PoA review

[daughterofthedust]

--- In HPFGU-Movie at yahoogroups.com, artsylynda at a... wrote:
> In a message dated 5/21/2004 6:27:22 AM Eastern Standard Time, 
> HPFGU-Movie at yahoogroups.com writes:

> I think WB needs to get over their "HP is young 
> kids' territory" idea (which is obviously their thought, since 
they're just 
> showing the trailer with things like Looney Tunes, Scooby-Doo 
and "Home on the 
> Range," none of which I could convince my hubby to see in a 
theater)....I don't see JKR keeping 
> the next books on a "little kids' level" myself, and I hope WB 
understands that 
> the movies need to "grow up" too.  What we've heard about PoA so 
far sounds 
> like they MIGHT be getting it, but where they've shown the 
trailers so far 
> makes  me wonder if they really do understand how wide the HP 
audience actually is.
> 
> I'll get off my soapbox now!  ;->
> 
> 
> Lynda 
> * * *
> ". . .the cat's among the pixies now." Mrs. Figg, OoP
> 
> 
> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

My biggest issue with the first couple of films has not been that 
it's directed at children (as it should be) it's that the forces 
behind it are so obviously condescending to them. 

It's like they expect young minds not to be able deduce things for 
themselves...Or that that process would not be fun for them.

A couple of scenes spring to mind as examples...When Harry's broom 
is cursed during the quidditch match, the camera lingers on 
Professor Q. a bit too long. Sure, much of the audience knows he did 
it, but even an eight year-old would be more than suspicious after 
that shot. It ruined the fun it FIGURING things out. 

Another scene that really bugs me, is the Fluffy waking up scene... 
The dog lingering for soooo long over the kids' heads (when it could 
have bitten them about 20 times...) REALLY took me out of the movie 
and into bad cartoon spin-off mode.

The Pixar films are examples of how to tell a great story WITHOUT 
talking down to your audience. Finding Nemo was an excellent family 
film, period. Sure it was cute and funny but it handled the larger 
themes, deftly. 

I could detect no condescension, at all.

I can only hope, regardless of what ratings the future films will 
be, that they will carry the same respect for their audience as 
Pixar. :-)

@)---daughter

P.S. I saw Shrek 2 this weekend...and I actually thought it had the 
opposite problem...The adults in the audience loved all the "in" 
jokes...The kids got restless.

A happy medium is best. :-)