Monday 07th 2004f June 2004
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Easily the best yet. I’ve always felt that Chris Columbus did a great job of visualising the books – the casting and design were spot on – but a really crappy job of actually telling the stories. The books, whatever else you might say about them, are never dull. The first two movies frequently were. They always seemed to be intended as companion pieces to the books, designed to not disappoint obsessive fans, rather than actually provide any cinematic equivalent to the books’ emotional rollercoaster and gripping narrative rides.
It’s difficult to say if the improvement is because of the new director (well, he certainly had a hand), or because the book is better, or if JK Rowling has let the reigns slip a bit, or if writer Steve Kloves is finally getting the hang of trimming, or if it’s simply that the book is longer, and they had to let a lot go to fit it into a reasonable running time.
Whatever the reason, this is the first film where I’ve actually felt any of the sense of grief and loss that pervades the books. This is the first film where I actually felt Harry’s pain on an emotional level, rather than as an abstract character motivating force. This was certainly achieved at the cost of a lot of the sheer narrative cohesion that is so impressive in the books, but it’s a price worth paying – it gets us closer to the reason the books are worth reading, even if it takes us further away from some of the details.
They will have a hell of a lot of things to tie up really fast at the beginning of the next one, though. I hope Mike Newell is up to the job – we now know everybody else is. Gary Oldman is great in his small role, his famed intensity put to good use. Rupert Grint as Ron really could steal the whole thing if given a chance – he’s a great comic talent. And this movie sounds great, too. Those Dementors… Ooooh…
Comment ID: 1498
At 11:58 am on Tuesday 08th 2004f June 2004, BF decided it was worth pointing outI love Harry Potter for its darkness and I really think that is what was missing in the first two and what they have started to find in the third. I am looking forward to the next one with much greater excitement now!