More PoA pics

[Sara_ELL]

Dan wrote:

> Did anyone think the first two movies were actually good? I mean, I 
>haven't met anyone older than 8 who thought they were good movies, 
>in themselves.

Me:
I was utterly shocked to find that my too-hip brother (in his mid-
twenties and oh-so-cynical and "over it")who nevertheless has seen an 
unmentionable number of 'blockbuster' summer movies, had  bought both 
films on DVD recently... AND finally subcumbed to reading the first 
book. My point: the films, for better or worse, have the power to 
draw people who're into mainstream films but not "children's books" 
into the books themselves, which can't be a bad thing now, can it?

Dan:
[SNIP]
> I know a number of HP fans, none quite as much as myself, 
> however, and they felt the movies were, "uh, okay". I think most of 
> us only watched them for fun - we weren't expecting another more 
>than an after school special, and we got nothing more than an after 
>school special. 

Me:
I'm guilty of the first - I didn't see either of the films in the 
cinema mainly because I construed them as being "kiddie films", for 
better or worse. The trailer for the first film and the reviews that 
followed didn't do much to alleviate my bias and so, I ended up 
watching PS/SS on DVD instead. I found the first film to be 
relatively well-cast (I thought that Rupert Grint was very natural in 
the first film) but the effects were so-so. When the second film was 
released, I was therefore again, expecting it to be fairly pedestrian 
and again, caught it on DVD, preferring the books to Chris Columbus' 
vision. This time around however, I felt that it was somewhat more 
mature (less "after-schooly", if you will) and loved the way that 
some of the characters were portrayed (Jason Isaacs, IMO was very 
good). I cringed at the obvious sentimentality awkwardly stuck on at 
the end (the clapping when Hagrid returns, being one example), but 
overall, enjoyed the film.

Dan wrote:
[SNIP]
>So what is a real director, like Cauron, to do?

[SNIP]
> Maybe it's that I suspect the Rocky Horror Picture Show fandom 
>school of HP movie appreciation needs a little bit of psychological 
>content, to give it an edge. Columbus' vision of the books is, upon 
>second  viewing, precisely Byatt's interpretation of the series.Yes, 
>Columbus was THAT BAD. No wonder he left the logic puzzle out. He 
>couldn't make it work, he couldn't get his lens around it. And the 
>scene with Hedwig and HP in the dorm, first night at Hoggy Hoggy. 
>Did someone hold a gun to his head to shoot that?
> 
> The only semi-artistic parts of the second movie were the diary 
> interiors, IMNSHO.

Me:

Well, I read somewhere that JKR thought that the diary flashback 
scene was very well done and exactly as she had envisaged it. I don't 
wish to defend Chris Columbus (there must be a special sub-circle in 
Dante's Hell for makers of films like "Home Alone"), nevertheless, I 
feel that his "artistic vision" was hindered by the demands that the 
films remain true to the books - too much so, in the end it would 
appear. I'm amused by the reaction that having the kids wear 'muggle 
clothes' has aroused in the fandom and I can hardly imagine what the 
reaction would've been had the kids not be wearing 'wizard robes' in 
parts of the first couple of films. Cuaron (whom I respect as a human 
being and a film-maker), is lucky in some respects, as he is stepping 
into a successful franchise (ie: one that wasn't completely blasted 
away by the critics and fans) and so, is able to have the leeway that 
Columbus couldn't. I personally love what I've seen in the last 
couple of days (with one notably exception *cough*Lupin*cough*), and 
look forward to seeing this next film in the cinemas for a change. 

Though this has been mentioned many times before on the main board, I 
feel that, just as the writing and characters in the books develop as 
the series progresses (I didn't bother reading CoS after the first 
time I read PS as I felt that the writing was fine, but a bit too 
juvenile for my tastes), so do the films. 

Dan wrote:
[SNIP]
> Look at the still with Minerva. There's more grace and subtlty in 
> that picture than in the entire 2 Columbus travesties. 

Me: 
You can't really judge a whole perfomance on a single still photo now 
Dan! Having said that, I love everything I've seen so far (INCLUDING 
the revised movie!Draco hair-style) but have to concede that the 
official Olman/Sirius photo (in the shrieking shack) is disturbingly 
reminiscent of my favorite uncle's hair-do from the 70's (he had 
*exactly the same beard, moustache and part in his hair).

Slightly OT but - I personally don't give two figs as to what AS 
Byatt thinks of Harry Potter.I have never needed the validation of 
anyone else, especially so-called 'intellectuals', to feel secure in 
my literary or cinematic viewing choices in the past, present and (I 
sincerely hope) future.

*******
Sara-ELL (who now knows how those "Aaargh - that's not *my* version 
of Sirius" posters feels after seeing that albeit, very blurry, 
picture of Lupin)