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Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
Friday, July 17, 2009 @ 6:02 PM

Now edited!

You know what? It was actually really good.

(Yeah there are spoilers.)

As one of those people who already read the book but not recently, from my point of view I must say that I was genuinely impressed. I suppose that I couldn't react so much at first because of the fact that I hadn't read the book recently, and so in my subconscious I knew there was something missing. In general terms I would simply call that as knowing it wasn't as great as the book; and of course despite not remembering much of it, there were certainly parts that I wholeheartedly knew were better told, developed, and felt in the book.

But despite all my reservations HP6 was a hell of a movie. I obviously look at it more so as a film independent of its basis rather than a comparison to the book, since I really can't remember much, but from that perspective I truly believe HP6 is a great movie.

I saw it with Tonular and Coco in the IMAX theater in SM, and before I say anything more, I was a total IMAX nub. XD And so when so everything was 3D for the first ten minutes I was so frikkin amazed; I totally felt like I was part of Diagon Alley. =))

Anyway.

Starting off with the bad parts of the film, which actually isn't a lot, firstly, I never got to see Ralph Fiennes. Part of what I felt was missing in the film was the presence of Voldemort. In entire duration of the film, I never got to see Voldemort's face or hear his voice. Rather I only saw memories of him. I had to rely on the other characters to know who he was. It took the Death Eaters, Slughorn, Draco, et cetera, to establish the character of Voldemort. This did not work. Even after five books and five films, I still needed to see him. I needed the actual, physical, present appearance of the Dark Lord. I only got scared of the memories, objects, and characters used to represent Voldemort, but not Voldemort himself. I think the audience really needed to see him in the flesh, at present.

Another bad part of the film was Lupin and Tonks. Not that they weren't a great couple lol, but I greatly disliked (lol greatly disliked) the fact that they were introduced immediately as a couple. Adding this to the fact that they just suddenly appeared, literally out of nowhere in the middle of the film without prior notice, I felt that it was all too assumed. Much of the film relied on the audience's "common" knowledge of certain things about the book. I know the screenwriters probably had no choice to do that, seeing as though it's some 600-page book turned into a mere 2.5 hours of screen time, but it still did not work. HP6 therefore could not stand on its own without the hype Harry Potter has created.

Generally, however, I really did enjoy the film. (Now for the good stuff.) The balance between the laughs and the darkness was in fact quite impressive. I don't think a lot of films can pull of a two-genre film, so to speak, and really transcend the blatant, cliche stupidity of it all. Really. Even if Ron's slow-motion face in Quidditch was excessively cliche, even if the horrible background music was shameless in the Harry/Ginny kissing scene, even if Harry's first time on drugs (Liquid Luck was so drugs) was really just stupid, it still worked. I think it's because the filmmakers and the cast managed to make it so genuinely funny, romantic, and even cliche, that these things completely humanized the Potter world. They were able to show the rampaging hormones in such oddly brilliant and successful humor that this, balanced out with the rest of the film's grimness, became a spectacular achievement for the entire film.

One really surprising thing about the film was Harry/Ginny. I really really felt like the film was able to more successfully establish a good basis for their relationship than the book ever did for me. When I read the book, I loathed Harry/Ginny all throughout, no sympathies for their relationship whatsoever. But the film made it work [more]. They really made it more tolerable and credible (sorry JKR!), and I really did believed them.

The acting was superb, which if anything was already expected. I think after five films and ten years, the actors have already come to know their characters all around, so they embody them quite perfectly—even Michael Gambon. Because when he replaced Richard Harris for HP3, I really disliked genuinely hated him. I was never too sure about that guy, he was just too youthful (lol). This time, however, I thought Michael Gambon was really good. And of course Alan Rickman was brilliant, and Helena Bonham Carter is still epic. Even the minor characters from Lavender Brown to Cormac McLaggen—oh yeah, he was insane. =))

Also, I love that Draco came back. He totally disappeared from the previous films' plots, and it's great that he's returned. One of the greatest things that the film ever did for me was the emotional aspect: When it was time to laugh, you were laughing. When it was time to feel scared, you were shaking. When it was time to feel sad, you were I was crying. And when it was time for a shocker, you nearly jumped out of your seat.

And it was all so genuine. Much of the film, emotionally, really wasn't so forced, and relating this to Draco Malfoy, you were so sorry for him. Tom Felton was impressively able to show that he really can play someone other than Malfoy the school bully, but also Malfoy, the boy scared shitless.

Dumbledore's death was so intense. (YEAHICRIED.) When they replaced his funeral with all of Hogwarts raising their lit wands to the sky, casting out the Dark Mark, it was one of the most significant, symbolic, and genuinely beautiful scenes in the entire film. It was such an intelligent and practical move from the screenwriters, and really an unforgettable part of HP6. It was even more symbolic (for me) than his funeral in the book.

I thought the burning of the Burrow, even though it wasn't in the book, was really significant. It was enough that the screenwriters could do that was apart from the book in order to build the plot more compatibly and effectively for a film. It did a lot for Harry/Ginny (see above) and for the rising power of Voldemort. I liked that part and I appreciated it a lot. I thought it went really well in the story line.

And of course the special effects were amazing blah blah blah. That's like, already a given.

So with all ^ that said, I can now say HP6 was really great. Although it did not live up to its previous 98% Rotten Tomatoes rating (now it's 84% hahaha), I still found it to be genuinely impressive, credible, and cohesive, and it did for me what a movie is supposed to do for an audience. Also, I have finally rested my brain after wrestling with my thoughts about HP6 for some time, and can now safely give the film a 4 out 5.

Yes, the Potters are back. 8)