Ron's odd violence

[frantyck]

Harry killing Quirrell in the first film, and Harry stabbing the 
diary in this film are jarring acts of deliberate violence, as 
various people pointed out. How about the bit in the CoS film, in 
the tunnel just after the roof caves in, when Ron knocks Lockhart 
unconscious with a blow to the back of the head with a chunk of 
rock? This wasn't even necessary! What's doubly disturbing is that 
Grint does it with such matter-of-fact dispatch. Yes, Ron's going to 
be unable to get to his dead or dying sister because of Lockhart's 
idiocy, but to bring oneself to pick up a rock and hit someone on 
the head with it suggests more ill-suppressed anger and violence 
than even a redhaired Ron is likely to have.

In small ways, Columbus and the actors are making the main 
characters less comprehensible. They are deforming the link between 
what we know of the characters, and the actions they take 
(motivation vs. action). Or perhaps all of this is meant as early 
intimation of the characters' "dark side." Either way, it's 
significant.

Rrishi