Harry Potter (1-4)

I haven't got the time/drive to write four separate bits especially considering there will be a maximum of three people who actually read them (one of them being myself) and a whole one who really cares, so I'm lumping the first four Potter movies into one short post. I'd like to make the disclaimer that for every movie, made and soon to come, I am not grading on how well they translate every last detail to screen. The movies are, I think, compliments to the books and can be best enjoyed by those who have read them. It's like a brief reminder of a more rich and sensational experience that would take longer to read. As for the lazy people who would rather watch them and not even try the books, they have my pity for they have no idea what they're missing. Anyway, the point is, none of them come close to matching the books, but I grade them as they are; movies that try to tell the stories in spirit if not always in letter.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
The first movie in the series is its weakest, and the charm is continually lessening. However, Rowling's fantastic vision is translated in the visuals if not completely through the performances of th multiple young actors. I like this movie a lot, but there's no denying that the special effects are not state of the art anymore, and as hard as they try the three leads especially have not quite filled the demanding roles. From the get go, though, they look the parts almost perfectly (the only exception being that Harry's hair, perpetually untidy in the novels, lays flat most of the time here). When I read the books I imagine some characters differently than their on screen counterparts, but not the Harry, Ron, or Hermione, although I have a great deal more affection for the literary trio than I do for the cinematic one. All in all it's worth seeing, but it is cheesy and as stated before, it's no comparison to the remarkable source material.
B


Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
The charm that comes with seeing it all for the first time is gone here, so it's lost a little magic, no pun intended. However, it's been replaced with a darker story and a cast that is improving. The trio are passable, the script is occasionally sketchy, and the special effects, while better than the first, are still presented in a bit of a kiddy-theme-park style. One such effect is the phoenix Fawkes, which is presented like a plumpish peacock here, though in later installments I would have preferred a more dnagerous looking hawk or eagle style bird, and with more vibrant colors. It's superior to the first film, that much is sure, but like I said before, the first had that novelty and with that gone it's only a little bit better. I sound like I'm not all for it and that's not true. I have a special place in my heart for this book in the series, (though I couldn't really tell you why) and I think this one does a fairly good job of translating it to screen.
B+


Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
Though I enjoyed the first two Potter movies, this is the first one I loved, and it remained my favorite for three years, even after number four. The key to its success is the fact that a new director, Alfonso Cauron, came on board and completely reworked the cinematic world of Harry Potter. He didn't change the actors, but the grounds of Hogwarts seem to have changed and expanded, and every shot no longer looks like it's been dipped in greenish-yellow candy coating. Things like the presence of the Dementors in this the third installment brings a whole new level of darkness to the series, as much as that might annoy the few people who for some unknown reason want to keep Harry at age 11 for seven years, and for once the film almost captures that incredible feeling you get when you're reading one of the books. The last 45 minutes, especially, are a work of cinematic excellence apart from the fact that they are a brilliant adaptation of one of the series' most exhilarating sequences. Another thing about this movie, something that was lost in number four, is the fact that someone seems to have given time and thought to the cinematography. A series as brilliant as Harry Potter deserves, I think and I doubt you'll disagree, artistic vision to at least attempt to do it justice on the screen. Anyone who's read the books knows that page after page is filled with the sort of inventive fictional stuff that, done right, could be wondrous to behold. The scene that gets me every time is the one in which Harry and Sirius are attacked by the Dementors at the lake. While Chris Columbus might merely have pointed a camera and said "go," Cauron has filmed a beautiful and hair raising scene of awesome cinema (I think) that even surpasses the way I envisioned it while reading (a rarity for these movies). Lastly it is worth noting that the kids here make leaps and bounds when it comes to their acting abilities. They aren't incredible or anything, but you can watch it and actually believe them in their roles. I held my breath after watching this movie (figuratively of course) because it was at the time the only great one in the series. Were more to come, or would we slip back into the days of "good but not great?"
A


Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
This was the first Potter to be rated PG-13, and having read the books I can safely say that there's no going back. Prisoner of Azkaban was not strictly a kids movie, as the first two were, and it is still superior to this film, but Goblet of Fire is definitely more adult and that is certainly a good thing. The acting skills of the kids seem to hold over from the last film, with the exception of Emma Watson, playing Hermione Granger, who seems to have concentrated all her abilities into her eyebrows which rise and fall dramatically with each breathy line. I'm being mean. She's not awful. However, she seemed to be more on her game in the last one, and as much as she looks the part, she's still got to work on her performance. Hermione is arguably my favorite character in the books so I'm bound to be especially critical her the film version. That said, this movie is still a great one, though it has the sad task of condensing Rowling's first mammoth sized novel. Every loss in the adaptation process is felt regrettably by fans of the books, but the main story is intact and is briskly moved along. I haven't mentioned the adult performances in these movies as of yet, but it should be noted that Alan Rickman, as Professor Snape, is seriously incomparable in this, and all of the Potter movies. Also brilliant, though criminally underused, is Miranda Richardson as the tabloid journalist from hell, Rita Skeeter. There are not as many moments of brilliance in this film as there were in the last, but the one that was most important they nailed; the graveyard duel at the end. I cannot describe to you what I felt when I first read this finale in the book. From the resurrection of Harry's longtime nemesis Lord Voldemort (theatrically embodied by Ralph Fiennes), to the unexpected result of their duel, right down to Harry seeing the ghosts of his parents and recently deceased friend, this is another of my most favorite sequences in the series. Really though, think about it. He's a 14 year old boy, being tortured and jeered by what are essentially wizard Nazis, and he's told quite plainly that he's going to be murdered on the spot. The staple of fantasy literature is that the authors are always throwing in last minute information right before it's going to matter. However here, and really throughout all of Rowling's seven part epic, Harry manages to escape by means of previously learned skills and provided aids that we could never have guessed would play such crucial roles. I kid you not, and I know it sounds lame, but I wanted to stand up and cheer after I read this part of the book. Harry is a grand hero because we read his story and we don't just want to be as brave and heroic as him, we honestly tell ourselves that we could be in the same situation. After I saw this movie I thought two things right off the bat. First of all I thought, "Awesome, but not as good as Prisoner of Azkaban, though that's a pretty tall order after all." And second I thought "We've had two OK ones and two great ones, I guess we'll have to wait and see what the majority is."
A-