Warning: Spoilers abound!
I'm writing this as a lover of J.K. Rowling's series, so my response to the new movie,
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince will intentionally take for granted some of the most intriguing/entertaining elements of the film. Instead, as one familiar with the book, I'm looking at the aspects of the movie that surprised me—pleasantly in some cases and not-so-pleasantly in others.
Overall, I thought the movie was entertaining and I think they did as good of a job concluding it as they could given that the sixth book doesn't really resolve; instead it mostly attempts to set the stage for the final book.
So, in no particular order, here are my thoughts:
The Death Eaters are flying now? In the book, and I could be wrong, I thought they apparated. But in the movie, they flew in streaks of ominous black smoke (destroying bridges, buildings, and the Weasley's house in mid-flight). This was visually impressive, but if wizards and witches are capable of flying, then doesn't that sort of defeat the purpose of the broomsticks?
Dumbledore's fire-waving spell in Voldemort's cave was pretty freakin' sweet.But did anyone else wonder why the hundreds of inferi climbing out of the pond all looked exactly like Gollum? Wonder how the Lord of the Rings people felt about that...
In the book, Harry hides the potions book in the Room of Requirement because Snape is asking about it and he doesn't want to hand it over. In the movie, Hermione and Ginny (with Ron present) encourage Harry to get rid of it. Why make this change? I don't believe changes should be made just for the sake of changing something. Rowling's work is quite good, and the movie folks should only make changes that improve the plot. This one, in my opinion, did not.
Also, Ginny makes the moves in the movie. In the book, Harry kisses Ginny after Gryffindor wins the Quidditch Finals. Again, I don't understand the logic behind this decision. In this instance, the revision didn't detract from the moment, but it's still curious.
It was nice seeing a lot of Quidditch in this movie. I'm not a special effects aficionado, but I thought it looked pretty realistic. Odd, though, that they never showed Harry even attempting to go after the snitch. The focus, instead, was almost solely on Ron Weasley. And that's fine, I suppose, but in the books the game is almost always decided by one team securing the snitch. So again, it's a strange omission.
Paging Neville Longbottom... Has anyone seen Neville Longbottom? Oh that's right, he got that very brief cameo serving hors d'oeuvres at Slughorn's party. Still, it seems like they could have given him a bit more to do in this one. Now I wonder if he'll play any role at all in the conclusion of the series. In the book, he has a fairly important task before him. In the movies, who knows?
I was not expecting to laugh half as much as I did while watching this movie. At times, the exchanges between the characters were downright hilarious. Slughorn was a riot. And I especially loved the dialogue between Harry and Ron concerning the niceness of Ginny's and then Hermione's skin.
I loved all the instances when Dumbledore apparated with Harry on his arm. My favorite was the one when they were leaving Hogwarts:
Harry: Wait, I didn't think it was possible to apparate within Hogwarts.
Dumbledore: I guess you could say there are a few advantages to being me.
That was classic.
Helena Bonham Carter is fantastic as Bellatrix Lestrange. Absolutely perfect. (Even if I did keep thinking she was Marla Singer with special powers.)
No Dumbledore funeral? C'mon. Why not show that? That would have been the perfect backdrop for Harry's statement to Hermione and Ron that he needs to finish what Dumbledore started, that he won't be returning to Hogwarts. If I remember correctly, that's exactly how Rowling wrote it. Again, why make the change? I think a Dumbledore funeral would have been a fitting way for the viewers to say goodbye to the beloved headmaster.
When I first read this book, I was so angry with Snape. Furious. And yet, I was baffled. I knew something didn't add up. Dumbledore trusted him. Why? I just couldn't understand it. The movie didn't do nearly as good of a job of establishing this tension. There were a couple passing attempts (Remus saying, "If Dumbledore trusts him then we need to trust him..." yada, yada, yada), but for the most part, the shady side of Snape was dominant. And without the "Is he really that despicable?" tension, Snape just becomes a run-of-the-mill bad guy. And that's unfortunate.
Of course, they could have (and absolutely should have) done one thing to help maintain that tension. They could have done something to make us wonder if perhaps—just maybe—Dumbledore wanted Snape to kill him. And that brings me to the one major frustration I have with the cinematic portrayal of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince:
The Dumbledore death scene. In the book, Harry is hidden under his invisibility cloak, and he is prepared to intervene on Dumbledore's behalf. And just before he can, Dumbledore casts a silent spell (unbeknownst to Draco Malfoy) that immobilizes Harry. And so Harry is forced to watch—held prisoner by Dumbledore's spell—as Snape kills his beloved mentor.
Not only does this add to the tragedy, but it should make the reader (and Harry) question why Dumbledore did this. Harry could have disarmed Malfoy. Harry could have stood with Dumbledore as the Death Eaters climbed the stairs. Or...Dumbledore could have just apparated again. But no, he didn't. Why? It's almost as if Dumbledore was accepting his death... Hmmm.
In the movie, Harry hides and does nothing. (Disclaimer: I know Snape found Harry hiding there just before he climbed the rest of the steps and killed Dumbledore, but if he immobilized Harry, I missed it. Instead, I thought he just told Harry to be quiet...and then he went up the stairs and killed Dumbledore.)
This is the one change I view as a major miscalculation. Now Harry will have to wonder, "Could I have done something?" instead of wondering, "Why wouldn't Dumbledore let me help him?" To me, that's not nearly as unique or intriguing.
But even that poor decision doesn't change the fact that this movie was well-done and very entertaining.
It definitely built some momentum for the finale (although, apparently, the seventh book is being divided into 2 movies...so we'll see how that goes).
If you haven't seen the movie, then I don't know why you read this. (Didn't you see my spoiler warning?) But if you saw it, I'd love to hear your thoughts on anything you found surprising (pleasantly or otherwise) or just plain entertaining.
