HBP: the Good, the Not So Good, and the Ridiculous (Spoilers)

[Richard Shepard]

My first post, so hopefully I sound smart :)


--- In HPFGU-Movie at yahoogroups.com, "va32h" <va32h at ...> wrote:
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> Spoilers for the movie...if you haven't seen it.
>
> The Good:
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> The Lavendar/Ron romance was hilarious, and kudos to the actress playing Lavendar, as she really went for it and played her crazy role to the hilt.
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> Luna's Gryffindor hat, in all it's glory.
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> All the humor really - Rupert Grint did a terrific job as Ron high on love potion.
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> The Ginny/Harry romance: this was both good and not so good. I think JK Rowling is dreadful at writing romance, so the Harry/Ginny relationship in the books was just a big old mess.  I much prefer the subtle way it's handled in the film to Harry's raging chest monster.  But...
>


Rupert is very good at comedy and did a great job with the romance and the quidditch.

I think they did quite a good job with the Harry/Ginny romance.  The viewer was provided clear evidence that Ginny had matured and was confident enough to be friends with Harry.  The supper party was scene was nice, but they could have thrown in a Ginny encounter at the Christmas party just to firm everything up more.
I was definitely suprised when Ginny initiated the kiss and in the Room of Requirement, but it worked.  It was a good "I know you like me and I still like you even now that my little girl crush has worn off" kiss.


> The Not So Good:
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><snip>
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> It's always annoying when the filmmakers cut things, especially when they go and add things...the whole drama at the Burrow seemed unnecessary...I get that they are trying to establish that no one is safe, etc. but then once the gang gets to Hogwarts everyone runs around willy nilly as if it were any other year, so what was the point of establishing all this supposed great danger?
>


A very good point.  I do not see the attack or burning down the Weasley's house as a particularly important contribution to the story.  But it was an interesting way to show off Ginny's bravery and connection to Harry.


> The Ridiculous:
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> We all know Tom Riddle is a raging psycho, but he's also supposed to be a charming sycophant.  Child Tom Riddle is so blatantly a sociopath that he might as well have it stamped on his forehead. He doesn't make eye contact; he speaks in monotone...it's too much of an anvil.  And it makes Dumbledore look positively stupid that he allowed this blatantly disturbed boy into Hogwarts.  And you'd never believe that Clearly Crazy Tom could charm Slughorn, or Hepzibah Smith, or the fledgling Death Eaters, either.
>

I see what you are saying.  Tom Riddle did come off as pretty disturbing in the flashbacks, but I think that might just be because of the encounters we were being shown.  He probably looked completely normal and charming when he was in charms class or eating lunch with his housemates.  The child Tom Riddle was disturbed, but he was also "the weird kid" at an orphanage.  Not a pleasant experience for a child and definitely one that would draw out some of the darker emotions.  I can believe that Dumbledore expected that Hogwarts would be really good for Riddle and he would grow out of his problems.


> Dumbledore's hand injury:  I swear, they just sprinkled a little black dust on Gambon's hand. THIS is supposed to be a fatal curse?
>

Was the hand supposed to be an obvious indication of a fatal curse?  Harry and the audience not knowing the extent of Dumbledore's illness makes his death that much more shocking and sad.  Sure we all know what was really going on because we have read Book 7, but that does not mean they should give away future insights in the movie just because they can.


> The ending:  Lots of problems here.  Seemed pointless that Draco worked so hard to get the DEs into Hogwarts if they weren't going to do anything once they were there.  Having Harry merely hide instead of being frozen and invisible is a huge boo boo for me, as it is totally OOC for the impulsive Harry to just stand there (although it is a nice touch that he finally trusts Snape just once before being utterly betrayed).
>


Good point.  It seemed the deather eaters were only there to 1) prove they could get in and 2) make sure Malfoy killed Dumbledore.


> Now - the big reveal of the HBP was a complete failure.  There is no drama, no energy in the scene at all - Harry and Snape exchange what, one curse apiece and then Snape strolls over calm as can be and says "I'm the Half Blood Prince". Blink and you'll miss it!
>

Yeah, kind of a let down.  Rickman's performance through the movie was great, but the writer and director just didn't give him enough material in that scene to provide the necessary impact.


> And on an entirely different note: am I just crazy or was there a lot of homoerotic subtext surrounding the whole issue of Slughorn and his "collecting"?
>

I did not catch any homoerotic subtext, but there was a creepy old man subtext.

Thanks,
Richard