Future Movies: How about Narative Voice Over?

[GulPlum]

Steve wrote:

> I think the plot could be moved massive amounts in a short time if
> Harry was doing a narative voice over as if he were recalling these
> events. 

<snip>

I've thought about that as well, but I have two reservations. 
Firstly, narrative voice-overs (which are a lot more common than your 
post implied, actually) only make sense in really intimate movies, 
when we *have* to get inside the main character's head. Your example 
of "The Wonder Years" - which, I admit, I never watched much, but 
enough to appreciate your point - is very appropriate to this. Each 
episode was a "life lesson" and required the voice-over to establish 
both the predicament and the lesson learned at the end (and how it 
applied to Kevin's later life). From memory, there was very little 
plot exposition in those moments.

Strangely enough, Cuaron himself used narration to terrific effect 
in "Great Expectations" (a film about which I disagree with most film 
critics, as I thought it was wonderful), but again, it was used to 
describe the main protagonist's thoughts, or adult recollections of 
particular scenes, rather than plot exposition. 

My second objection is that it encourages lazy film-making and lazy 
acting. To be perfectly honest, most of what is *needed* for a HP 
plot *needs* to be conveyed visually or in dialogue - a narration 
would be distracting. It certainly don't think it would be quicker.

It's partially for these reasons that voice-overs are somewhat rarer 
than they used to be - modern audiences expect, and modern film-
makers can deliver, much more on screen than used to be the case. As 
the cliche goes, "a picture tells a thousand words" - you just need 
to have the right people delivering the right picture. In Cuaron's 
case, I think the likelihood is much better. That is, if he gets to 
do it with his usual cinematographer, Emmanuel Lubezki.

The narrative problems with CoS were largely down to the script 
itself and the direction, rather than any lack of time in which to 
tell the story. It's not about not having enough time, it's about 
using it wisely.

I don't really see a narration adding anything to PoA which can't be 
told with the right pictures and words of dialogue, as long as the 
crew and cast are up to speed, and Kloves is discouraged from the 
hatchet job he did on the first two movies. 

One thing which REALLY, REALLY annoyed me is the segue from the 
Weasleys' breakfast table to the Floo scene to Diagon Alley. That 
Julie Walters delivered her "there's only place we can get this lot - 
Diagon Alley" line with such a complete lack of conviction only helps 
to underline how much I hate the narrative sequence. I'd have had Ron 
get a letter from Hermione in which she worries about not having 
heard from Harry all summer and suggests they all meet in D.A. the 
next week to do their schoool shopping. Apart from being a better 
link, it also introduces Hermione, so there's no need for the later 
typically AWFUL Klovesish "Hello Hagrid, Hello Harry, Hello 
Hermione". Hagrid gets Harry out of Knockturn Alley and Hermione's 
already inside Flourish & Blotts with her parents and the Weasleys.
(BTW I'm not suggesting excising the Floo powder sequence).