It’s time to acknowledge that something is missing from the Wizarding World.
Maybe it’s Harry Potter.
That isn’t to literally say The Boy Who Lived — and the character who launched author J.K. Rowling’s hugely popular, magic-infused universe of wizards, witches and fantastic beasts — should be in the Wizarding World’s current big-screen series, “Fantastic Beasts.” After all, it is set several decades before Harry’s.
However, the third entry — “Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore,” which apparates into U.S. theaters this week — is desperate for a compelling lead character. Or even a character who is clearly its main protagonist.
Is it Eddie Redmayne’s Newt Scamander? He’s the kind-hearted and introverted magizoologist who is most comfortable dealing with magical creatures and who clearly was the hero of the series’ strongest entry, 2016’s “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them.”
Or is it this film’s namesake, Albus Dumbledore? He’s a professor at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry — and its future headmaster — who has been played so ably as a younger man by Jude Law starting with 2018’s so-so “Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald.”
It’s hard to say.
“The Secrets of Dumbledore” is an ensemble affair, one full of all the magic fans will expect but also one that, in the hands of franchise veteran director David Yates, feels as if it’s going through the motions a bit.
It certainly doesn’t help that Porpentina “Tina” Goldstein — Katherine Waterston’s American auror, who has been involved with an ongoing flirtation with the awkwardly charming Newt — is almost completely sidelined for this affair. (We’ll leave it to you to read online speculation as to why the actress barely appears in “Dumbledore,” if you so choose.)
Penned by Rowling and Steve Kloves, who adapted most of the “Harry Potter” novels for the cinema, this film begins with a flashback in which Dumbledore is being served a cup of tea in a restaurant. He’s waiting for someone, that someone proving to be dark wizard Gellert Grindelwald, now portrayed by Mads Mikkelsen, taking the role over from Johnny Depp.
In this exchange, we learn more about the wizards’ interconnected past. Dumbledore voices his opposition to the anti-muggle direction Grindelwald has taken, with the latter countering that he’s simply following through on what they talked about when they were young wizards spending so much time together. They part ways without seeing eye to eye.
“Enjoy your tea,” Grindelwald says.
In the story’s present day, Dumbledore is building a small army, as due to a magical bond between them, he can not take on Grindelwald himself.
It consists mostly of returning characters — along with Newt, there’s his auror brother, Theseus (Callum Turner, “Emma”); Newt’s muggle buddy and baker Jacob Kowalski (Dan Fogler, “The Walking Dead”); Newt’s longsuffering assistant, Bunty (Victoria Yeates, “Call the Midwife”); and French wizard Yusuf Kama (William Nadylam, “Stillwater”), a member of the Lestrange family.
The lone newcomer is Eulalie “Lally” Hicks (a delightful Jessica Williams of “The Incredible Jessica James”), a very capable Charms professor who makes a concerted effort to protect the magic-less Jacob.
Jacob is down in the dumps since his magical, mind-reading love, Queenie Goldstein (Alison Sudol, “The Last Full Measure”), defected to dark side late in “Grindelwald.”
Grindelwald also has on his team the powerful Credence (Ezra Miller, “Justice League”), revealed in the previous adventure to actually be a Dumbledore named Aurelius.
As Dumbledore plots against Grindelwald, the latter mobilizes his forces — especially Credence, channeling the young man’s sense of abandonment and betrayal — against the former.
Beyond that, Grindelwald continues to rally the support of those in the magical world by scapegoating muggles and going so far to insist its sinful for wizards and witches to hide their magical gifts. He is seeking a high elected office, and the existence of a rare magical creature — a fairly fantastic little beast — may be Newt and company’s only chance to stop him.
While the talented Mikkelsen (“Rogue One: A Star Wars Story,” “Another Round”) would seem to be a fine choice for the new Grindelwald, Depp was much more interesting in the role. And although we wouldn’t expect the hair-and-makeup folks to have completely re-created Depp’s unusual look from the series, it’s disappointing that so little was done to that end.
Law (“Cold Mountain,” “Captain Marvel”) — stepping into the role inhabited first by Richard Harris and then Michael Gambon when the character is in his advanced years during the “Potter” saga — continues to be one of the best parts in this series since his debut in “Grindelwald.”
Law brings weight to his character that Redmayne — an Academy Award winner for 2015’s “The Theory of Everything” — simply can’t match with his.
Thus, with apologies to the generally enjoyable Newt, Dumbledore probably should become the lead character if the series is to continue through its planned five installments, instead of having him work so much of his magic through Newt.
Reportedly, the studio behind the films, Warner Bros., is waiting to see how this movie performs before greenlighting a fourth entry. Considering the Wizarding World’s massive base of fans, it’s easy to envision there being more ‘Fantastic Beasts.”
On the other hand, ‘The Secrets of Dumbledore” can be a bit of a chore and a snore. There are moments exciting and humorous, but there are too few.
Maybe it’s time for Rowling to wave her wand and conjure up something else.
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‘FANTASTIC BEASTS: THE SECRETS OF DUMBLEDORE’
2 stars (out of 4)
MPAA rating: PG-13 (for some fantasy action/violence)
Running time: 2:22
How to watch: In theaters Friday
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