Definition of a "good movie" for me

[florenceklecka]

Hello all:

After reading hundreds of opinions, I've decided to add my 2 knuts. 
The main reason I joined this discussion group was because after my 
husband and I saw PoA, we sat there in disbelief, muttering, "Oh, 
*hell* no!" that this was the way to end a movie that had been at 
least a half hour too short and so different in focus, 
characterization, and "feel" of the book. I was dying to see if 
anyone else had been so disappointed. And yes, I was gratified to 
learn that there were dozens of people who had problems with the 
movie, and that we weren't insane.
I'm happy for the people who enjoyed it, and can understand why. Yes, 
there were some enjoyable parts. Yes, there *is* no funnier line 
than "You tell those spiders, Ron." And yes, it does improve on a 
second viewing, once the shock of all the unnecessary changes has 
worn off. 
But the thing that makes the movie disappointing for me is this: 
things that don't make sense. In a well-made movie, there might be 
one or two little things that make the audience (or just a nitpicking 
person like me) say "huh?" That's fine and to be expected, since 
movies are made by humans. But when it happens every few minutes, you 
start asking yourself: "This man was handed how many millions to make 
this film, and no one caught *that*? And *that*? And *that*?"
Examples: pumpkins being huge in spring/summer, long before they're 
in season; the absence of Hedwig's cage; Sirius, thrilled to see 
Harry, growling and barking at him (and yes, just about everyone on 
the planet except Cuaron can tell the difference between an angry dog 
and a friendly one); Harry (who does not cry) crying; Tom being a 
prosperous and well-dressed, professional innkeeper suddenly turning 
into Igor; Lupin inexplicably waiting endless seconds before 
realizing that Harry is next in line and has conjured up a dementor, 
then inexplicably admitting that he expected something else even more 
horrifying to the rest of the class *but not doing anything about it* 
such as, oh, I don't know, maybe skipping Harry's turn completely 
(what a great idea! Why didn't someone like J.K. Rowling think of 
that!); Harry having absolutely no curiosity about how several people 
know what the map is; shoeprints to show Pettigrew in the film, yet 
in the credits, pawprints to show Sirius; Crabbe and Goyle suddenly 
being played by different actors in different scenes, as if no one 
will notice; wand magic being performed during the summer, with no 
consequences; Pettigrew's clothes on the floor...
And yes, the list does go on. Each of these aren't so bad, but when 
they keep cropping up, it really is a distraction, to put it mildly. 
I don't like to have to *ignore* aspects of every other scene to 
enjoy a film. It's like reading great literature with typos on every 
other page. (Which reminds me: the misspelling of Moony...)

That's enough for now. By the way, I think a perfect choice for 
Umbridge would be Dawn French, but of course she's busy....