OOTP movie (maybe spoilers)

[pyan]

Yes, I thought that Evanna Lynch did a pretty good Luna - got the "otherworldliness" of the character pretty well.

But I think that Daniel Radcliffe is getting less impressive as the series goes on - and there were moments in OooP when I got the distinct impression that Emma Watson just couldn't believe that she had to say certain lines......

[PTeppic]

Originally Posted by pyan

Sorry, Pteppic - "planky"??....

As of, or pertaining to, a plank...

[pyan]

Yeah, obvious, Py! *smacks head with heel of hand*

[Majimaune]

Why not smacks head with a plank of wood?

[HappyHippo]

I saw this yesterday, and my initial reaction ("What a pile of tosh! Unutterable rubbish! Sack the director!") has mellowed slightly, and I am therefore able to post a little more rationally that I would've done 24 hours ago. Here goes:

Plus points: Daniel Radcliffe is coming on as an actor, I think. This was my least favourite of the books, becasue Harry is so well written as a kid his age - he strops, he sulks, he snogs - but there's also issues going on, such as grief, alienation and maturing rapidly. I thought there was quite a lot of the torment going on in his protrayal.
Going back to Upright Man's point way back, I though Sirius' death DID impact Harry, but he was sort of fighting for his life at the point, and pausing to show shock-horror-disbelief-anger would have been clunky and really jarred with the tenor of the film, which after the first half hour was quite mtv-fast.
THERE WAS MORE NEVILLE! (Sorry to shout) I love Neville in the books, he's my favourite character, and I love the way he's played. He's really coming into his own, and I like it!

Negatives: Too much pointing to the next film. I'm all for hints, but this was a brick in the face in some places!
The whole film seemed to have been shot in the dark.
There were big jumps in plot. I know it's a big book, and it couldn't all be included, but for example: they put in Seamus and Harry's argument, which for the purposes of the film wasn't really necessary, as we knew no-one believed him. BUT, they left most of the occlumency out, which I felt would have gelled the 'mind-reading' into the storyline better. Just an example.
Luna's weirdness wasn't put in context.
The music was wrong... I actually found it distracting NOT to hear the Harry Potter theme...I'm a sad old bat...
The whooshing-going-all-sandy-thing made my head ache, and I found it diffcult to follow.

I'll probably get it when it comes out on DVD and watch it again. Of all the films so far, I think GoF's my fave by a mile, although the last trial was all wrong, it did at least seem to have been adapted and directed by people who'd read the books! Sorry, rambling again!

Shutting up now.

[PTeppic]

Originally Posted by HappyHippo

I'll probably get it when it comes out on DVD and watch it again.

I went to the cinema to see it a second time, and I think it seemed better the second time round.

[Alia]

Originally Posted by PTeppic

I went to the cinema to see it a second time, and I think it seemed better the second time round.

I'm considering on watching it a second time as well.

[Majimaune]

Hmmmm if you say its better second time round maybe I should go again too.

[Anthony G Williams]

I went to see Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix the other week – on a giant IMAX screen. This is an extract from my Science Fiction & Fantasy blog:

So to the Potter film, the finale of which was also in 3D (not to quite such dramatic effect as the CGI films, but it still added considerable depth to the scenes). It looked great on the big screen, you feel that you’re a part of what's going on rather than watching from a distance. I won't bother to recount the plot (you either know it or you're not interested) but it continued with the tale of Potter at Hogwarts, with the mix being much as before. There were some oddities and loose ends which I presume resulted from a desire to include as much as possible of the book: Hagrid is initially absent on a mission to recruit the Giants to their cause, but the outcome is inconclusive and we never hear about the Giants again (although Hagrid does produce a giant half-brother, with no explanation for their difference in size); a strange girl, who changes her hair colour with her mood, appears as a member of the Order of the Phoenix but after one scene never appears again; another rather fey blonde girl appears at the school and is given some prominence but doesn't appear to add much to the plot.

I find these films entertaining enough to watch, but not especially involving. One of the weaknesses in my view is Harry Potter himself: the action goes on all around him, but he mainly seems to stand there looking blank or apprehensive. My favourite character is Hermione; Emma Watson is a talented young actress and her portrayal of her character's quirks and expressions always makes me smile.

So when the next Potter film comes out, we'll be looking for it to appear on IMAX…

[Majimaune]

So was it better in 3D?

[Anthony G Williams]

Yes, definitely. The combination of 3D and the huge screen was really dramatic.

[Majimaune]

If only it was showing at the IMAX in Sydney...I would go.