Fifth ‘Potter’ Fails at Charms
- Title: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
- IMDB: link
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire was all wrong, it felt more like a James Bond movie than one about a teenager trying to surpass some nasty obsticales just to grow up. So it’s with a melancholy tone that I tell you that this next Potter film is better than the last, but still falls far short of these stories’ potential.
When Warners Execs signed Alfonso Cuarón to direct the third Harry Potter film, The Prisoner of Azkaban, they managed to commit the single best and worst action in the history of Harry Potter films. The single best action, because Cuarón has a thorough and energetic love and understanding of the quirky world of Harry Potter, and it showed in the film. It was the single worst action because two films afterwards, it’s now seeming that Cuarón may be the only man for the job, casting a shadow darker than a Dementor’s over the rest of the franchise. This fifth installment is a large step above that last chapter, but still shows a deficiency at performing charms.
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Harry Potter finally gets a little style. Harry Potter’s 5th installment of the film is well balanced in acting, technique, mood and storyline, and is a complete joy to watch. I found myself more enthralled in the characters and their relationships with one another instead of being completely bashed with one special effect after another like the 4th film. The Order of the Phoenix kept a great balance with their computer-antics and maturity of characters. Harry has his first kiss, Ron is no longer the complete blubbering idiot, Hermione isn’t so girly and winy and plenty of screen time for characters that had such small parts in the past. Getting a few extra storylines from other characters like Sirius Black, Fred & George Weasley, Neville, Luna and Cho makes the film feel more complete and a whole than just focusing on Potter’s little group. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix is the best of the 5 to date.
Alright, I admit it. I’ve never read a Harry Potter book. Somehow I’ve managed to avoid this intense cultural phenomenon which has swept our nation like a very excited case of hepititis. The avoidance is not intentional, I just don’t happen to read very many books that aren’t about rock and roll. I did, however, see the second Potter movie in the theater a few years ago and I wasn’t thrilled. Well, lemme tell ya, I enjoyed this one pretty well. As a movie, with no connection to a book or any other part of the story, it stands as a very entertaining piece of 21st century computer-generated eye candy.