Just got back from the midnight showing... first off some advice for AMC... STAGGERED SHOWTIMES. Anyways...this was the first Harry Potter book I actually read so I was curious to see how well it translated onto film and in that regard, I'd say they did a great job. They left in what needed to be left in and cut out less important storylines...there were a few exceptions to that as I will explain below. The film itself....good score, cinematography, pacing, etc...basically what you would expect from the HP universe. With all that said though, the film is good, really good...but falls just short of greatness....and here's why... Spoiler 1. The book did a great job of really making you hate Umbridge's character whereas in the movie they do just enough to dislike her...her character should have been fleshed out more...she's a real b*tch but you don't quite get that feeling from her in the movie. Also, it took her awhile to find her groove in the movie as the first half she (the actress) comes off more as a ditz. 2. Cho and Harry's story arc...I liked how they changed it...but I don't like the open-ended nature that the film left you with....their love angle should have been resolved better (or should have been resolved in the first place) to set up for the more important love story in the next installment. It's almost as if that whole arc was forgotten toward the end. 3. Sirius's death was a big disappointment...this is a main character in the franchise, one that is of great importance to Harry, and I did not care at all that he died...I felt no emotion at all in that scene (unlike Cedric's death in the previous film). They could have made that scene a lot better, although admittedly his death is a difficult one to film. 4. The end... the ministry of magic was where all the action takes place and is supposed to be a huge climax..and it was...sort of...it just ended way to quickly...plus it's also where you see minor characters coming to the forefront of the story and maturing (ex. Neville) but they cut those scenes out entirely. Plus, the minister of magic's reaction to Voldemort's return and the final scene seemed out of place...it should have been much darker and graver. The film got a lot of things right and was definitely entertaining...I'd probably rank it on par with the third one, ahead of the first two, but short of the fourth. And essentially, the moments in the film where it should have reached epic proportions...the great climaxes of the story...just fell a little short for me. Which kind of worries me about the the 6th...they better not gloss over the end like they did here...cause the end of the Half Blood Prince is hugely epic and very important in setting up the final book.
meh....i was disapointed, especially after the last movie was great. everything seems rushed and barely touched upon. you don't get a feel for time at hogwarts at all. christmas break happened like a half hour into the movie, then all of a sudden it was the end of the year. the hogwarts scenes and the progression of the school year are my favorite part of the harry potter books, but the movie glossed it over in favor of action this time around. meh. 1 and a half stars. not impressed.
here is my take just got back Spoiler not so much on the order hardly saw any of tonks, moody, sirius etc. which is a shame seeing how the movie/book was named for their group. i really hated how sirius died, in fact its hard to even know right away that he did die it was just so quick and played off, even when beatrix said the spell it was a bit muffled. that was a shame the ending fight sequences, too much and too fast couldnt really see what was going on and how, back and forth cuts made it hard to appreciate. and at the end when the minister was just matter of factly "he is back" umbridge while i didnt like her in the movie her character in the book was much more loathsome. i dont think also they did the whole weasley twin exit ok, my friends who dont really follow the book asked me afterwards what happened to them. it wasnt a bad film, i still think the third movie is the best out of the 5 but a lot was cut out of the book to make the film which is understable, meant for kids cant be too long, but i wish they did release at least on dvd an extended version that was truer to the book like they did with LOTR. i think that was its major downfall major points in the book were somewhat glossed over here and a lot of meat was left out. a generous 3/5
I have never been able to force myself to watch one of these without wanting to rip my ears and eyes out.
It depends on what type of books you like, if you like fantasy you will probably like harry potter. I like the books, and so far(haven't seen the last one) I like the movies.
i ignored the books and movies completely up until last weekend. i read the first book and watched the four previous movies. i also went to the midnight showing of the latest flick. i heard someone say that harry potter is this generation's star wars. having grown up with the first star wars movies, i figured i owed it to myself to check it out. i'm definately going to finish reading the books and will watch the other movies when they come out. i really liked the first two movies and was entertained by the others. even though i haven't read the other books yet, it feels like a lot was cut out of the latest films. so i'm looking forward to reading the books.
The movies in my opinion aren't very good because of the high standards set by the books. But you should be sure to check out the books. The 1st and 2nd ones are pretty good but then 3-6 are sooo amazing, you just don't wanna stop reading and next thing you know 5 hours have passed by. I'm so pumped for the 7th book, only 9 more days.
i have a major problem. ever since book 3 has come out, the day these books come out, i read them non-stop. every book since the 3rd book I have finished the day it comes out. It gets you that hooked. but then it sucks after u finish ur like crap... i have to wai like 2 years for another one to come out. unfortunaltey with the one coming out on the 21st, itll be the last ... supposedly.
Now that I've had time to digest it...I think I like the film a little bit better. One of my criteria for really enjoying a movie and considering it a solid piece of work is that it gets me thinking about it long after I've seen it. And I'm definitely still thinking about it today...the problems that have been mentioned still keep it from being the best out of the series but it's still definitely better than the first two films, which while great in their own right, failed to truly provide any sort of depth and emotion to the characters. I agree about the time aspect as the movie did feel rushed...which doesn't make sense that they'd do that since, for one, there are so many things you can cut of the book from the outset that wouldn't affect the story much and two, all the other movies had 2.5hr+ run times so why buck that trend. Spoiler Some things they really should have added: If they had just taken a little more time in developing Umbridge's character she would have felt a lot truer to the book; a lot easier to despise. Still think the ministry of magic scene should have been longer...that's the climactic battle of the book, don't water it down. And Sirius's death...how could Harry have known what happened to Sirius almost immediately if he knew nothing about the curtain? They should have played it like the book...have Lupin stop Harry from going after Sirius, which he did, but explain why. Also, they should have added the scene where Sirius gives him the mirror and at the end when Harry uses said mirror to try (and fail) to communicate with Sirius...it would have given a lot more sadness to his death that just didn't exist as is. I really hope they decide to forget about running time in the next film and let it play out like it should...there are so many important scenes in that one that you can't just skim over them or cut them out (you could do that in this one somewhat)..if it ends up being three hours so be it...LOTR were just that and are some of the best films I've ever seen. Some of my favorite scenes...the opening sequence (loved the style there and the sense of darkness), the ministry of magic opening sequence (definitely felt a sense of grandeur), Spoiler all the DA scenes were spot on, Grawp's first scene, the occlumency sequences and Harry's dream's, Umbridge's exit and the appearance of the centaurs, Bellatrix's escape from Azkaban, the Dumbledore and Voldemort fight, Harry's inner fight with Voldemort and pretty much all the times you see Ginny (if you read the 6th book and saw what she did in the movie you'll know why).
Film took in a record 44 million on opening day beating Spidey 2...also took in 12 million in it's midnight showings. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/19729493/
not bad but i wonder how long that record will last with the simpsons movie coming out in a few weeks
some friends of mine saw it and said it was over two hours. so im not sure what you mean. but... in saying that i have fealt all except maybe the 1st have seemed rushed and they leave parts out. so i do get what your saying.
It is over 2 hours...but it still has the shortest runtime in the series...and all but Azkaban ran over 2.5 hours long...12 minutes (the current one was 138 min) may not seem like much in realtime but it can be an eternity in movie time. They could have taken that time and added in a few key scenes and extended the end a little bit and it wouldn't have felt quite rushed.
I saw it yesterday at 6:30. The theater ended up being mostly full, but we got there at 6:10ish and had our choice of seats, which was kind of odd. There was, however, a line for the next show when we were getting out...so I guess kids these days don't think its cool to go see movies at 6:30 anymore. Anyway, even though it was over 2 hours, it definitely felt rushed. There were whole parts of the book left out. But nothing major. Overall, I think it was on par with most of the other movies. Definitely better then the second one, but that one is really not that hard to beat, imo. I don't think it was quite as good as 3 or 4, but then, the book really wasn't either. The best thing about the movie: The ending. It was extremely well done, imo. The worst thing: Too dark and too little screent time for the familiar characters. Yes, I know the book is dark, too, but not this dark. Ron's character almost is non-existant, really. Part of the charm of the books and movies is their is a sort of goofiness to all the characters, though Ron in particular, that was completely non-existent. Hermione was in there more, but not as much, also. Frankly, I know they are trying to follow the books, but almost every other major historical character, other than Harry, has very little or considerably less screen time this movie (Dumbledore, Snape, McGonagal, Ron, Hermione, Hagrid, Malfoy). In their place were new characters. Sirius, more of Voldemort, the rest of the Order of the Phoenix, Luna, Fudge, Bleatrix, Umbridge...it's a testament to some of the actors they have playing those roles that the movie still is a great movie. And again, that is kidn of how it is in the book, too.
I'm willing to bet Simpsons takes in modest to big numbers but doesn't come close to setting any records. If we were talking back in its heyday then it would have a solid chance but now I dunno. I'm thinking it basically will pull the hardcore geeks and the older audience that grew up with the show...not unlike Transformers except that had giant robots pummeling each other which excites the kiddies.
Okay. So I have never really been interested in Harry Potter; when it started to be a big deal I did read the first book, which was entertaining, but not enough for me to really follow up. I just never got around to it. Never saw any of the movies until the last one that came out (Goblet of Fire?). My fiancee really likes the movies so she kind of dragged me to it. (I think this was a couple years ago? Last year?) Anyhow, I actually kind of liked it, it was darker than I expected and did a very good job of telling the story. Even though I had limited knowledge of the characters I caught on pretty quick. So, of course, I went ahead and went with my girl to see this new one. I thought it kicked ass. I'm almost surprised by how much I liked it. Love the storylines, the changes in the characters, the duels (particularly the last one) were friggin' great. I was one of those who never really cared much but now that I've seen this new movie I kinda wish folks would give it a chance like I did (was forced) to. I'm almost tempted to just go back and read/watch everything I've missed.
I thought it was great! All the movies have been great, and if given the unwilling choice, I'd rank it in the middle thus far, although all of them are special... I took my daughters (with my oldest, the 8 yr. old being most interested.) I thought the ending was incredible!... The audience laughed at times even when it was stated: "he's back"...I could tell the audience enjoyed it, no doubt... The introduction of Luna seemed a bit odd, and I get the feeling more of her story would be discovered...or at least it should. It was dark, but well done storywise.
I movies are good, the books are fantastic. Some of my favorite reading and I don't like fantasy, sci-fi. If you enjoyed the movie, the book is 1000 times better.
I liked the movie, thought the turn to the dark was well done. I also can't wait for the last book, gonna be sad I think. DD
