Harry Potter and the Wizarding World

[Bill1978]

I'm obviously in the minority as I have felt each movie in this series has improved on the one before. Except for one and I'll explain later.

I admit I had no idea about this 'Arry Po'er guy until Warners announced the first film. So I wet out and bought the first book and enjoyed the simple romp through Rowling's fantasy world. However the first movie was just plain mindnumbing to sit through and I feel it still is. For me I feel like the book is literally being played out on screen and the pages are turning in front of me. It feels like at any moment I'll hear a 'ding' to tell me it's time to turn the page. The 2nd one felt the same as well, but I think it benefitted from a thrilling conclusion with the basilisk.

The 3rd movie is where the films really became their own entity. While the story was the same it somehow felt different like I was watching something I had no idea about. I welcomed the exclusion of a lot of the 'unneccessary' storylines. And from Goblet Of Fire I was thrilled with the amount of stuff that got left out. In fact out of the entire series I hate the Phoenix book the most. Pretty much the first half of the book is utterly boring for me, but the movie was much more streamline and what Rowling's book editor should have done to her book and made me apprecaite the actual Phoenix story.

Unfortunately the series had to have a bit of a downturn and that came with Prince. While the previous films, a non reader could follow the plot easily without much problem, I felt Prince would be extremely confusing to a non-reader. There were times where the movie only made sense could I had read the book (eg Why Dumbledore and Harry had to go to that cave) and for a movie about a half-blood prince there wasn't really much focus on him. The announcement at the end of the film about who was the prince, felt like the script writer got to the last handful of pages and said 'Crap, I forgot about the title of the film, better throw in a passing explanation'. Even though it smacks of money making, I'm glad they split the final movie into two as I feel to tell the story well that needs to happen after the shamozzle Half Blood Prince was.

[Whippet Angel]

In fact out of the entire series I hate the Phoenix book the most. Pretty much the first half of the book is utterly boring for me, but the movie was much more streamline and what Rowling's book editor should have done to her book and made me apprecaite the actual Phoenix story.

Ah, glad I'm not the only one who felt this way. I found much of the first half utterly boring as well. As my least favorite book, it made me appreciate the film all the more. And I wasn't terribly impressed with "Prince" either.

[eddievalient]

Phoenix is actually my favorite of the books. I felt the same way about George Bush as the characters felt about Umbridge and it helped to look at the book as an allegory (whether or not it was intended to be one). I don't think the movie put across just how evil Umbridge was and I think this is due to the fact that the longest book was made into the shortest film in the series. Instead of the montage of all the bad things happening, I wish they had actually shown more of it or made the film in two parts. As it is, when the students are forming Dumbledore's Army, you don't quite get the sense of just how desperate the situation is.

[Dacey]

Actually, I thought that the "Order of the Phoenix" film was focused on Umbridge a little too much. Imelda Staunton was great for the part, but everytime I watch the movie, I find myself sort of wish that she were in the film...well, less.

Of course, it doesn't help much that Umbridge is one of those characters that I spent the entire book wishing that Rowling would kill off. Of all the villains that she created, Umbridge is by far the most obnoxious.

[EricJ]

The "Phoenix" book split the fans down the middle, half of whom were saying "But the plot's so COMPLEX now!", and the majority who were beating up the first half and calling the book the "franchise-killer"--Too much Umbridge (o-kay, we get it, she's Bush, now could we have eight less chapters of her, please?), Harry being way too insufferably moody-teen and drama-king after what happened in GoF, and a repetitive plot (characters have idea, idea gets banned, nobody believes Harry, rinse, repeat)--
It was the rousing Prince book that saved the franchise's bacon, but it was also the Phoenix movie that showed just how much condensing the stories to two hours can drop the deadweight and lighten the load: Every time there was the device of the "headline montage", you could see whole chapters go by.
(And it wasn't until the "Prince" Blu-ray that I noticed the wind-up Umbridge toy in Fred & George's joke shop... )

[Dacey]

Hmmmm. "Order of the Phoenix" might've gotten a mixed reaction from readers, but "franchise killer"? I don't think that anyone was ever really thinking it was that bad.

Seriously, even if it had been the worst book ever written, there was no way to "kill" Harry Potter at the point. Readers were already hooked.

[Bill1978]

As a person who doesn't like the Phoenix book, I nevr thought it was a franchise killer either. Once the book actually started (the moment they got to Hogswarts I was enjoying the book. My main complaint was that it took forever to get to Hogswarts, while nothing was actually happening and in the end a lot of the stuff in there was overall pointless. Sure still start where she did (as there is some important things there) but progress the story faster. And I blame the editor for not enforcing Rowling to do that. Phoenix is the book where I felt Rowling started writing for the adults and not the kids. By this I mean Rowling thought a thicker book meant a better adult book. And in a way she lost the point a bit, luckily for her she found her way again for the last book.

[Dacey]

New trailer!!!

http://movies.yahoo.com/movie/1810004780/video/22060274

[LotsoA113]

All I can say..is EPIC!! THIS'LL BE HUGE!!!

[Dacey]

New poster:

http://impawards.com/2010/harry_potter_ ... _ver5.html

They kinda stole the tagline from "Terminator: Salvation" there, but it's cool anyway.

[American_dog_2008]

So, does anybody else look forward to the next part of Deathly Hallows the coming summer?

[LotsoA113]

Psssst. I just receive word that Deathly Hallows part 1 will be released on DVD and Blu-Ray on March 4. Then we'll be done with the film...until July 15

[Randall]

Actually, it's April 15.

Link.

[Dacey]

AWESOME:

http://youtu.be/mObK5XD8udk

I hope this helps make up for the last installment, which wasn't nearly as "epic" as it should've been. But that may just be me.

[EricJ]

Due to a severe shortage of movie money, I could only see two movies out of three last fall, and 7.1 didn't make the cut.
Since I'd already read the book, and it wasn't in 3-D, I "wasn't missing anything" by waiting for the Blu-ray...Which I will probably enjoy one week before seeing Pt. 2 in theaters.