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We didn’t do a Videogum Movie Club for Harry Potter this weekend because it seemed kind of pointless. What is there even to say about Harry Potter anymore? Well, you can be the judge of that in this Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince open thread.
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Harry Potter not so much, but how about that Hermione? Schwing. If you know what I mean. Never thought I’d say this, but she was too hot for it.
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A life lived without Harry Potter is a life half lived. Use all the time Gabe has saved you with his WMOATs, and get to reading.
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20 downvotes? Harry Potter fans are the Animal Collective fans of Videogum.
in the year i’ve been reading and commenting on Videogum, i don’t think i’ve EVER gotten this many downvotes, so I’m just going to go full r*tard here and officially put myself in the running for lowest comment of the week.
Woah, that does seem a little harsh. When did Harry Potter nerds start thinking less of those who aren’t in the know? Use your nerd powers for good!
i would like to take this time to say that i upvoted your original comment, because all of those downvotes were totally unnecessary.
How do you know it hasn’t negatively impacted your life? HOW DO YOU KNOW?
(Seriously though every person I know who has taken some point of pride in not reading the Harry Potter books has eventually broken down and read them. And enjoyed them, a lot. Kids and overblown cultural phenomena suck and ‘Just cause the radio will play you doesn’t mean that you’re great’ and all but them Harry Potter books are a fun read. JUST TRYING TO HELP.)
So that’s really the kind of response would never make me want to read a Harry Potter book.
I had no idea the books had gotten that Intense. Mothers do not appreciate inappropriate laughter, but I do not appreciate little children and their lust.
Yeah… The movie got a bit out of hand when the Black Eyed Peas made a cameo and sang Broom Broom Pow at Slughorn’s private party. That scene totally should have been cut.
that I didn’t mind so much, but the hard core porn with the long haired guy and his cat was a little off putting. And in a childrens movie!
The sad thing is, having not seen the movie yet, i believed you.
And i am not all that gullible of a person. It’s more that the Black Eyed Peas making a cameo in this film is well within the realm of believability.
I agree; what is there to say? You can’t go in with any expectations about the acting or the plot. Now it’s mostly about the director and what the screenwriter chose to include from the (admittedly, very long) book. Personally, I thought it was too short and sped through a lot of the major points the story, but also I am a nerd and would gladly watch Harry Potter for a few hours on a Sunday instead of doing my laundry. I liked it.
I agree with the entirety of this comment.
Can I just point out that the one/two punch of both of your avatars basically sums up why I love the people on Videogum.
I heard they cut the monkey knife fight, so why bother?
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Good for you! I’ll take Harry Potter over Luke Skywalker ALL of the days.
My inner-child loves the idea of flying the Millennium Falcon more than the idea of flying around on a broom. But whatever, I probably should have just kept that comment to myself.
Now where did I put that lightsaber?
Yeah, sorry, that was a bit uncalled for. I didn’t mean to start any interweb fandom wars; they’re both great. Let’s just agree that Twilight sucks major balls and forget this ever happened, aight?
Can I still come to this site if I like Harry Potter?
According to all the upvotes and downvotes you can ONLY come to this site if you like Harry Potter.
I thought it was great! Quite a few Lots of Love moments (Daniel Radcliffe, not just a four-eyed brooder slash naked horse enthusiast!), and Emma Watson’s acting was less aggressively annoying than usual. Also, I am too old for this, so gross, but Rupert Grint: swooooon.
yes, to the hermione thing. I hated her infinitely less in this film, she must have watched her previous performance and realized how jim carrey she was getting. she is cute and I like her again. also, girl has balls for boarding blind at university.
aside from that, I felt like I had no idea what the hell happened. I’ve read all the books and it just seems very cheap to me. it seemed like a very short movie with very little content, but it was a very long movie! very little character depth in this film. am I alone here?
I am going to read the books again in order to fall back into my “please let magic be real” reality and pretend I’m not 21 years old.
I felt like it was a really long movie that didn’t tell me much, but then I went back and skimmed the book again and that’s how the book was too (for me). it was all kind of leading up to *********’s death and not really giving me much more than that. Also, I would prefer to spend ZERO seconds of my life watching teenagers kiss, so there’s that.
I didn’t see it, because I get my pubescent angst from my own life.
i just wish they would get a little more into the whole half-blood, pure-blood, mud-blood, and “lower magical races” aspects of it, since that’s basically the epic moral of the story: dont be a racist asshole. also, man, i wish both in the movies AND in the books that eventually there’d be more of an intense spotlight on draco. he’s the most interesting character to me…
Such a boring flick. It had the feeling like it was building up to a big climactic battle, but apparently that will be in the next film instead. This was just so blasé in how it progressed the plot. By the end everything was seemingly back to normal character wise despite some bigger changes plot wise.
Getting sleazy for Ron Weasley? I think not.
Well, there’s a big battle in the book. Not sure why they trimmed it down, except I guess the last two movies had big battles and they appear to have chopped the next book into two movies so they could Helms’s Deep-ify the final battle(s — so many of them!), so perhaps they were just cutting us a little break on this one. Still! I’m sorry Bill Weasley didn’t get his face ripped off by Fenrir Greyback like he’s supposed to.
definitely. i’m hoping that they just take this extra movie they’re giving themselves and really work on getting all the other character’s plotlines up to speed for the end.
ugh, i make fun of people like me and stuff like this usually.
I know what you mean. I have to dial down the nerd every time Harry Potter comes up though, because once it starts it’s a never ending barrage of spells and horcruxes etc. which makes me look like the filthy hypocrite that I am when I make fun of my friend who is a star trek geek.
i agree. they barely even introduced greyback, just had him hanging around bellatrix. and i definitely thought we were getting a gratuitous werewolf battle with that extra scene, but no, just a pointless addition in an already over-long movie.
I know, right? Where was the epic Harry/Snape showdown?
Every major plot point in Harry Number 6 is based on Harry happening to walk by someone revealing critical information and then barely hiding around the corner to listen to them. Also, the whole thing is a teen sex comedy now, but not funny and without sex. Nothing else really happens except at the end, but by then it’s like who cares, Accio Wizard Sex, this is boring.
also, i want more neville longbottom, plz and thank you, because he is the best.
He is the best. Also, he seems to be aging a decade with every book. By the eighth movie he’s not going to be able to lift his wand for arthritis.
I’m not one who forgives much based on eye candy alone, but did anyone else think this film looked absolutely gorgeous? Say what you want about Potter, hiring the cinematographer from Amelie = smart, smart move.
Yeah, I accidentally just said the same thing without reading your comment. I bet Chris Columbus watched this and hated himself. As he should.
Very pretty camera tricks indeed. I didn’t read it, but I feel like the movie would have made a lot more sense if it was tracked with the same Smiths/Morrissey playlist that J. K. Rowling must have been listening to when she wrote it.
Also, I was very pleased with the audience. It was the first movie I saw this summer where no one applauded at any point.
Reverent nerds are the best.
I’m a HUGE Potterhead (Potterhead = irremediable nerd 4 lyfe) so I mean I could fill the entirety of this open thread with my own “insights” alone, but for what it’s worth I thought the film was gorgeous. Some intense parts almost had a noir feel to them, and there were so many good shots (bottom of the lake with the inferi-tower…!!!). Also, I cried at the end, but again, irremediable nerd. That said, all the romance was so so annoying, there wasn’t even THAT much of a focus on it in the book, and you could tell the writers knew there was too much gratuitous puppy love because they threw in a whole “action” scene at the Burrow that NEVER EVEN EXISTED. The omission of Dumbledore’s funeral and the Hogwarts battle scene was obnoxious. I thought the kid who plays Malfoy was actually quite good slash he looked quite good. So thanks for making me totally dork out, Videogum. I’m going to go avada kedavra myself now.
As a fellow Potterhead (oh boy) I was also angry with the omission of Dumbledore’s funeral, but I read somewhere that they are saving it for the next movie, which makes absolutely no sense when you had plenty of time to just stick it in at the end. If you’re going to cut stuff out, don’t go adding in new scenes that are kinda pointless! (RIP Burrow… I guess that means no wedding next time?)
I’m getting too comfortable with my public nerdiness.
I don’t know, they’ve cast Bill and Fleur is returning, so it LOOKS like there will be a wedding. I hate myself.
I guess that means they’re going to be accio-ing a new house, then? This all could have been avoided!
Also, I missed the entire Gaunt family. That would have been fun.
SUPER-NERD ALERT: I saw pics from the shooting of HP7.1 where Harry Ron and Hermione are running around Tottenham Court road, and they’re all wearing fancy clothes, so it looks exactly like the scene where they’re escaping from the wedding.
But will anyone be swearing by Merlin’s most baggy y-fronts?
The Guants! That would have been good, just because I was curious to see what they’d have them all look like. And how it’s sort of interesting that Voldemort has this view of full blood wizards as super beings while his family consisted of inbred psychopaths. I guess showing babymort with the ring held the same purpose while cutting time. Though I would have watched a five our movie. Whatever.
I saw a picture of Shell Cottage, so I’m guessing the Dobby scene will be in the movie?? Or they’re having the wedding there? Or both.
Well no matter what they do, they’re going to have an awful lot of catching up to do
Dumbledore dies?!?!?
And Ron knocks Hermione up.
i agree with every single word of your comment here. Oh but to be able to upvote more than once.
More importantly, did anyone see (500) Days of Summer? I know it opened in select theaters Friday, which is something that I absolutely hate, but I’m curious if any of you in NY, LA, San Fran, or Chicago saw it and what you thought of it?
The Worst. Pretty, but brain crumbling-ly full of itself. Just because it doesn’t have a happy ending which they GIVE AWAY in ALL the advertising, doesn’t make it a good movie. Welcome to college, kids, sometimes everyone isn’t always happy.
it made me intensly angry.
Thanks! Also,
I do like the Harry Potter series, but not enough to see in the theaters. Will be a nice Netflix treat in the fall.
I think this movie completely failed at translating why I, as a 25 year old male, read through this book nonstop completely enamoured with the half blood/ horocrux plotline. What I am trying to say is that the movie does not leave the viewer wanting more answers, while the book gave Harry Potter fans blue balls for book 7.
I too am a big HP fan, but, seeing how this was my least favorite book in the series, I wasn’t expecting too much, and that’s what I got. I just couldn’t get behind the teenage romance aspect because it’s kind of like, yeah, you think Ginny’s hot, Harry, but also, there’s a 50/50 CHANCE YOU’RE GOING TO DIE. It just all seems so silly, and… Just bad source material this time around, I think.
Yeah, it was pretty beautiful, visually. My (first) biggest problem was the adding of the BURROW BURNING DOWN WHAT? Who cares, let the Weasleys have their house. And the whole Percy plot would have been nice for the next movie.
My second biggest problem was the omission of the awesome battle scene at the end. Because Bill getting his face mauled off would have made this movie so much more fun.
My third biggest problem was lack of funeral. Since that part had me in tears for the book. For a while. Like my mom made me leave the room because I was being distracting.
It also didn’t stress that Harry needs to DESTROY the Horcruxes. Or that he broke up with Ginny. Or that they really even had a relationship.
Other than that it was great, but I’m a huge Potter nerd, so there’s that.
speaking of horcruxes, they also forgot to mention WHAT THEY MIGHT BE. I feel like that’s pretty important.
Oh yeah, THAT. “I think I’ll go look for a diadem now, for some reason.” (spoiler alert?)
Hah. “Why is everyone trying to chop that poor snake’s head off?”
I lol’d at that.
That right there gets all my laffs
Good points, good points.
Dude, forget “Half-Blood Prince”. Who’s watched “A Very Potter Musical”?: http://www.youtube.com/view_play_list?p=C76BE906C9D83A3A
Yes!! I keep nerdily hoping Gabe will cover that, as I’m sort of obsessed with it. How fantastic are Draco and Voldemort?! Highly recommend all Potterheads (cringe) settle in for 2 hours and watch it. So good!
Draco is hilarious. I thought I was going to die the first time he (she?) entered and like, flopped all over the set pieces. Also the whole “moon shoes Potter” bit is so inspired.
Voldemort is crazy good too. “Half-Blood Prince” needed a tap dancing number.
Two hours well-spent, really.
Oh my God! That was the best 2ish hours I’ve spent this week. Thank you so much for that link. I especially loved Voldemort… “You know, you think that killing people would make them like you, but it really just makes them dead.”
Thank you for introducing me to this. I got caught watching it at work and my co-worker said, “you look so happy.”
I am not ashamed to admit that I went to the midnight premiere.
I thought it was a good movie, but a sub par adaption.
Also, Malfoy’s acting was less terrible that usual. Everyones, really.
This thread has me more excited than I ought to be.
As an unapologetic Potterhead, I really liked this one in spite of the extreme liberties they took with the storytelling (wtf waitress scene, Burrow fire, no funeral, etc.). It looked gorgeous and that cave scene was pretty cool! And there were a lot of good parts from the book that I was pleasantly surprised to see included (SIDE NOTE: I’ve noticed there are a lot of people here who haven’t read any of the books, and this is bad! We need to have an Emergency Videogum Book Club where the first assignment is to read all of the books, ALL OF THEM, because they are fucking amazing, what have you been doing?!), like Aragog’s funeral and that part where Harry and Mr. Weasley are in the shed with the Muggle electronic appliances. Good job, makers of this movie!
ahaha @ the waitress scene. I was like WHAT? What movie is this?!
Roger Ebert looooooved the waitress scene. More specifically, he loved the waitress and stated he would be “disappointed” if she doesn’t show up in the next few movies. What the fuck, Roger Ebert. (Source: http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090712/REVIEWS/907129996)
What? Where would she show up?? It was so weird. I was like why is this 25 year old waitress hitting on a 16 year old boy reading a funny news paper?
I was like: why is Scary Spice hitting on Harry Potter? also: kinda creepy, Roger Ebert!
The waitress scene didn’t make any kind of sense. But the movie was pretty okay. It was definitely nice to look at, some beautiful shots there. And like you said, they included some things I was sure they were gonna leave out. I do appreciate the fact that they emphasized Draco’s storyline (even if I was sick of watching him pull the cover off the Vanishing Cabinet after a while). But it doesn’t justify the fact that they did make up some ridiculous stuff. And ultimately, the ending was definitely anti-climatic. Although, I’m almost glad they didn’t include the funeral, I was bawling enough as it was.
As I was watching it, I was all “wow, this is the best of the 6, definitely.” Then they ruined the ending, and I’m still mad about it two days later (which probably says more about me and my lack of a life than it does about the movie). But seriously, no battle scene, Dumbledore’s death and the subsequent wand light thing were terrible, and they left out important parts of the book (if I’d never read it, I would have no idea what these horcruxes were about). I was also really annoyed that while they left in “fight back you coward” there was no “don’t call me a coward” response, especially knowing what we now know after the end of the series.
Up until the ending though, I thought it was great.
TL;DR
I think the choices about what to omit seem curious–why remove the battle at the end? Why not explain Snape’s storyline? Why not explain the Gaunts and all that muggle/half-blood (racism) theme? This is what the books are about. And, they know the ending now– the filmmakers know what happens next.
They have stripped alot of the mounting fear (and heroics) in favor of the important lesson(?) of the book (teenage boys choose the path of least resistance) and old people never explain anything. It seems like this is gonna present problems in the last two–and not just of the “who the f is this character and why should I care they died?” variety. e.g. why is the waiter gonna be the hero? Are we even gonna recognize that kid at this point?
it was pretty though.
Sorry, book adaptations are the worst.
I read somewhere that they removed the battle at the end because they thought it would be too similar to the battle at the end of the 7th.
On a somewhat related note, I remember when news of the Burrow “battle” burning surfaced about a year ago, and the director explained that it was to show that they really weren’t safe anywhere. That may have been his intention, but it really just came across as pointless. It was hardly even a battle, everyone just ran through some corn before watching their house burn down (though, admittedly, I almost teared up watching it burn…but I would have rather teared up watching Dumbledore’s funeral).
Working in a theater means I didn’t actually, you know, get to see it, but I caught the end, and it pissed me off.
No funeral scene = fail. It’s what gives the movie it’s closure! They completely crapped out on the ending, between the battle and the funeral. I half expect them to cut the Battle of Hogwarts to five minutes, even with a split seventh book.
i’m also a pothead and i somewhat enjoyed this movie. i did think all the back and forth with Quidditch trying to burrow Hermione’s horcrux went on a bit long. however, Malfoy’s dye job was nice. and i’m nitpicking, but the Patronus Ikea cabinet scenes were a bit redundant.
as for the ending, Dumbledore should’ve made the half blood prince a full blood prince if-you-know-what-i’m-sayin. RIP A.D.
Oh also, I totally forgot about this, they didn’t introduce Scrimgeour at all, and I feel like he’s such an important part of the latter books and I was really surprised. Like, literally, in the time it took to construct a bizarre, irrelevant, and totally unconvincing London Waitress scene, they could have introduced Scrimgeour and made the plot like 1,000x more interesting. I am hating this movie more and more by the minute, you guys! Can I just obliviate it from my memory?? Why am I ending every comment with a reference to a fictional spell???
He’s also supposed to be in the next movie. I thought they’d at least MENTION that Fudge got sacked and say who had replaced him, but they had to give Scary Spice a guest spot and burn down the Burrow.
The waitress scene WAS ridiculous. Also, in that scene, what was with Dumbledore staring at the billboard of the pretty girl? Was that the directors way of say “Haha, JK was just kidding. Dumbledore is totes straight. Seriously, that is the beard of a straight man”? If not, I don’t see why it couldn’t have been a flower, or food, or anything that didn’t make an old wizard look pervy.
?Oh, there you are, Albus,? Slughorn said. ?You?ve been a very long time. Upset stomach?? ?No, I was merely reading the Muggle magazines,? said Dumbledore. ?I do love knitting patterns.?
I like that one of the first things Dumbledore does in the movie is RE-DECORATE A LIVING ROOM USING MAGIC. Accio Gay Stereotypes!
Anyone else get a major EMO (are we even allowed to say EMO anymore?) vibe from Draco and his never-changing black powersuit?
Emo kids of course well known for their designer power suits.
Draco was just sadding around the whole time. Hermoine was h-a-w-t throughout the whole thing. Good movie. I especially enjoyed snape’s “I’m the half blood prince….k…bye” bit.
I know! Snape was just like” oh hi! I’ll let you in on a secret, the half-bllod guy? Yeah S’Me…peace!” Also…I loved the semi-erotic slow motion shoulder grasp between Dumbledore and Harry near the start…so amazing.
I felt the same way. But then I remember that’s EXACTLY WHAT HAPPENS IN THE BOOK AND IT MADE ME MAD THEN TOO. Ugh, I hated that. “Oh hai! Laterz.” So at least they kept it faithful to the book?
I like the scene where the camera moved from Ron & Lavender making out, to some other couple making out? (or was it Harry & Hermione) and then moved up to Draco Malfoy brooding alone.
I loved this movie, and the last two books, a lot more than the rest of the movies/books. I think the main reason for this is because all the characters start to grow up, and as such the story becomes more mature and intense. So in order to help the next movie along this path, I’ve written a scene that will help show Harry as a more mature wizard.
HOGWARTS DORM – NIGHT
A large party is taking place in one of the Hogwarts dorms. Suddenly, the door flies open, and everyone turns to see HARRY POTTER standing in the doorway.
Many of the girls start to murmur to each other, with occasional dialog being heard, such as:
PARTY GIRL ONE: “I’d like to see his chosen one” [Ed. Note: brilliant]
and
PARTY GIRL TWO: “I’d drink his love potion” [Ed. Note: perfect]
Suddenly, HARRY pulls out his wand; everyone goes silent. HARRY slowly lowers the wand, eventually pointing it at his genitals. Everyone one is frozen, eyes fixed on HARRY.
The camera slowly zooms in on HARRY’s face, until only his mouth is shown. He smirks.
HARRY: “Accio bitches”
Every female in the room rushes towards HARRY, initiating a large, lengthy orgy. Upon its conclusion, HARRY lets out a long howl to prove his dominance. [Ed. Note: This is a totally normal thing that everyone does all the time.]
HARRY:
HARRY then disapparates from the room, leaving everyone in a state of confused embarrassment. PROFESSOR SNAPE walks in and gives them all detention except HARRY because he’s not there.
PROFESSOR SNAPE: “I am giving you all detention except Potter because he is not here.”
END SCENE
Hey Warner Bros.(or Hustler Video), when can I Accio my check?
All of a sudden, this turned into fanfictiongum.
OMG you guys. I thought it was absolutely fantastic – much better than any of the other Potter films for a variety of reasons.
Now, you must understand. I’ve never gone into a Potter movie expecting it to be exactly like the book. Maybe this is why I come out of them not at all disappointed, while a lot of other fans come out pissed. A LOT was changed about this movie. But then again, a lot wasn’t changed. I thought that all scenes, added or deleted, were fantastic in conveying the feel of the 6th book and the entire series.
Surprisingly enough, the kids learned how to act for this movie! Actually, I think Rupert was always better than the other two. But Daniel was FANTASTIC and hilariously funny. And Emma realized that breathing really heavily isn’t actually acting. The three of them were amazing. Tom Felton – he stole the entire movie. He was – beyond words super amazing.
Though it was probably the darkest, and creepiest of all the Potter movies (Katie Bell and that necklace this is ****ED! and so are the Infieri), it’s also probably the funniest and the most relatable. The characters interact with each other in such a realistic 16 year old way. The movie was fun. Very fun.
Yes yes yes to the creepiness–even though I knew they were coming at some point, I flailed and accidentally hit the guy next to me when the Infieri popped up. And Fenrir Greyback gave me the chills.
OMG you guys. I thought it was absolutely fantastic – much better than any of the other Potter films for a variety of reasons.
Now, you must understand. I’ve never gone into a Potter movie expecting it to be exactly like the book. Maybe this is why I come out of them not at all disappointed, while a lot of other fans come out pissed. A LOT was changed about this movie. But then again, a lot wasn’t changed. I thought that all scenes, added or deleted, were fantastic in conveying the feel of the 6th book and the entire series.
Surprisingly enough, the kids learned how to act for this movie! Actually, I think Rupert was always better than the other two. But Daniel was FANTASTIC and hilariously funny. And Emma realized that breathing really heavily isn’t actually acting. The three of them were amazing. Tom Felton – he stole the entire movie. He was – beyond words super amazing.
Though it was probably the darkest, and creepiest of all the Potter movies (Katie Bell and that necklace was ****ED! and so are the Infieri), it’s also probably the funniest and the most relatable. The characters interact with each other in such a realistic 16 year old way. The movie was fun. Very fun.
I’m sorry. My browser at work doesn’t even know.
I’ve actually seen the movie twice by now, which was totally worth it. When I saw the movie on Tuesday night it had been for years since I’d read the book, so I’d forgotten everything that wasn’t a major plot point (I was also a hardcore fan growing up). But yeah, I LOVED the movie. Mostly that’s because it’s just gorgeous. Seriously, the improvement from the first two is incredible. This one is actually like a real movie that somebody put real effort into as if their reputation depended on it. I have a few beefs though:
-Cutting the battle scene at the end was a stupid decision. Draco spends the whole year with this cabinet and it’s this huge deal but when he actually uses it to get death eaters into the school they basically do nothing? How was that allowed to happen? Hundreds of people made this movie, no one noticed that that made no sense?
-Emma Watson is a bad actress. I’ve gotten over the fact that she was chosen over me for the part when I was in fifth grade in North Carolina, but seriously, she brings everyone else down. Back in 2000 they cast all these kids just because they looked the part, not because they could actually play it, and now they’ve got a few who have learned how but she just never really improved. Harry would be talking and doing a pretty good job and then she would speak and just ruin it and totally take me out of the movie.
- We didn’t get to see any of Snape’s defense against the dark arts classes! Wasn’t that some kind of big deal?
Overall the movie was great though! I’ve got high hopes for the next ones, I’m just worried that they’ll change a lot so they can have a climax for the first of the two.
i wanted to expound on my earlier comment regarding draco, because i was called away from this thread yesterday to do something important for my job. (insert laughs here because i am an adult who has a job, and who is about to offer some sort of half-baked critical analysis of a children’s book character. ha.) the lack of actual focus on the “redemption” of malfoy is a deep disappointment to me, book wise, and i hope they do something with it movie-wise. SO MUCH of harry potter’s universe is based on circumstances of birth- who is born with magical abilities, who is born without, who is born to full blood families, who is of mixed parentage, and who is muggle born, who is a squib, who is half giant. so much attention is paid to people who inherit their goodness- harry potter inherits the moral certitude of his parents and, other than the brief moment in book one where the idea of going to the house of slytherin is briefly suggested, he never fails to be a solid character working for the forces of good. hagrid and sirius, likewise, briefly walk the good/bad line, due to the fact that they come from “bad” origins, the house of black and the giants. snape is another character who i will not go into too much due to SPOILERS, but to me, draco really signifies how evil and badness is an inherited trait- like harry potter, he is obsessed with holding up his family line, following and honoring his father and his father’s father’s footsteps, it’s just that he inherited an evil lineage. i feel like not tackling that full-on and really talking about how hatred and racism is a taught belief, rather than always simply thinking that somehow characters like sirius are just so cool and naturally great that they were able to transcend the moral poverties of their families, is the greatest failure of the books, and i really held out in book seven hoping for some sort of draco malfoy analysis, and i hope that the movies address it, but given how much they are glossing over the themes of societal racism, i doubt that they will. anyhow. cough.
You bring up a lot of great points, and I, too, was incredibly disappointed with the handling of Draco and his storyline in the books. But, and watch out because I am about to drop a serious HP nerd bomb, I may have been spoiled because I read Cassandra Claire’s ‘Draco Trilogy’ fanfiction years ago and it actually surpassed the books in a lot of ways, but most significantly in its exploration of Draco as a character who is torn between upholding the tradition of his lineage and his newfound friendship with Harry. I suck at describing it, but it was a really great series. She took it down when she got her original books published, but they’re available in .pdf here: http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20081001203009AARdOYh If you’re looking for a way to kill many, many hours, there you go! I’m going to go Avada Kedavra myself now for nerding out this much, but I couldn’t help but respond.
oh man, i am downloading these, like, NOW. ive never really read fanfiction, but i think im definitely going to make an exception for draco malfoy fanfic. oh man, this is the nerdiest of the nerd clubs happening on this thread. not really, but really.
Haha. I Lots of Loved at “(insert laughs here because i am an adult who has a job, and who is about to offer some sort of half-baked critical analysis of a children’s book character. ha.)” I think I am just predisposed to like you…you had me at Francis Bacon!
Also, we have the same thought about everything.
Also, I’m going to stop commenting on this post because I am swiftly approaching that line crossed by few but An American Patriot that separates the healthy-involved from the creepy comment-thread trolls. No trollmo.
I just wanted to say that I agree, and that I have the same feeling that their glossing over Snape as well (who was my favorite character). The 5th movie, for instance, never even really explored the fact that Harry’s dad was kind of a douche in school and treated Snape like shit, making most of his actions almost justified.
If we get through the series, and his final flashback is just a rushed, horribly edited series of “memories” I’m going to have to beat someone up. Also, I’ll have to beat some one up for feeling like such a nerd.
i am glad you found this uberdork thread with the fanfic links!
seriously, i thihnk gabe is gonna have to ban me for officially being a harry potter troll at this point. i am the lamest all up in the harry potter posts. but yeah, it’s disappointing that they never touched on the whole james and sirius were assholes to snape issue- snape is definitely a woefully under-developed character in the movie to the point where he is basically comical. nor did they explain where sectumsempra came from, other than the fact that snape came up with it. all im saying it, hopefully thie movie they’re smooshing in before the end helps flush out the other plotlines.
and carrie, you had me at chuck close.
I wish I had your optimism. I don’t think their going to flesh out anything else in the 7th movie(s). As far as I’m convinced, the only reason it’s being split is because of miiiiiiilking it, and we’ll likely end up with one movie that is 80% sexual angst while camping. Ugh.
But then again I’m a super nerd that, for example, has the following reaction to things in the film:
Harry (to Ron): I wonder how Fred and George are managing to stay open despite everyone else in Diagon Alley closing. (or whatever the line was)
Me: BECAUSE YOU FUCKING GAVE THEM A TON OF MONEY HARRY. REMEMBER THAT? IT WAS ALL IN THE NECESSARY PLOT STUFF YOU CUT OUT OF THE 4TH MOVIE.
Not to mention I was super upset that the 5th movie didn’t include the cleaning scene cause in my mind they can’t ever find that locket now in a logical manner. It’s just going to have to be like “Oh shit! Look here! We found a locket. High five you guys!”
Yeah, yeah I know. I’m pathetic, but I was like the perfect age for the series as a kid and blame growing up with them pretty much in line with the release of the appropriate year.
the lack of the cleaning scene is one of my biggest pet peeves of the entire movie series. well, that and terrible werewolf effects.
WHEW glad I’m not the only one! I also hated the werewolf effects and how that motherfucker was all over the movie/advertising and didn’t speak a goddamn line! It was just weird that every time he popped up: silence.
Oh God. The werewolf. I was not pleased with that.
I’m so concerned as to how they’re gonna find ANY of the horcruxes. Like more concerned than I ought to be. I am realizing how many memories they left out and it makes me nervous.
I also really hope they clarify Snape’s past. Because it’s great. (Great’s obviously not really the appropriate word here, but it’s the best I could come up with. I’m half asleep and had to read through this thread yet AGAIN.)
It’s okay cause I just read this shit again. And yeah, I have the same worries. So much characterization has been left out and a ton of plot stuff has been left out that seemed pointless at the time it’s mentioned but then becomes huge. Ugh.
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This is funny because Daniel Radcliffe does actually have huge balls. ~Thanks Equus!
I wanted to see the scene at the beginning where the wizard prime minister dropped some knowledge on the muggle prime minister. I haven’t read the book since it came out but I remember that part and it would have been mad cool.
And since I didn’t really remember anything else about the book, I found it mildly entertaining, worth the movie ticket, and slightly confusing but not overly so. Hermione stopped acting with her eyebrows, Ron is got pretty cute, and I’ve seen Harry naked. More Fred and George and Luna and Neville would have a plus but you can’t have everything.
A near-brilliant film.
I understand the frustrations fans of the book are having with this movie, but this may be one of the most subversive mainstream movies about growing up and the experience of life since ‘Shaun of the Dead’.
Remarkably, the focus is taken away from magic and wonder and instead becomes a coming-of-age story. It’s a metaphor-filled and symbolically-rich take on growing up, the loss of innocence (both sexual and something more sinister with Draco Malfoy), and the end of childhood. People grow up, become men (as exemplified by Ron’s character) friends change, and parents (or father figures) grow old and die. All the while, the real world outside of school, or the environment the characters find comfortable, is shown to be a frightening place (quite literally).
It’s like a big budget British New Wave film. With a healthy sprinkling of noir and Hammer-style theatricality. I was floored by this. I think this is one of this movies that people will look back on with great appreciation in several years.
I hope disappointed fans give it a rewatch, because this is stunning filmmaking.
This joins Up and Moon as one of the most stunning, ballsiest, and most rewarding movies of the summer.
PS — Sorry for having nothing amusing to add with my overlong commentary, but I was just blown away by this.
Professor Bildungsroman over here
And there was an actual ‘baptism of fire’ in the movie too…
Dammit! I couldn’t resist it… now Carrie’s going to knock the books from my hands and take my lunch money…
Hahaha, no that’s too much effort, I would definitely just sectumsempra your ass and leave you to die of blood loss on the floor of a deserted bathroom. WAY EASIER.
P.S. I hope you don’t think I’m a diaperface. Actually it was probably just me wanting to say “Bildungsroman.” Because think about it, how often is there an opening to casually drop that German loanword?? I couldn’t not!
why did draco have a power suit on for the entire movie? and does he listen to bauhaus now?
I always love Videogum reviews. It kind of seems improper for there not to be one on one of the biggest movies of he summer. Reconsider, Gabe? Please?
Sorry for the double post, but the hate in this thread is unnecessary. Sorry, non-HP fans.
I can never tell if the movies do a good job of telling the story, because there’s so much I’m filling in for myself, having read the books. But in my opinion? Jim Broadbent as Slughorn is worth the price of admission.
Agreed. Broadbent’s eyebrows pretty much made it for me.
i love it when they all raise their wands of light to the sky as though Dumbledore is the Freebird who has gone to the great Skynrd concert in the sky. Accio southern rock!
I liked…how…it took…Alan Rickman…five…full minutes…to get through…each…of his…lines…acting.
The film was OK I suppose. Emma Watson is getting more and more attractive, but in an annoyingly upper-middle-class kind of way. She’s the kind of girl you spend ages thinking is interesting, but who just ends up going for guys who wear Jack Wills and play rugby and say things like “banter” and “L.A.D”. Americans might not get those references. Shit, this comment has nothing to do with Harry Potter. Ah well, truth be told I only go for Hermione. But I did think this movie was lacklustre in parts. It just wasn’t all that exciting. Even the bit with the flames and the zombies – which, to be fair, was stunning visually – didn’t have any sense of tension, and in the book that bit was fraught with terror, which is pretty good for Rowling who isn’t all that great of a writer. Good storyteller, but, let’s be honest, not a great prose stylist. There was a really clangy metaphor somewhere in the film as well, don’t remember what it was but it made me cringe. Anyway, it’s late and I’m still unbelievably hungover even though I had roast chicken for Sunday lunch. Cheerio. x
Book rocked. Movie sucked.
If anyone who has read the book remembers – it was uneventful to begin with. That they managed to still make the film entertaining is a surprise. I haven’t said this before – and hopefully would not have to again – but the film was a notch above the unneccessarily fat book. Plus, it was beautifully shot and I loved all the veterans (Jim Broadbent was superb). Daniel Radcliffe remains as stiff as ever, though. True, they cut out some scenes from the book (most notably the marriage and the funeral – though the latter might come up in the next) they do get on with whatever story they had.
Biggest crime the film series has committed : Completely eliminated Percy Weasley!