Benedict Advertising - Business Building Solutions

by Donna Cooper, Jr. Copywriter

Well, the day finally arrived. With ominous signs from the heavens, I knew the tides were turning. Actually, there was a spectacular lighting storm as I drove to the theater that night. Still, it somewhat foreshadowed what was to come as this epic saga begins to wrap up.

I cannot, in good conscience, write this review with the perspective of it being the 5th film in the series. That would be somewhat misleading and would not do it justice. While it IS the 5th chapter, it takes a very dramatic turn after the conclusion of the 4th film, The Goblet of Fire, and therefore cannot be compared to the previous films. This fact is what made it hard to decide how I felt about the movie itself.

While there was still plenty of the usual stuff, fantastic visual effects and action scenes, this film had many more poignant moments where one could truly appreciate not only the gravity of the content, but the growth these young actors have experienced in terms of acting ability. I’ll be the first to admit that watching the first four films had been, at times, painful. Not that the three main actors were terrible, but there were some things that they were too young to effectively and realistically portray. However, this was not the case in the latest installment. There was a dramatic improvement in each of the three main characters performances. I bought into every second of them onscreen.

Harry’s (Daniel Radcliffe) slow turn from the cute little bespeckled boy into the troubled teenager dealing with things that most people never deal with in their entire lifetime, was probably one of the best performances yet. But, the award for most improved, would have to go to Hermione’s portrayer, Emma Watson. She seems to have come into the role this time around. She seemed much more genuine than in previous films. I’ve never had a complaint about Ron Weasley’s portrayer, Rupert Grint. I can’t recall him ever having an awkward scene that just wasn’t quite believable. He seems to be quite the actor.

As for the rest of the cast…what can I say? Have you seen them? With the likes of Maggie Smith, Emma Thompson, Brendan Gleason, Michael Gambon, Alan Rickman, Jason Isaacs, David Thewlis, Warwick Davis, Gary Oldman, Robbie Coltrane, Helena Bonham Carter, and Ralph Fiennes as the supporting cast, it’s no wonder these kids are becoming such incredible actors. That’s pretty much the crème of the crop in England.

The director, David Yates, did a phenomenal job with his first swipe at steering this ship. Yates managed to fit something the size of a football field, into something the size of a kiddy pool with out leaving too many plot holes. Considering that book 5 was the longest yet, and this movie was the shortest to date, it’s a wonder he was able to successfully pull it off. Streamlining the storyline and including a lot of the subplots, Yates managed to channel the same dark tone of the book.

Some new additions to this installment were that of the evil, duplicitous Professor Umbridge. She brings new meaning to the word cruel. Played by Imelda Staunton, Umbridge was wickedly sweet and heartless. Sirius probably said it best when he told Harry that the world isn’t divided into good and evil. He says everyone has a dark side. Viewers almost get the feeling that he’s referring to Umbridge, even though he was trying to ease Harry’s worries about he was turning evil. Despite the fact that Umbridge works for the ministry, and therefore the good side, she is probably more sinister and wicked that Voldemort. Maybe.

And of course, there is the addition of the character Luna Lovegood, and a larger role for that of Cho Chang. The biggest surprise in the move would have to be a spellbinding performance from this newcomer, Evanna Lynch, who has had no previous acting experience. Also, a relative new comer to acting, Katie Leung reprised her role from the 4th film and did a good job as Harry’s love interest.

Up to this point, you might think there wasn’t anything to complain about, but you’d be wrong. I have a laundry list of things that bothered me about the movie, and I just cant see how they didn’t just leave it on the cutting room floor. For instance, the ENTIRE beginning of the movie. While the new twist on the dementors was cool, the Dursley’s were in poor form. Aunt Petunia looked scandalous in a short sundress, Uncle Vernon was just plain awful, and Dudley!…I don’t know what happened to that kid after the last film, I guess in staying true to dimwitted Dudley, the actor who portrays him seems to have forgotten how to act. It was terrible! The worst part of the entire movie.

Another thing that burned me was the Hogwarts train. Now, having read all the books and seen all the movies, I know it is called the Hogwarts Express. So, why, given that there are so many people like me who are die-hard fans, would they think they could get away with calling it Hogwarts Railways?

Despite the appalling nature of these offenses, this could be, by far, the best in the series yet. Maybe it’s because of the deliberate detour from the standard HP formula, or maybe it’s because Harry is becoming a man. Who knows, but the message at the end when Harry fends of Voldemort (again) is hard to dismiss. Good triumphs over Evil, yet again, but with an unlikely weapon. Love, as Dumbledore once said, is the most powerful and ancient of Magic. One, which Voldemort can never understand.

And it is with reluctant fingers, that I only give this film 3.5 golden pens out of 5.

This entry was posted on Friday, July 13th, 2007 at 10:14 am and is filed under What's the 411?. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.