogwarts for maximum nostalgia, which is strange given that Hedwig is an owl who does not yet exist.

If you've read or seen Harry Potter, you'll know that Dumbledore defeats Grindelwald in the end, ensuring the franchise's success. I'd rather see the original Harry Potter films than watch the wizarding world unite against a Muggle-hating dark wizard. You should probably do the same.