[HPFGU-Movie] I think I understand...

[patientx3 at aol.com]

In a message dated 6/18/2004 7:32:13 AM Pacific Daylight Time, 
valerie.flowe at verizon.net writes:

>> It bothers me that Cuaron changed the focus from main plot to sub plot. 
The "coming of age" was such a minor part of the book. In fact, it is more 
apparent in GOF, than in POA, what with Harry + Cho, Ron + Hermione, the dance, 
etc. <<

He made the 'coming of age' idea prominent, yes, but it was still in the bac
kground. The whole plot was still there, its just that the more emotional 
elements were exaggerated more than the plot (which, IMO, makes for a more 
interesting movie, because there's more heart to it). I think its a matter of opinion 
whether Harry's 'coming of age' was a big part of the book or not. PoA *is* 
the first time you see Harry angry about anything. And its the first time he 
realizes/is upset about people lying to him and holding things back from him. 
That is an important part of the book. 

>>Because of the popularity of the HP series, a director should not be 
allowed
to take such liberal interpretations (IMO).<<

Why? If anything the popularity demands the directer to do something with the 
material besides just put it on screen because so many people know the story 
so well. In the case of the Harry Potter series, if every movie was obsessed 
with the 'wonderment' of the magical world and stuck only to plot points then 
(IMO) the movies would eventually get stale and boring. The movie has to have 
an energy of its own, separate from the book, otherwise why make a movie? Its 
never going to be better than reading the book. 

>>My fear is that the public's attention and fascination will wane.<<

Which is why the movie series needs to stay fresh. And so far, there's still 
plenty of interest, PoA (at the moment) is making more money than CoS did. 
(CoS had $148mil on day ten whereas PoA had $157mil on day ten).

>> I also fear that POA will mark a turning point for viewing audiences. 
Because
probably half(?) the audience is under the age of 10, and this movie is more 
scary than the other 2, I think the parents will not allow their younger kids 
to view GOF.<<

I worry about that too. Part of the reason the first two made so much money 
is their appeal to all ages, and as the series goes on each movie is going to 
be less appropriate for younger children. And it might be hard to lure older 
fans because of the whole "Harry Potter is only for kids" idea that a lot of 
people have. But, on the other hand, all three LOTR movies were rated PG-13 and 
there were plenty of younger kids going to those. Parents might be less 
cautious about GoF, because its Harry Potter and the 7-10 year olds will be begging 
to go. On the up side, I read a recent article that said that the average age 
for fans had gone up slightly, which hopefully means that more teenagers are 
going to see Harry Potter, which is what the series needs to continue onscreen. 
Here's hoping no studio exec tries to water down the end of GoF, because 
*that* will scare away more fans than the original ending (I know it scares me!)


-Rebecca


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