my PoA thoughts (spoilers, obviously)

[JoAnna Wahlund]

Things I liked:




   Buckbeak. As has been said, I am also convinced that he wasn't computer-animated or even a puppet; I think that they went out and found an actual hippogriff. :)

   "You tell the spiders, Ron." Not canon, but VERY funny. 

   Lupin in general. He didn't seem quite as warm or caring as Canon!Lupin, but he was very good nonetheless. 

   The time turner scene. Very cool, very well done. 

   Hermione slapping Harry's hand away. Again, not canon, but very in character. 

   The time-turner itself. Not what I expected, but it looked pretty neat. 

   The scene with Aunt Marge, and the fact that she calls Dudley her "neffy-poo." Loved it. 

   Dumbledore. He was much more energetic in this film. Harris did a good job, but you could tell he was ill and elderly. What's-his-face (can't remember his name, sorry) did a much better job. 

   Sirius was good, as was Padfoot (though I pictured Padfoot as much bigger and more "bear-like," as he's described in the book.) 

   "Does my hair really look like that from the back?" Cute. 

   Lupin talking about Harry's mother. I think that's foreshadowing - I would not be surprised to find out that Lupin was the bridge that led Lily to James, nor would I be surprised to find out that Lily was the one who persuaded Snape to leave the Dark Side ("she saw the good in people who couldn't see it in themselves" was an indication of this, I think.) 


Things I didn't like:




   Harry doing the "Lumos Maxima" spell at the very beginning. HARRY ISN'T ALLOWED TO DO ANY MAGIC OUTSIDE OF HOGWARTS. Not "Lumos," not "Expelliarmus," NOTHING! That's why he was afraid of arrest after he blew up Aunt Marge, because he broke the law - the Decree for the Restriction of Underage Wizardry. Performing "Lumos" is also breaking the law! So where's his warning from Mafalda Hopkirk of the Improper Use of Magic Office? In the book, he uses a flashlight. 

   WTF? NO explanation of who Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs were? That's an integral plot point! If I were JKR, I would have read the script and said, "Uh, Steve... the Mauraders seem to be missing. Unacceptable." 

   How does Lupin know so much about the map? Not explained. 

   Why does Snape go to the Shrieking Shack? Not explained. (Nor is Lupin's arrival, but that can be inferred from the fact that he had the map.) 

   The animosity of Ron and Hermione was hardly present. In the book, they're at each other's throats because of the Scabbers/Crookshanks thing. Here, they just bicker. Not good. 

   Hermione SHOULD NOT BE SO FRIGGIN' CAPABLE. In PoA, the use of the time turner makes her stressed, exhausted, irritable, near-tears, and all-around bitchy. That's why she hands it in at the end of the book - because "it was driving [her] mad. Without Muggle Studies [which was not even mentioned in the movie as one of Hermione's classes] and Divination, [she] can have a normal schedule again." 

   I would have preferred that Harry get the Firebolt for Christmas than at the end of the book. And where's Pig? And Harry's Hogsmede letter from Sirius? 

   Draco Malfoy is not that much of a pansy-ass in the books. He would NOT stand there wibbling like a little baby even if Hermione's wand was at his throat. 

   Too little Snape, too little Ron, too much "girl-power" Hermione. She just seems too much like a Mary-Sue in this movie for my taste. 

   "Does my hair really look like that from the back?" Cute, but didn't seem in character for Hermione. 

   "I'm King of the World!" Um, no. Let's take out ten minutes of Buckbeak flying and add ten minutes explaining WHO THE DAMN MARAUDERS WERE. 

   Should have been more backstory about the Prank. Now they're going to have to try and cram this information into a movie (GoF or OotP) that's already going to have to be crammed full of other information. 

I have mixed feelings about the werewolf. On one hand, he looked strange; on the other hand, there's something to be said for making him look strange and "uncool." - after all, lycanthropy in the HP universe is definitely a curse, not at all "cool" like so many other werewolf movies portray the condition.

Overall, I thought it was an excellent movie, but 20 extra minutes could have made it far better.


~JoAnna~
http://www.livejournal.com/users/~joannaravenclaw

"You know, back in 2000 a Republican friend of mine warned me that if I voted for Al Gore and he won, the stock market would tank, we'd lose millions of jobs, and our military would be overstretched. You know what? I did vote for Al Gore, he did win, and I'll be damned if all those things didn't come true."  - James Carville

"If God brings you to it, he will bring you through it."  - unknown
		
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