Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
Hello, hello. So I saw this film tonight – and wasn’t near excited until I saw the opening WB logo – and I thought I’d share my thoughts on it. But I just thought I’d let you all know that I’m biased. I’ve read the book – and I adore the book, it’s probably in the top two or three (out of Harry Potter, that is. Seven is my favorite :)). I read it the summer of 2007 (the same summer Order of the Phoenix (the film) came out and Deathly Hallows came out) and I have been looking forward to this since. I was one of those people who was absolutely devastated when it was pushed back – I wailed, it was sad. And I’m a huge fan of the books. Just so we’re all aware of that. I also had no trust in Yates (the director) at all. I hated Order of the Phoenix and I was afraid this’d be just the same – a huge disappointment. But I made sure not to read more than a few paragraphs of the book before seeing the film, and I guess it paid off, woo (: Anyhow. Let’s get on with it. Spoilers abound; huge, huge spoilers. There are also mild spoilers for Deathly Hallows [Sorry, I didn’t want to, but the two just go so hand in hand. I couldn’t help myself.]As an adaptation, I really can’t say much. I know there were several scenes which were spot on perfection (the cave scene, for instance, HOLYCRAP, I loved it :)) and I know for a fact I was leaning forward in my seat, practically praying for them to get it all right. And they didn’t fail me. Now, I can’t give a good review of the adaptation, because, as I’ve said I read the book ages ago. But I thought it was fairly well done. I hated the Burrow scene – honestly, was that really necessary? And it gave us such huge plot holes for the next film. The Burrow – from my viewpoint – was always a rather safe place for Harry (and the others) and if they (Death Eaters) can just pop in at anytime, why the hell would they go there when they’re bound to be caught? (I feel like that made no sense at all, I apologize if I lost you.) But anyhow, I hated it. It was totally unnecessary. I also thought they could’ve put in Dumbledore’s funeral. Just for the fans, you know. I missed it. But I did love Harry (and Ginny) over Dumbledore’s body at the end, and the whole thing with the wands. I did love that. I really did. I also thought they could’ve slipped in a little battle. And I was on the edge of my seat, hands folded (I kid you not) when Snape said the line about Harry using his own spells on him. I almost squealed out loud. (: And I was also really pleased to see Aragog’s funeral. I was worried they’d leave that out and BAM. They didn’t. I was so happy to see it. And Harry under Felix Felicis – OMG. HAHAHA. That is my Harry, ladies and gents; that is my Harry. Actually, Dan did an awesome job with the humor, but I’ll get to that in a bit. Mmm, this is getting excruciatingly lengthy. I’m going to stop now. But I have to say, before I do, that I loved the Astronomy tower bit, but there were two things about it that irked me. 1. Harry wasn’t petrified. How hard would it have been to have Dumbledore tell Harry to go below and mutter a “petrificus totalus” and then tell Dan to hold absolutely still? And, speaking of which, what was with Snape telling Harry to be quiet. I don’t know. The whole, Harry not being petrified bit, irked me. And then he felt guilty about it and I was like *smacksforehead.* The Harry I know, whether book Harry or no, would not just let a bunch of Death Eaters kill his mentor and protector. I don’t know. And 2. (And I’m not sure about this; I only saw the movie once after all...) Is it just me or did Dumbledore’s death actually look like Avada Kedavra? Because I know, in the book, it’s not supposed to look like Avada Kedavra. It’s supposed to look like some super creepy thing or…something like that. I don’t remember. Anyway. I don’t remember. It’s just a thought. Now I’m done with this (:
I’m just going through some of the main ones. I’m too lazy to go through absolutely everyone. Although I might dabble in some obscure, random people on occasion (:
Draco; I have to start with him. He freaking stole the show, haha. I have a new, huge respect for Tom (Felton). He was amazing. I actually felt bad for Draco, which I never – ever – did when I read the books. His performance was spot-on (Astronomy tower, wow. A part of me wanted to cry with him :)). Sectumsempra, gah, amazing. And, the birds? I almost cried. I loved it; loved him. So, yeah. Draco was perfection. Congrats, Tom. You’ve won me over (:
Harry; Yes. He has to be next. I loved him. The Harry Dan pulled off in this one is the Harry I’ve been waiting to see on screen and a big reason why I loved this film as much as I did. Yes, Harry is my favorite character in the books. He is. I love him (: And Dan just played him so well in this one, it was awesome. I don’t know how to put this into words. It was just amazing. He was amazing. I can’t pick a favorite scene. And this review sucks, because I’m getting all fangirly and gushing. Sorry. So I’m quitting with Harry. Just go watch the film. You’ll see what I mean (:
Ginny; Yup. Ginny’s next. Mmm, I liked Bonnie as Ginny because her relationship with Harry irked me as much as it did in the book, hahaha (: And, by the way, what on earth are they going to do about Ginny hiding the book? Please, oh please, tell me they aren’t going to put Ginny in with Harry in Deathly Hallows. Please. But their kiss there was sweet, I thought. (Although I did miss the Quidditchy kiss :)). Anyway, Bonnie was pretty perfect. Although I didn’t like that their relationship seemed to span the movie, instead of just randomly starting up. Bunk. And this turned into a Harry/Ginny review instead of just Ginny haha (:
Ron; HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHA. That’s about it. OMG, skin? HAHAHAHAHAHA. And, love potion? Heck yes. Perfection. (:
Hermione; I think Emma, like Dan, outdid herself a bit in this one. I’ve always been a big fan of hers (and Hermione – she’s definitely in my top three favorite female characters) but, I don’t know, she seemed so much more Hermish in this one. I absolutely adored her portrayal of Hermione’s feelings toward Ron and I am so looking forward to seeing her in the next film. Which reminds me, I loved Hermione and Harry in this one. I mean, it was clear they weren’t any more than friends but it was just spot-on perfect, if you know what I mean. (:
Lavender; Jessie Cave is gold. I swear whoever casts for these films is a freaking genius. At first, when I saw her picture when she’d first been cast I was a bit iffy about her playing Lavender. But she was awesome. Haha. I loved the whole Lavender/Ron/Hermione triangle too. (:
Slughorn; Jim Broadbent is my new hero. Hahaha. He was perfect! I don’t remember much from his performance, other than the whole bit at his house [perfect] and the story about the goldfish which I thought was just lovely! I was actually surprised when I went back to the books and discovered that that little bit wasn’t in the book. Maybe these filmmakers don’t suck as much as I thought…Also, my favorite line from that scene: “Be brave, Professor. Be brave like my mother.” I cannot wait to see Dan in Deathly Hallows.
Snape; When is Alan Rickman not amazing in this role? Haha, honestly. He is so Snape, I swear. His timing is absolutely amazing and – gah – he’s just great. I actually was a bit surprised to see how little he was featured in this film. [Line I missed most from Snape; "Do you remember me telling you we are practicing nonverbal spells, Potter?" "Yes." "Yes, sir." "There's no need to call me 'sir,' Professor."]. I mean, they mentioned that he was the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher [They did, right?] but I was surprised that we didn’t actually see that in action. Ah well. Anywho. Snape. Perfect. As always. I do not know how Alan Rickman does it without reading the books.
Dumbledore; I have to say, right now, that before this film I hated Michael Gambon as Dumbledore. Richard Harris will always be the version of Dumbledore I see in my head. But I softened a bit in this film. He was just, I don’t know, better. As I’ve said before, the cave scene was just perfect and brilliant and part of that was Gambon’s performance. I really don’t know how to put this into words. It was just better this time. (:
Alright. I’m done now. (:
I thought the pacing was fine, except for one little part. And that was at the very beginning right after Ginny asks him who the Half-Blood Prince is and he takes his book back and goes off by himself to flip through it and suddenly, BAM, it’s winter. Hahaha. What? I was just like “…kay.” But that’s the only fault I have with them for that. So, yay. (:
Oh, gosh. Mmm, well I liked the entire movie, but my favorite scene would have to be the wand scene right after Dumbledore’s death – I’ve mentioned it before – when Harry retrieves the Horcrux from Dumbledore’s body and he’s crying and Ginny comes up and it’s just, I don’t know. And then they all lift their wands and it’s just a really, really beautiful scene. Besides that, I really loved the Felix Felicis scene [“HARRY!” “SIR!” (:] and all of that. (:
Mmm, I know there was a good deal of it but the only thing that really comes to mind is the whole bit with Ollivander. I was really surprised to see that bit in there, and even more surprised to realize that they’d shown Ollivander being taken by Death Eaters [although you can’t see his face]. So that was pretty awesome. I’m trying to think of some other things. OH. Regulus! In the picture, at Slughorn’s. I was like “…YES!” Haha. Because they completely left that out in Order of the Phoenix. So it was pretty awesome that they mentioned him. (: Okay, now I really can’t think of anything else. Haha. (:
Hmm. I can’t really think of anything more. I really wish that they would have slipped in, at least in passing, what the other Horcruxes were [or what Dumbledore suspected them to be], because I really can’t see Harry just going off on a wild goose chase, guessing at what Voldy decided to plant part of his soul into. Other than that, I don’t know. I really, honestly, agree with those critics – this really is probably the best Potter yet. Chamber of Secrets may be the best adaptation, but this really is probably the most well-rounded Potter yet. Which reminds me, for some odd reason. They never mentioned that Harry was Quidditch captain. It just kind of happened. And his goal of becoming an Auror was just kind of thrown out there too. I thought that was rather odd. Ah, well. :\