my friends and I are going tomorrow at 10:30 to avoid crowds of screaming, zooming children... I didn't realize the super-hardcore people went on midnight the thurs before!
IF YOU HAVEN'T READ THE BOOKS OR FORGOT WHAT HAPPENED THIS HAS SPOILERS...
So good. By far the best Harry Potter movie. It captured the spirit of the books (unlike III) yet wasn't boring and cheesey (like I and II). The acting was so much better (not sure if that was due to the new director), they delivered a lot of jokes well. There's a hilarious moment where Harry spits out his tea, but maybe I just liked it cause I'd totally do that. It was also really visually appealing striking a good balance between the darkness of Cuaron's directing and the corniness of Columbus's. I related to the characters a lot more than the previous ones, partly cause of the improvement in acting, partly because they are getting older. They captured the awkwardness of being 14 well, there were tense moments, and I even teared up when Cedric died. My only complaint would be I felt the last 5 minutes or so felt kind of like they were just trying to throw some closure in with out actually doing anything. Overall I really liked it though, and I'm very critical of movies. I really haven't liked the previous ones.
ETA: They also did a great job of editing the story down. Despite being 2.5 hours, it didn't drag. They incorporated people like Rita Skeeter, and we got the gist of her with out actually getting into all the details of the situation.
Thanks for the review Maddie. I wasn't going to see it because I was so disappointed with the first movie and felt it kinda ruined the book/story. I think I'm going to see which IMAX its playing on here and go see it next weekend.
I can't wait! I was going to go see a midnight showing but we went to buy tickets on Wednesday and they were all sold out! Bastards. So now I think I'll trick the boy into going to see it tomorrow morning. I have the times already picked out...
I just got back from watching it. I wasn't crazy about the first two, but loved the last one. I agree that this onw was really good -- definitely darker, the acting has definitely gone up a few notches, and there was a nice balance of the scary and the humorous. There was a group of little kids in front of me and during the scary parts I noticed they got very quiet. One even cried! The guy who plays Mad Eye Moody is perfect.
Just got back from seeing it! Overall I thought it was good, I really liked the first half, but then I found it to be kind of lacking. Still worth the 10 bucks though!
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Aaaaaaaaaaaaah! I'm dying to see it!!! I'm glad to hear it's so good. We were going to see it today, but DH has thrown out his back and can't get out of bed! I'd normally just go see it without him, but he really wants to see it too.
IF YOU HAVEN'T READ THE BOOKS OR FORGOT WHAT HAPPENED THIS HAS SPOILERS... So good. By far the best Harry Potter movie. It captured the spirit of the books (unlike III) yet wasn't boring and cheesey (like I and II). The acting was so much better (not sure if that was due to the new director), they delivered a lot of jokes well. There's a hilarious moment where Harry spits out his tea, but maybe I just liked it cause I'd totally do that. It was also really visually appealing striking a good balance between the darkness of Cuaron's directing and the corniness of Columbus's. I related to the characters a lot more than the previous ones, partly cause of the improvement in acting, partly because they are getting older. They captured the awkwardness of being 14 well, there were tense moments, and I even teared up when Cedric died. My only complaint would be I felt the last 5 minutes or so felt kind of like they were just trying to throw some closure in with out actually doing anything. Overall I really liked it though, and I'm very critical of movies. I really haven't liked the previous ones. ETA: They also did a great job of editing the story down. Despite being 2.5 hours, it didn't drag. They incorporated people like Rita Skeeter, and we got the gist of her with out actually getting into all the details of the situation.-- Edited by Maddie at 03:08, 2005-11-18
I totally agree with you! I loved it all, except for the last five minutes... that last scene was painful. One of the things that makes me love the book so much is how the ending really sets the stage for the next parts of the story--the whole showdown with Cornelius Fudge about Voldemort being back was really missing from this movie. That part is crucial, I think, because it just gives you such a sense of dread--not only is Voldemort back, but no one believes it, and the Hogwarts crew is essentially on their own in dealing with him. Instead, like you said, the movie tried to wrap things up a little too much. I thought the scene with Moody and the spiders was really well done, though--that scene in the book is so intense, it always makes me cry, and it made me cry in the movie too. Poor Neville and his ruined parents breaks my heart.
I saw it at midnight on thursday, then again friday night :)
I pretty much agree with everything said about the movie. However, I loved the third movie and I felt it evoked the same mood as the book, which I also felt about this one.
One downside for me was that there was no music. I don't think they had John Williams compose a score for this one :(
Wooohooo! I just got back from seeing it finally! I really enjoyed it. I thought the visual effects were amazing and I love that it's dark, like the third movie. I think that given the fact that the book is HUGE and has a ton of stuff in it, they did the best they could. They didn't really develop the relationship with Sirius Black at all, and I think anyone who saw the movie that didn't read the book would have been thoroughly confused by the one scene with Sirius. And I agree with Alikat that they hardly developed Cedric's character at all, so his death wasn't as profound as it was in the book.
The acting is dramatically better now though, which makes it much easier to feel like the characters are real. Seeing Harry, Ron, and Hermione all get older is so weird--it makes me feel like I know them, like they're kids from my neighborhood or something and I found myself saying to my husband "Look how big they're getting!" I love the relationship the three of them have.
Overall though my favorite movie is still the third because it was such a departure from the first two, but this one was great as well.
I actually think that Cedric's death was a lot better in the movie. Despite not having any character development, you do get that he's a wholesome, nice guy. And the students and his father's reaction were good, so you totally got how sad it was. For me, JK Rowling is just such a bad writer that she can't get me worked up about anything.