Harry Potter

[cellio]

(Ok, let's see if this will post today.)

We went to see the Harry Potter movie Monday night. Before that, though... this had to have been the most unappealing set of previews I've seen in a while:

• Spongebob Squarepants: Um, I think they might not quite have this movie's demographic nailed.
• Spiderman 2: Eh. Didn't see #1 and won't see this, but they're closer to the demographic.
• Sleep Over: Eww. Just... eww. Inane gigly teenage girls sneak around their parents and have cat-fights. Um, yeah. Maybe Spongebob wasn't so bad after all.
• Catwoman: If, like me, you have not read the comics (I assume there are comics), you get no information about this movie beyond "babe in black doing acrobatics". Maybe that's enough for their target demographic. (Oh, and I gather the cat-woman died and was recycled or something?)
• Cinderella Story: Cinderella set in modern-day LA. Looks cute, but if the glass slipper has really been replaced by a cell phone, I would think that identification would be anti-climactic. ("Each of you, quick: what's your phone number? Ok, let's ask the phone.")
• Princess Diaries 2: This looks like it could be fun. Or rather, it slightly motivates me to find #1 (this is a sequel). Dani has good things to day about the book.
• Polar Express: Eww eww eww. Even if I did Christmas, and even if I had kids, I still wouldn't take them to see this bit of insipid Santa-is-love fluff.

Now, on to the HP spoilers.

Context: I have not read any of the books.

This was a pretty good adventure story about generic characters. I didn't really see a strong effect from this being specifically the Harry Potter universe. There seemed to be less character advancement and less advancement of the overall story than in the first two movies. I don't think we learned anything new about the lead characters, nor did they learn anything new about themselves. And Draco, formerly a snide force for evil, was instead a snivelling force for bully-dom in this one.

I'm not saying the actors didn't do a good job with their characters or that there weren't fun moments -- just that it didn't seem to move the way the first two did. I enjoyed seeing more of Hagrid, I thought the replacement Dumbledore was credible (but lower-key), and Snape was his usual creepy self. (I don't like the divination professor, but maybe I'm not supposed to.) I liked Lupin, though the homosexual-teacher allegory at the end was rather blunt. And I thought Sirius was done well and had some depth; I hope we'll see more of him.

That map was cute. Dani tells me that according to the book Harry's father created it; that would have been a nice detail to include.

There were some very nice effects (I liked the hippogriff in particular) and too much scenery that could have been better allocated to character time. The plot was tidy, tying up loose ends and holding together well.

One plot thing did surprise me, though: the movie makes clear, through the passage of seasons, that this Sirius Black scare lasts at least six months. If we hadn't gotten the weather scenes, it would have seemed like a few days. I did not see the rising urgency you would expect from "oh no, that murderer has been stalking us for months!". What was up with that? Did it come through more in the book?

And a nit: if time-travel is so dangerous, why the heck is the faculty letting Hermione use it to shave a semester or two off her studies?

Assessment: Much better than #2, not a rich as #1. I'll go to the next one.

We made extremely good time getting to the theatre, but were still surprised to be the first ones at this particular show. That's not really a win, though; it just meant we got to watch more commercials. Remember when you could spend pre-movie time just talking, with quiet music in the background?

Comments

[cahwyguy.livejournal.com]

I think we have some similar opinions. About two weeks ago, my family and I saw Shrek2 and HP3 on the same day. You can find my review of the full set of previews in the blog entry (http://www.livejournal.com/users/cahwyguy/8985.html) that I wrote.

In short, the intersection of our set of previews was four (Spongebob, Cinderella, Catwoman, and Polar Express), and we thought all were "eh" (except that my 9yo daughter was a little interested in Cinderella).

As for HP3: there apparently was a lot left out from the original book. The book for HP4 is even longer, so expect even more cutting as they decided not to do it as two movies.

[magid.livejournal.com]

If we hadn't gotten the weather scenes, it would have seemed like a few days. I did not see the rising urgency you would expect from "oh no, that murderer has been stalking us for months!". What was up with that? Did it come through more in the book?

Yes, it did. A lot. There were a number of details like that that were in the book, and didn't make the cut to the movie. I understand why, but it seemed much less nuanced that I was surprised at some of the things that did make the cut.

[rani23.livejournal.com]

The Princess Diaries is a fun movie and something I'd definately recommend if you want a light comedy. Two thumbs up.

In regards to Catwoman -- can I just say how BAD this movie looks to someone who actually reads the Catwoman comic book and has liked the character since she was seven? Just...ew. The only thing the movie has in common with the comic book is the title.

[autographedcat.livejournal.com]

I thought "The Princess Diaries" was adorable, and I honestly went into it expecting to hate it. (We watched on DVD at a friends house, becuase it's what other people there wanted to watch.)

Hoping to see HP3 this weekend.

I definately agree with you on the commercials. And I'm one of those people who likes to show up insanely early so I can get a good seat, so I end up having to sit through all of them. *grump*

[revlainiep.livejournal.com]

Ok, I'll bite...where was there a homosexual-teacher allegory? :-)

[ginamariewade.livejournal.com]

Did you catch the "Hallelujah, Santa Claus" bit in the music for this piece of tripe? I find that rather offensive.

I enjoyed HP, but it seemed like it took place on a completely different planet from the first two.

[murmur311.livejournal.com]

I think people who've not read any of the Harry Potter books are going to enjoy this movie more than those who have read them. I was, personally, disappointed at what they left out, what I felt was integral to the plot, both for this current story and the future. I felt they compressed time way too much in this film- you're right, you don't get the urgency and the danger that comes across in the book in which the danger from Sirius Black lasts the entire school year.

As far as the characters go, they were pretty true, except for a bit of Lupin and definitely Malfoy. I didn't like how he was made into a snivelling little cry baby, it seemed fairly pointless.

[hobbitblue.livejournal.com]

I *would* say that "babe in black doing acrobatics" would be enough to carry a film for me, but then again that's what made me rent Underworld, so I've learnt my lesson!

Princess Diaries

[ealdthryth.livejournal.com]

I was pleasantly surprised by The Princess Diaries. I hadn't expected to like it but found it enjoyable. I plan to rent the second one.

My two cents

[lefkowitzga.livejournal.com]

Princess Diaries was a fun movie, worth a rental. I don't think I would have paid money in the theater to watch it, but renting was fun.

I was repulsed by the "Polar Express" trailer, too. Didn't know it was a children's book.

If you were to read any of the Harry Potter novels, this book is the best one. The movie hangs together, but the book has reams more characterization and meaning. Would you listen to it as an audio book?

The movie screamed to me of a young director trying to put 'his mark' on the movie. There was a significant amount of noise to story-signal. I agree with you that the characters didn't develop much. I was far more taken by the aging shown by the actors and how *that* developed their characters. For example, Neville is growing up in a way that portends well for his actions in the 5th book. His looks complement his growth from a whining putz into a determined but not yet competent wizard.

I agree with Chris's comments about Lupin and the 'homosexual allegory' - maybe the movie alluded to fanfiction, but the book was specifically referring to prejudice against any creature but a pure-blood wizard. Keeping in mind that Voldemort's original victims were mixed-blood wizards and muggles, the entire Harry Potter reality is based on racial prejudice and the impact it makes on peoples' lives.

It wasn't a bad movie, though I don't recommend anyone go to the IMAX version. It just wasn't anywhere near as good as it could have been.

[jducoeur]

Spiderman: Actually, the first movie was pretty good, and I'm expecting the same from the second. (I'm not expecting to see Catwoman, though -- it looks like a complete travesty.)

(I don't like the divination professor, but maybe I'm not supposed to.)

You're not. In the book, it's quite clear that Professor Trelawney is an annoying fraud (or at least, near-fraud), and our heroes don't much care for her. But she'll become more relevant later. Indeed, much of what happens in this episode will be fleshed out more as the story progresses.

Dani tells me that according to the book Harry's father created it; that would have been a nice detail to include.

Well, I appreciate their need to trim things as much as possible to keep the story flowing. But actually, the Map is more symbolically significant than that: the four "Marauders" named on the Map are the nicknames for Harry's father, Lupin, Sirius, and Peter Pettigrue -- that's why Lupin knows exactly what it is immediately. The Map underscores Peter's betrayal.

Also clearer in the book is the relevance of animal magic. In the movie we see that Lupin is a werewolf, and Peter and Sirius are both animagi (rat and dog respectively). What the movie doesn't say is that Harry's father was *also* an animagus -- specifically, a stag. That's the significance of the shining stag seen briefly when Harry finally casts the big Patronus spell...

if time-travel is so dangerous, why the heck is the faculty letting Hermione use it to shave a semester or two off her studies?

Actually, I'm not sure anyone but Dumbledore knows about it. And he has a tendency to let the kids learn their own lessons, even when those lessons are dangerous.

(And it isn't that she's shaving time off her studies -- it's simply that she can't stand the concept of not learning *everything*, and is refusing to specialize the way everyone is supposed to. It's much clearer in the book that she's basically working herself into a coma by overuse of the time travel device...)