I’ve just come back from taking Ariel to a midnight showing of “Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban,” and it was the single most surreal movie experience of my life. Explaining why will require blowing a major plot point, although it’s nothing that wasn’t included in the book. So if you read the book, read on without fear of spoilers. If you haven’t, then proceed at your own risk.
The local theater was running two late night shows: One at 12:05, the other at 12:10. We opted for the 12:05 because, y’know, why not?
So…
The climax of the film hinges on a sequence where Harry and Hermoine have used a time traveling device to catapult themselves back in time. They sprint from one end of Hogwarts to the other in order to, among other things, save an innocent Hippogryff named “Buckbeak” from dying at the blade of an executioner’s axe. In doing so, they wind up witnessing certain events all over again.
So the film has reached the point where Harry and Hermoine have managed to coax Buckbeak to safety. The annoyed Executioner, deprived of his target, decides to take out his frustration on a pumpkin in a patch outside Hagrid’s cabin. The angle of the picture is worm’s eye, aimed up at the Executioner, who is facing the camera. He swings the axe back over his head, brings it slamming down right toward “us”…
And the INSTANT the axe blade completes its arc, the film breaks. As if the Executioner, like a demented film editor, had sliced the celluloid clean apart.
The timing of it was so precise that it took a couple of seconds to register on the audience that it wasn’t some sort of inspired filmic breaking of the fourth wall. Then came an outraged roar and moan as the remains of the film proceeded to burn in the projector.
Ariel looked to me in frustration, and I said aloud, “Well, y’know, the film’s playing in another theater, five minutes behind. If we hurry…”
At which point I realized I was speaking to an empty chair. Ariel was already sprinting out the back of the auditorium. Either having heard my words, or having realized the same thing, the theater started emptying out. I immediately grabbed my jacket and headed out after Ariel.
In the hallway, I saw stunned theater workers gaping at the sight of a hoard of patrons dashing from one end of the movie house to the other (since, of course, they had to be playing at opposite ends of the place.) I got to the theater and found Ariel, comfortably nestled in the exact same seats we’d had in the previous theater. And sure enough, the movie was five minutes behind where we’d been.
So as Harry and Hermoine on the screen watched a familiar scene over again, we sat there and watched a familiar scene over again. I mean, I’ve witnessed live action movie participation before, but not even “Rocky Horror” involves running from one screening room to another and watching entire scenes over again.
The film itself? Easily the best cinematic representation of “Harry Potter,” although the new Dumbledore lacks the gravitas of Richard Harris and the explanation of who made the Marauder Map was oddly missing (I guess they figure everyone who’s seen the movie has read the book.)
And if you haven’t seen “A Little Princess” by the same director, you’re missing one of the best family films of the 1990s.
PAD
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Leading us to the next volume, “Harry Potter and the Bottle of Thunderbird”…
Oh I don’t know about the crit of Rupert Grint, I figured he was one of the more talented cast who got the short straw in the third film and therefore way fewer scenes. It doesn’t shock me much, because the director cut out so much stuff that he was obviously going to lose out. It was still a very cool film, but to be honest the only way it could have been more about Ron is if they’d actually raised some hëll in the fight between him and Hermione – which they didn’t for the sake of the plot.
All said, I think Rupert Grint is a fine choice to play Ron, because Ron is gawky, unfortunate, moderately clueless and as loyal and sarcastic a friend as you can ask for. Grint does alright with him. Good for him, I say.
Oh I don’t know about the crit of Rupert Grint, I figured he was one of the more talented cast who got the short straw in the third film and therefore way fewer scenes. It doesn’t shock me much, because the director cut out so much stuff that he was obviously going to lose out. It was still a very cool film, but to be honest the only way it could have been more about Ron is if they’d actually raised some hëll in the fight between him and Hermione – which they didn’t for the sake of the plot.
All said, I think Rupert Grint is a fine choice to play Ron, because Ron is gawky, unfortunate, moderately clueless and as loyal and sarcastic a friend as you can ask for. Grint does alright with him. Good for him, I say.
Oh – and that thing about Dumbledore canning Ron’s choice as a prefect is completely in character for that old guy. As has been repeatedly noted, Harry is Hogwart’s First Student so far as he’s concerned and I have no doubt that he chose Ron over Harry for the Harry’s sake, and not in ackowledgment of Ron’s abilities.
Dumbldore does indeed play the favorites game, more so even that Snape who isn’t shy about sticking up for his Slytherins and doesn’t care who knows it.
A great wizard Dumbledore may be, but he lets personal responisibilities to Harry completely override the presence of a thousand other kids in the school on many occassions. He should be equally loyal to them all, but he isnt. Its a good lesson that JK Rowling includes in the books – that even the best example of goodness they’ve got still has some vicious flaws.
For what it’s worth, I think Bladestar is exactly right. The thing I liked most about the OotP novel was how wonderfully Rowling’s writing has developed, to the point that she can portray an extremely-stressed adolescent mind perfectly, and the Harry that she describes at the beginning of the novel resembles nothing so much as a boiling teakettle. Harry could not have handled any more responsibility than he already had dumped on his shoulders, particularly once he became the de facto Dark Arts teacher. Besides, Bladestar’s description of Ron as a “C student who tries his best” captures Ron’s essence nicely. The kid got some well-deserved recognition, he and Hermione got to run interference between Malfoy and the rest of humanity, and Harry manages not to have a stroke.
But Grint is clearly the worst actor in the film series. The cat who plays Crookshanks can act better than he.
With Dumbledore’s knowledge of the prophecy though, he has to play favorites and protect Harry. Dumbledore DOES have the safety of the school and all it’s students in mind, but he also sees the bigger picture, and knows that Voldemorte’s return could spell the doom of a lot more than just Hogwarts.
Dumbledore doesn’t let protecting Harry overide the presence of a thousand other kids at the school, he just believes the prophecy that basically only Harry can defeat Voldemorte…
Fair enough Bladestar, but he plays favorites in ways that don’t help the Harry vs Voldemort cause on a regular basis.
One example that always struck me was that Harry and Ron didn’t need 200 points apeice for nearly getting themselves (and a teacher!) killed in the Chamber of Secrets… rather than fetching a teacher. The only reason for that was to give them the edge over Slytherin – who frankly, always have really high house points because they must be pretty dámņ good! – which is a shameful way for an impartial headmaster to behave. Ron and Harry were overjoyed to get Ginny out alive, and survive themselves. What more could they possibly have needed?
If Dumbledore is really thinking about the future of all the kids at the school, and the ramifications of Voldemort’s return then he’d do well not to alienate a quarter of them and send them right into Voldemort’s recruitment drive! He’ll rue it later, because all he’s shown the Slytherin kids is that there is no fairness in higher institutions, behaving as a law unto yourself only works if you have a powerful backer who’ll protect you from the consequences, the qualities that landed them in Slytherin will do them more harm than good in the outside world, and that only ‘favourites’ suceed.
Hëll, if I’d had all that demonstrated to me that succinctly I’d join Voldemort!
Considering he saved the school and stopped Voldemorte and killed the basilisk, I’d say the points are warranted.
Besides, Snape is so heavily slanted against Harry that Dumbledore has to fight fire with fire on that front. And since when does Dumbledore have to be impartial, he’s a product of Griffindor anyway…
Bladestar said
“Besides, Snape is so heavily slanted against Harry that Dumbledore has to fight fire with fire on that front. “
Not really true, IMO. While I feel that there
Cheryl, I wasn’t referring to Snape’s work with the order, I meant the way he treats students in class, especially Harry. Granted, Harry’s father was a total tool to Snape, but still.
As for the other side of things, I’m still not totally convinced Snape is 100% on Dumbledore’s side against Voldemorte.
I hope Snape is not involved in saving Harry when the final book rolls around. That should fall strictly to Harry himself, Ron, and Hermione…
Badestar, I didn’t mean the Order, either. The adults have been working toward this since Harry’s first defeat of ‘you know who.’ Snape has to be known to dislike Harry, and Draco isn’t shy about telling daddy Lucius everything. So while I see it as his natural incliantion to be rough on Harry and his crew, it’s also his job.
I don’t see Snape as dealing a final blow in the struggle, but rather an important strike.
Actually, my son thinks that in the end Harry and Draco will team up.
…the explanation of who made the Marauder Map was oddly missing…
I’ve read only the first book (so please don’t kill me), but I had just assumed it was Potter Sr., Lupin and Black. I picked it up just from the performance, notably how Lupin reacted when he walked in on Harry and Snape.
Mr. Wesley writes:
I’ve read only the first book (so please don’t kill me), but I had just assumed it was Potter Sr., Lupin and Black [who made the Maurader’s Map]. I picked it up just from the performance, notably how Lupin reacted when he walked in on Harry and Snape.
Well, you’ve gleaned three out of four of the mapmakers. But don’t let that be an excuse to not read the rest of the novels 😉
Huh? Just how tense do you think this film made us?