Fun at the Movies

[montavilla47]

--- In HPFGU-Movie at yahoogroups.com, "potioncat" <willsonkmom at ...> wrote:
>
> A few questions, just for fun.
> 
> Do you have any favorite scenes in any of the movies? Ones that you 
> just particularly like, and why? 

Montavilla47:

Definitely.  I love the dueling club scene in CoS.  When I found out that
Kenneth Branagh was cast as Lockhart, the thought of Alan Rickman
and Branagh fighting each other with little sticks filled me with delight.

The moment did not disappoint.

Likewise, I was looking forward to the confrontation in the Shrieking
Shack in PoA and that was also a great scene.  

I also love the flying scene in PoA--mainly because the music is truly
wonderful.  And the closing credits are so fun to watch!  I tend to watch
them, even having seen the film probably a dozen times.  

I like the Diagon Alley scene in PS/SS.  It's a moment when the Wizarding 
World really comes alive.  That whole sequence, from the alley to Harry's
first day at Hogwarts is--well--magical.

It's harder to think of scenes I really, really like from GoF or OotP.  I 
guess my favorite scenes from GoF are the one where Harry asks 
Cho to the Yule Ball and the Ball itself.  I love (again with the music)
the transition from the dance lesson (which is very funny) into that
lovely waltz--oh, especially the way Neville is the bravest boy in 
class when he stands up! Incidentallly, Patrick Doyle is my 
favorite movie composer.  

I like seeing the kids in their good clothes--Cho is so pretty in
that white dress.  I like the way the "formal" part of the ball
turns into a screaming and pogo dancing when the Weird Sisters
sing.  I love that closing shot with all the girls sitting on the 
stairs crying. 

I can't really say that I really enjoyed any particular scene in
OotP.  Maybe that one where Harry tells Hermione and Ron
about kissing Cho.  

Potioncat:
> Are there any scenes in the movies that you actually like better than 
> the books? Again, why. Or, did you like any characters better in the 
> movies than the books?

It's funny, because I hated the "blowing up Aunt Marge" scene the 
first time I saw it, but now I really like it.  Much more than the 
book version.  I also like Aunt Marge more, because the actress
was really good at being horrible.  

Hmm.  Why do I like it better?  It just seems very exotic in the way
it's staged and filmed.  It's really unnecessary that it be so long
and drawn out, but it works.  And it gets better the more I see it.

The Trelawney scenes are pretty good, too, especially as they are
short.  Oh, and I'll probably get hate mail for this, but I like
the scene where Harry runs off after hearing about Sirius being
his godfather.  It's not so much that Dan yells out the line (I don't
mind, but I don't love it).  What I love is the way Emma reaches out
to pull off the cloak.  It's so gentle.

I love the Shrieking Shack confrontation.  That's a really well-written
scene between three outstanding actors.  They manage to convey 
everything we need to know about the relationships between these
characters.  It's amazing to me that the screenwriter managed to 
boil down three chapters into maybe half a dozen lines.

And I love the scene when they all emerge from the tunnel, 
Lupin transforms, and Snape throws out his arms to protect
the children.  It's not just that Snape is being protective and
that seems so in character (to me).  It's the colors and the 
black and the pink of Hermione's jacket that make the scene
incredible.  I also love that little whispered moment between
Hermione and Ron as Harry and Sirius move away to have 
their conversation.  

As far as characters go.  I think that I starting liking Draco more 
in the movies, and definitely liking Lucius more.  In the books, 
Draco has a bit of  appeal if you look for it, while Lucius is plain nasty. 
But both theactiors manage to make the characters a bit more interesting 
and fun.  At least, they both dress really well, and it's surprising how
that adds to the appeal.

Potioncat:
> Do you have any funny stories about going to the HP movies?

Not really.  Sorry.