Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince Review

Let's get this out of the way: yes, I did see the movie at midnight. Yes I am a 21 year old male. And yes, I love Harry Potter.

And if you don't, then skip this review and skip the movie.

That's not to say the movie is bad however; quite the contrary. It is the best, in my opinion, of all the movies, even besting my personal favorite The Prisoner of Azkaban. It is darker, richer, funnier, and much better-acted than the previous films, and we finally get a Harry Potter film as opposed to a simple movie, if you catch my meaning.

Most, if not all of you, know the story. It is Harry's sixth year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, and Voldemort (gasp!) is back, which everyone now acknowledges. Harry has accepted his role as "the chosen one," and he is now working with Dumbledore to unravel the mystery behind the Dark Lord, to find a way to beat him. Of course there is a lot of other stuff going on, such as budding romances between the various major characters, Quidditch, a new professor by the name of Horace Slughorn (who plays a vital role in the plot), and many other things. I don't feel the need to embrace all of the details, as I will be critiquing them and you know them as well.

This is the first movie where the characters themselves seem fully realized. It's as if the actors have finally said "okay, I AM Harry Potter" or any other character, and they act as real people, not as characters with a set number of traits they have to demonstrate. Daniel Radcliffe shows the most improvement, in my opinion, as he embodies Harry more so than ever, accepting his role as "the chosen one." He really has more of a confidence this time around, much like I thought he had in the book. The movie really focuses on him more so than Ron and Hermione, but Ron and Hermione certainly aren't missed. Ron is much funnier this time around, although I would have liked to see him a little stronger, but really I enjoyed the improvements much more than I disliked the flaws. Hermione, while also getting less screen time than Harry, has improved drastically, more so than Ron, in my opinion. She actually acts in a very believable and not overstated way. Her emotion feels real this time and not contrived. I'm very interested to see where they take the three in the Deathly Hallows, which I am sure will not disappoint.

As I said, this is the first film of Harry Potter. This really is a well-made movie (obviously the backstory is lost because it assumes you know what has happened over the last six years, which is obviously understandable). There is drama balanced with comedic relief. Suspense with moments of wonder and (yes, excuse the pun) magic. The cinematography and scenery are beautiful, however it never feels like it steals the show. The characters and their plights are on display. Because the movie balances so many aspects well, it never drags and the two and a half hours fly by. I never once looked at my clock, and if you are a Potter fan, I suspect you will be just as enthralled.

Another aspect that stood out to me was Professor Dumbledore. He was the absolute perfect depiction of what I had envisioned from the book. The first two films had an older, wiser, but in my mind too old Dumbledore. The last three he has seemed almost too lively, and too young to be a true Dumbledore. In this film he is finally balanced, seeming old, thoughtful, and wise, while also seeming graceful, powerful, and full of life. And his death (YES his death...please, if that's a spoiler you shouldn't be reading) is handled very well, although without the funeral.

Yet another vast improvement is Draco Malfoy, played flawlessly by Tom Felton. He is a perfect Malfoy, evil yet sympathetic all at the same time. We really get to see his transformation from a slightly arrogant student, son of a Death Eater, to a menacing, evil Death Eater himself, but he still has that slight bit of innocence and good in him. We almost get the sense that he wishes Harry would not get involved, as he has some modicum of respect for him, and Harry even feels terrible (a brilliantly acted scene) when he uses Sectum Sempra, an evil spell that we never would associate with Harry. Malfoy is a strong, yet vulnerable character that has a lot of depth, and you will feel for him and loathe him all at the same time.

Which brings me to the differences between the book and the movie. There are many, although I am surprised at how much they did keep in this time around, compared to how much was gutted for the shallow Order of the Phoenix. Still, they did take out a lot, from many of the memories to the fight at the end to no Rufus Scrimgeour, to no Bill and Fleur. There are many. Read the Wikipedia page to see them all, because I won't discuss all of them. I'll talk about a few.

First, the finale of the film. While I did enjoy it very much, because it was more of a calm, dramatic end rather than flash bang finale, I did miss the funeral and the white tomb of Dumbledore. However I do understand the skipping of the battle at the end, because even in the books that was one of the parts I felt that was slightly repetitive...a large battle between Death Eaters and good wizards occurred at the end of the last three novels. Obviously it has to happen at the end of the 7th, so that's why I'm okay with leaving it out of this film. However, I do disagree with the choice of how to handle Harry at the end of the film. In the book, he is jinxed so he cannot move but has to watch, under the Invisibility Cloak, as Dumbledore is killed by Snape. In the movie, he hides and does nothing. This does not fit with Harry's character in both the book and film, and it really did not require alteration.

Also, Rufus Scrimgeour was cut completely. I don't know if I completely disagree with this, but I don't agree with it either. I feel his is more important than most give him credit, and I would have liked to have seen him in the film. But he is not a huge loss.

I do, however, totally disagree with leaving out Dumbledore explaining more about the Horcruxes. This is a vital motivation piece for the trio in the final novel, and unless they use a flashback to explain Dumbledore telling Harry what he thinks about the Horcruxes, I don't know how Harry will discover what the Horcruxes are. Also, I wished Harry would have hidden the Half-Blood Prince's book under the wig and tiara of Ravenclaw, as opposed to Ginny hiding it with his eyes closed. This is a key plot point in the 7th book, but it can be fixed, I suppose.

This film, however, is not about the bad changes, but rather the good. We finally get a film that balances characters with imagery and the world they live. We finally get a balance between action and good dialogue and acting. And it works almost flawlessly as a darker and more mature Harry Potter film is revealed to us. They will certainly have a lot to live up to in the 7th, which will have to be absolutely spectacular to capture the lightning in a bottle that the book captured. But from the looks of things, this film is a good omen. Harry is entering the final act. And you don't want to miss this brilliant piece of filmmaking that sets it up.

4/5