SERIOUSLY SPOILERY
Jul. 21st, 2009 12:30 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
amredthelectorSo I saw the latest Harry Potter movie yesterday, and... honestly, it was better then I expected. In short: it had more humor then I was expecting, cut out a lot of more dull parts of the book, and was decent. There were still a lot of problems, such as the over-use of de-saturization filters, a lot of wooden acting, and a few too many Lord of the Rings similarities. A longer and rather spoiler-filled review is under the cut.
So, right off the bat it kind of confused me. Only a few minutes into the movie, we get Death Eaters running around London and blowing the shit out of things. Now, it could just be that I hated the book and only read it once, but I honestly don't remember Death Eaters blowing up a muggle bridge. Again, that could be me. Also, there's a scene were a group of people in an office building look out their window at the clouds and it disturbs one guy enough to drop his cup of tea. Now, I'm sure the clouds were supposed to look unnatural or something, but really? They just looked like thunderstorm clouds. Nothing scary enough to drop your tea cup over. The special effects guys could have done better there.
So the beginning was kind of meh. A lot of gray, not much going on, etc. There was this brief moment of clarity when you see the Weasley twin's joke shop as the only building with any color on Diagon Alley, though, which I found kind of funny. Not to mention the joke shop is AWESOME. Anyways, once they get to the school itself, things start getting brighter and more fun. I think this was a smart choice on the director's part - Hogwarts is just so fascinating and charming that it would feel wrong to make it dark and depressing before the 7th film. There are some seriously funny scenes while in the school, and most of them give the best lines to supporting characters, such as Ron's awesomeness at quidditch, or Hermione smacking people with books (which is really enjoyable, because honestly, who hasn't wanted to slap Harry stupid with something large and heavy at least once?) There's also a great scene when Ron is kind of love drunk, but I won't ruin it, because it is HILARIOUS.
Of course, it's once Harry and Dumbledore leave to look for the Horcruxes that all the color is leeched out again. It's also here that the LotR similarities become noticeable. Dumbledore looking almost exactly like Gandalf, not to mention leading a shorter person into a cave while holding a glowing stick? Check. Zombies that look almost exactly like Gollum/Smeagal? Check. Dumbledore falling to his death almost EXACTLY like Gandalf? Check. There's also a moment were Harry has to try to make water in a basin for Dumbledore, but can't pick it up in the cup. Which begs the question, why didn't he just make it in the cup?
There's also the big problem that I had with the book itself - you get the reveal of the Half Blood Prince after a ton of lead up, but it winds up being pretty much pointless. It's sort of just 'I am the Half Blood Prince' and then it's never mentioned again. WHY did we need to know who he is? What exactly is the purpose of bringing it up in the first place if you don't DO anything with it?
Then there's the ending itself, which I had one big problem with. The main problem is that when we get the big plot point that the locket is fake and Harry isn't coming back to Hogwarts, it's just Harry and Hermione talking. Ron isn't even seen for a little while, and we you finally do see him, he's sitting a ways away from the others. There's also the last shot, which is supposed to be Hermione and Ron supporting Harry, in a big 'We're your friends, we'll never let you down' sort of moment, but again, Ron seems like a third wheel. Harry and Hermione are standing right next to each other, but Ron is sort of left out behind them. It didn't make me think 'These three are best friends and will always be together as a team', it made me feel like no one gave a shit about Ron.
In all, it wasn't a terrible film, but it wasn't great either. The scenes in the school were fun and it seemed like Malfoy got some good development and a sort of sympathetic role without being turned into a woobie. One of my biggest problems with the movie was the same problem I had with the last few books - there was ton of filler of people just sort of farting around in school, and very little action in the end. It took too long to get to the point, and then the point wasn't all that great. But it had its moments, and those were pretty fun. Hell, there's even a balls joke in it.
I've also heard that the final film will be cut into two. Personally, I think that that is a terrible idea. Unless the write it stuff for supporting characters like Neville, the movie will be hella dull. Most of the 7th book was just Harry, Ron, and Hermione sitting in the woods and angsting, and since it's told from their perspective, you see very little of the action that other characters are experiencing. And that's my biggest problem with J.K. - she didn't realize that it's okay to not include every detail about the kid's lives. There's a reason writers don't write their characters using the toilet - no one cares.
Agh, way too long there. But fuck it, I had to say it.
So, right off the bat it kind of confused me. Only a few minutes into the movie, we get Death Eaters running around London and blowing the shit out of things. Now, it could just be that I hated the book and only read it once, but I honestly don't remember Death Eaters blowing up a muggle bridge. Again, that could be me. Also, there's a scene were a group of people in an office building look out their window at the clouds and it disturbs one guy enough to drop his cup of tea. Now, I'm sure the clouds were supposed to look unnatural or something, but really? They just looked like thunderstorm clouds. Nothing scary enough to drop your tea cup over. The special effects guys could have done better there.
So the beginning was kind of meh. A lot of gray, not much going on, etc. There was this brief moment of clarity when you see the Weasley twin's joke shop as the only building with any color on Diagon Alley, though, which I found kind of funny. Not to mention the joke shop is AWESOME. Anyways, once they get to the school itself, things start getting brighter and more fun. I think this was a smart choice on the director's part - Hogwarts is just so fascinating and charming that it would feel wrong to make it dark and depressing before the 7th film. There are some seriously funny scenes while in the school, and most of them give the best lines to supporting characters, such as Ron's awesomeness at quidditch, or Hermione smacking people with books (which is really enjoyable, because honestly, who hasn't wanted to slap Harry stupid with something large and heavy at least once?) There's also a great scene when Ron is kind of love drunk, but I won't ruin it, because it is HILARIOUS.
Of course, it's once Harry and Dumbledore leave to look for the Horcruxes that all the color is leeched out again. It's also here that the LotR similarities become noticeable. Dumbledore looking almost exactly like Gandalf, not to mention leading a shorter person into a cave while holding a glowing stick? Check. Zombies that look almost exactly like Gollum/Smeagal? Check. Dumbledore falling to his death almost EXACTLY like Gandalf? Check. There's also a moment were Harry has to try to make water in a basin for Dumbledore, but can't pick it up in the cup. Which begs the question, why didn't he just make it in the cup?
There's also the big problem that I had with the book itself - you get the reveal of the Half Blood Prince after a ton of lead up, but it winds up being pretty much pointless. It's sort of just 'I am the Half Blood Prince' and then it's never mentioned again. WHY did we need to know who he is? What exactly is the purpose of bringing it up in the first place if you don't DO anything with it?
Then there's the ending itself, which I had one big problem with. The main problem is that when we get the big plot point that the locket is fake and Harry isn't coming back to Hogwarts, it's just Harry and Hermione talking. Ron isn't even seen for a little while, and we you finally do see him, he's sitting a ways away from the others. There's also the last shot, which is supposed to be Hermione and Ron supporting Harry, in a big 'We're your friends, we'll never let you down' sort of moment, but again, Ron seems like a third wheel. Harry and Hermione are standing right next to each other, but Ron is sort of left out behind them. It didn't make me think 'These three are best friends and will always be together as a team', it made me feel like no one gave a shit about Ron.
In all, it wasn't a terrible film, but it wasn't great either. The scenes in the school were fun and it seemed like Malfoy got some good development and a sort of sympathetic role without being turned into a woobie. One of my biggest problems with the movie was the same problem I had with the last few books - there was ton of filler of people just sort of farting around in school, and very little action in the end. It took too long to get to the point, and then the point wasn't all that great. But it had its moments, and those were pretty fun. Hell, there's even a balls joke in it.
I've also heard that the final film will be cut into two. Personally, I think that that is a terrible idea. Unless the write it stuff for supporting characters like Neville, the movie will be hella dull. Most of the 7th book was just Harry, Ron, and Hermione sitting in the woods and angsting, and since it's told from their perspective, you see very little of the action that other characters are experiencing. And that's my biggest problem with J.K. - she didn't realize that it's okay to not include every detail about the kid's lives. There's a reason writers don't write their characters using the toilet - no one cares.
Agh, way too long there. But fuck it, I had to say it.
