Wow! i have seen Half Blood Prince!

[Re-reader]

I have only about 4 hours until I have to get up and go to work tomorrow, so I will be brief.

In one word, WOW.

I laughed, I cried, I said "Awwww.". I was often on the edge of my seat in suspense. Several times I realized my mouth was hanging open and I needed to close it. I even screamed and nearly jumped out of my seat a few times.

[Pearl]

Heh, this all sounds really promising! :)

The professional film critics have been really positive about HBP. :) And even some of the more tiresomely purist fans seem to have been won over -- at long last!

I'm not seeing the film until Friday night, at the London IMAX, and I am looking forward to it tremendously. :)

[Hugh Kenrick]

I guess I may have to move up my schedule to see it, or be left behind!

[Re-reader]

Overall I thought it was a good adaptation. The Won-Won / Lav-Lav subplot was hilarious. I actually thought Lavender was kind of cute and I felt sorry for her despite how annoying she was. I think I actually WAS Lavender at one point in my teenage years, so I have some sympathy.

The Harry / Ginny relationship was OK, but I confess to a little disappointment. I would have liked to have seen Harry throw caution to the wind and plant one on her, like in the book, but he remained quite passive.

Slughorn was wonderfully played. I thought Broadbent did a GREAT job capturing the character.

Michael Gambon actually redeemed himself in this movie; I have never really liked his Dumbledore; I always thought he was too agitated and not serene enough to be Dumbledore. But he became Dumbledore for me in this movie.

Emma Watson's acting has improved a LOT since, say, Goblet of Fire. She used to over-act badly in my opinion, but I thought she did very well in this movie.

Daniel Radcliffe continues to improve his acting, and had some wonderful moments. There were a few times when I thought he could have done better, though. As one review put it - we have to be told he likes Ginny - I couldn't see it in his face.

I liked the slower pacing of the whole movie. There was just a little more time to breathe and let the characters grow on you.

There were many delightful moments, some from the book, some not:

- Hermione's bushy hair during the Potions lesson!
- Harry wired up on Felix Felicis! "Also the pincers..."
- Slughorn's eulogy for Aragog! Straight from the book!
- The "My Sweetheart" necklace!
- Weasley's Wizard Wheezes! Pygmy Puffs!
- Ron all doe-eyed over Romilda Vane! Too funny.
- Hermione Confunding Cormac McClaggen.
- Ron having his moment of Quidditch glory.


I was not too upset about the addition of the attack on the Burrow - I understood the need to ratchet up the tension and show that nothing is safe any more, BUT.... in the movie, the Burrow attack just didn't work for me. Bellatrix and Greyback just lurk in the marsh and don't really DO anything. What was the point?

I loved seeing Lupin and Tonks and wish their moment could have been a bit longer.

The scene where Harry had to make Dumbledore keep drinking the potion was incredibly raw and scary - it almost made me cry.

The Inferi grabbing Harry's arm made me scream and almost jump out of my seat. The whole Inferi scene was wonderfully creepy and scary.

There were a lot of details and lines that I missed - I need to go see it again soon.

[Irys]

Rereader, I have to agree nearly 100% with your post. It's almost identical to something I posted yesterday (on a different board... got to see it a day early at a manager's screening!).

The thing that I didn't like about the Burrow attack was that MOLLY just let Ginny go off after Harry after Bellatrix... we know how magnificent Molly was in the battle at Hogwarts... I desperately want to see Molly's scene in the last movie!, and maybe it will be even better after seeing Bella burn the Burrow, but the Molly in this scene didn't seem like the "You *****!" Molly

[Hugh Kenrick]

I've heard from friends that there are some changes that will also force some changes in HP 7a & b; that's always interesting to see. From a purely writer's perspective: If you change one thing, you change ten things about what follows. But it sounds, overall, like a good adaptation.

[Pearl]

I've heard from friends that there are some changes that will also force some changes in HP 7a & b; that's always interesting to see. From a purely writer's perspective: If you change one thing, you change ten things about what follows. But it sounds, overall, like a good adaptation.

LOL, that's too funny. The ardent purists insist that having DH in two parts means that it will be 'just like the book' ... blithely ignoring all the problems that would entail! (Two break-ins using Polyjuice for each film? -- oh dear, oh dear, oh dear.)

I was really hoping that Yates and Co., having made this silly decision to artificially split DH in half, have the courage to actually radically adapt.


Anyway, my review of HBP

Well, I liked it a lot, as much as OotP.

-- I loved how they handled the Draco storyline: Tom was just excellent.
-- I was very taken with Emma in this one. It was touching to see a vulnerable, hurting Hermione. I loved her bushy hair in Potions too. :D
-- Jessie Cave was a delirious riot as Lavender. What a fun part!
-- I really do prefer Film Harry/Ginny to Canon Harry/Ginny.
-- The teenage hormonal angsting was both touching and funny. It also illustrated the 'hard choice v easy choice' very well, e.g. bookish but attractive Hermione chooses plain, awkward Ron over the handsome but shallow Cormac (man, he was fun too!)
-- Rickman's Snape ... awesome as always. His expression said a thousand words. Wonderful. I also loved his putdowns to Harry and Bella!
-- Gambon was great.
-- Above all, I loved the sense of melancholy that pervaded throughout.

What I didn't like
--As with most of the HP films, this was so very thin on exposition. How are non-readers supposed to know what's going on?
-- The Burrow attack was completely pointless. I'm not one to criticise a change just because it's different from the book but I couldn't understand the actual purpose of this scene. Its only purpose seemed to showcase Harry's protectiveness towards Ginny, and that could have been done in a number of different ways. Bella and Fenrir attack and then do ... nothing.

[lizz]

I´ve seen it and I really liked it. :) I found it quite disturbing in places, the necklace scene and especially the cave scene.


I´m glad they didnt do the book page per page. That just doesnt work, like in the first two films, those were really dull. Anyway I didnt mind the changes much, but I agree the the attack of the burrow was weird for the same reasons. They just let Ginny run after Harry and then Bellatrix and Greyback just disappear without trying to attack them. Very Weird.



The teenager love story was real fun. :lol: The Harry Ginny part was handled well until the kiss, then she just disappears until the very end. That didnt work for me.
The Riddle memories were done very well both Toms were scary but I´m really glad there werent more of the memories. I never liked those parts of the book.

[Re-reader]

-- I really do prefer Film Harry/Ginny to Canon Harry/Ginny.

Interesting, Pearl. Can you elaborate as to why?

I would have made one change to the H/G movie kiss. After Ginny does her thing, Harry needed to reach out and kiss her back. Then it would have been truer to the book for me. He just remained far too passive, IMO. But I was not too bothered by having the hookup be in the ROR instead of in the common room post-match.

I would have liked to see the diadem of Ravenclaw, though. I was looking for it. Did anyone get a glimpse?

The Burrow attack was completely pointless. I'm not one to criticise a change just because it's different from the book but I couldn't understand the actual purpose of this scene. Its only purpose seemed to showcase Harry's protectiveness towards Ginny, and that could have been done in a number of different ways. Bella and Fenrir attack and then do ... nothing.

I agree the the attack of the burrow was weird for the same reasons. They just let Ginny run after Harry and then Bellatrix and Greyback just disappear without trying to attack them. Very Weird.


Seems like we are in agreement about the Burrow attack. Not a bad change, in theory, but in the actual movie, I don't think it was handled well at all.

[Pearl]

Interesting, Pearl. Can you elaborate as to why?

I'm afraid that Canon Ginny gets on my nerves at times, because the author so obviously expects us all to cheerlead the character as Harry's Tailor-Made Girlfriend. Sorry. :(

I would have made one change to the H/G movie kiss. After Ginny does her thing, Harry needed to reach out and kiss her back. Then it would have been truer to the book for me. He just remained far too passive, IMO.

I admit that Harry's passive reaction was a bit odd. :shrug:

Seems like we are in agreement about the Burrow attack. Not a bad change, in theory, but in the actual movie, I don't think it was handled well at all.

Agreed!

[lithorose]

Seen it, loved it. It's as good as the third one, and in time may be my favorite. Liked it better than the book, and I suppose it helped that I haven't read the book since it came out, and couldn't remember bits of it. About the only thing I don't like about it is the Harry/Ginny stuff- it's just flat. And I'm suprised at how much better it is than the last movie (which isn't bad at all)... I suppose letting the film slow down now and then made the difference.

[Hugh Kenrick]

As long as it wasn't like Anakin/Padme, we're all right...*hides eyes*

[lithorose]

"You're not like the sand, Ginny. All rough, and it gets everywhere..."

and

"Harry, you killed younglings!?"

Where was Steve Kloves when George Lucas needed him!

[Re-reader]

I am planning to see it again tomorrow, and I am hoping to catch certain lines and other things that I missed the first time around.

[Reba]

We might go see it again this weekend as well. And hopefully be able to sit somewhere we're not just looking up Dumbledore's nose all the time. ;)

[Eriol]

I finally just saw it. This is brief. I liked it, although I do get tired of tings being done just to try to make it more dramatic.

All in all, well done.

[Pennquelle]

I finally saw the movie tonight. I liked it, but didn't love it.

What I liked:
It was gorgeous to look at.
The special effects were wonderful.
The acting by Tom Fenton, Alan Rickman, Jim Broadbent, and the two young boys who played Tom Riddle were all stand-outs.
Dumbledore's death was very moving.
Great funny parts. Especially all the teen angst.
Each scene in itself was well-done for the most part.

What I didn't like:
Felt totally disjointed.
It's been a long time since I've read the book (I always reread each book before seeing the movie and didn't get to this time) and I couldn't always figure out what was going on.
Lingered on, or added, stuff that did nothing to progress the story and left out things from the book that would have been wonderful/important to see. If felt like a lot of filler with the true arc of the story not taking center stage enough.
No fizzle between Harry and Ginny on screen.

Didn't dislike it enough to feel disappointed. In fact, I want to see it again because I think part of the problem was the incredibly rude and loud audience I saw it with. That hardly ever happens, so it was just bad luck.

[Irys]

I had a really rude audience the second time I saw it. A group of three guys (all at least 30-40) talking the whole time, and the only actual movie reaction was OHHHHHHHH! when Snape reveals himself at the end. Stoopid people.

The Riddle boys are still giving me nightmares. They were excellent. And Katie with the necklace was horrid (in a good way). I'm wondering why this was only rated PG.

Who were those twin girls supposed to be? Were they from the books?

Would have liked a little more of the Death Eaters coming into Hogwarts. If you were smart, you realised that it was from the vanishing cabinet, but we didn't ever get introduced at all to Fenrir (besides the wanted poster at the beginning) or the Carrows, and does this mean that Bill isn't a werewolf, or will we just get some other explanation (oh yeah, he was out fighting werewolves just before the wedding...)

[Hugh Kenrick]

I don't think we'll see much of Bill, since we've seen nothing of him to this point.(or Charlie) No Fleur romance, nada.

It's a problem with books sometimes, there are just too many characters to develop effectively. Count 'em up in HP sometime, and there's your problem.

Sorry to say, that might mean no wedding stuff either.

[Lembas]

I saw it today with my sister and her granddaughter, who is a bit of a squirmer, but not too bad. I say that because during the Harry/Ginny kiss scene, I totally missed what Ginny said right after she kissed Harry and disappeared from the RoR. My niece thought it was a yucky part (oh, to be young and innocent again!) and was fidgety so I couldn't hear Ginny. Can somebody help? :)

I loved the movie. I've never disliked any of the films but this is definitely one of the best. One thing that jazzed me was that so many moments I thought would be cut did indeed make it into the film:

Draco stomping on Harry in the train car.
Sectumsempra. For some reason, I thought they'd exclude this. I'm glad that they omitted Moaning Myrtle from the film version because I think her presence would have taken away from the seriousness of the scene.
Slughorn getting venom from Aragog (this time with the added fun of accidentally breaking off one of the pincers! :D).
Wormtail getting the door slammed in his face by Snape. His role was a bit shorter than in the book. :)
Luna's lion hat! I've so wanted to see this and there it was. All that was missing was the roar.

Wasn't bothered by the Burrow attack or Molly hanging back. Mr. Weasley joined the fray before it was over. One parent had to stay back and look after Ron and the Twins, so Molly got the short straw. I liked it because if they include the moment we all love in the last battle, it'll be more of a "Yeah!" moment that some of the unitiated won't be expecting. As for Bella and Fenrir taking off, well, I think they realized they were overmatched by having too many wizards and witches on hand. Anyway, that's my story and I'm sticking to it.

The acting was great throughout: Agree with Michael Gambon's greatness as Dumbledore, especially in the cave sequence.
Jim Broadbent can do no wrong. He's not exactly the Slughorn physically from the book, but he is totally him anyway, if you take my meaning. Those big, sad eyes as he extracted the hidden memory were something.
I've never had a problem with Emma Watson's acting and think this was maybe her finest outing (I say maybe because her performance in GoF was awesome).
Jessie Cave---so great as Lavender. Blowing her breath on the train window and drawing the heart; blowing her stack at Hermione in the hospital wing; glaring madly at Hermione and gripping her dessert spoon like a weapon.
Tom Felton doing a fine job of making us feel sorry for Draco.
Bonnie Wright was very good as Ginny. I hopefully suspected there was a good actress there, but there was never enough evidence despite her screen presence. There's plenty 'o evidence now.

I liked the depiction of apparating---it made me think I was seeing what Harry felt as described in the book.
Liked the young Riddles, especially the one in the orphanage. Loved the gleam in his eyes when the wardrobe went up in flames.
Ron was great fun in this one, bewitched by females left-and-right.
Luna Lovegood was just enchanting once again, and I was particulary touched by her choice of dress when going to the Slug Club party with Harry.
Poor Seamus---always getting something blown up in his face.
Nice to see Madame Pomfrey again.
Liked the Pygmy Puff on Hermione's shoulder. Awww. :D
The cave sequence was brilliant, with the Inferi very creepy. Loved Dumbledore blasting them away with fire. Very cool scene.
Liked the baby dragon heating candy at the Weasley's joke shop and George and Fred upping the price on Ron.
Ron's great performances at Quidditch, even blocking the scores with his head!

I have no real complaints about the movie unless it's that I wanted more of certain things:
More Tonks & Lupin
More memories about Riddle
More of the Weasley's joke shop
More of Snape & Bellatrix sniping at each other at Spinner's End

So late...can't think of much else right now. I want to see it again but will probably have to wait till the DVD comes out.

[Re-reader]

Lembas, what Ginny said after kissing Harry was: "That can stay hidden in here, too, if you want."

Good review. Thanks.

[Lembas]

Thanks, Re-reader, for the compliment and thanks for Ginny's line.

Good review from you, also. :thumbup

[Telchar II]

I saw it a week or so ago, so I'm not remembering all my reactions, but . . . .

The Burrow attack was stupid. And time-consuming.

Why not use that time to explore the Gaunt-cottage memory?

I mean, think about it: Without that memory in particular, we have no explanation of Voldemort's past, no notion of the Gaunt ring, and therefore no understanding of why Dumbledore's hand is rotting off.

Is there going to be a ring Horcrux in the movies? If it is in the movies, how will it be explained?

[Reba]

We saw Dumbledore with the ring in the drawer with the diary.

We saw Riddle with the ring on, when Harry was looking at Slughorn's memory when he and Riddle were talking about horcruxes.

[Telchar II]

Very true. But there was no explanation.

I guess they're saving this backstory for movie 7.

[Hugh Kenrick]

I saw it a week or so ago, so I'm not remembering all my reactions, but . . . .

The Burrow attack was stupid. And time-consuming.

Why not use that time to explore the Gaunt-cottage memory?

I mean, think about it: Without that memory in particular, we have no explanation of Voldemort's past, no notion of the Gaunt ring, and therefore no understanding of why Dumbledore's hand is rotting off.

Is there going to be a ring Horcrux in the movies? If it is in the movies, how will it be explained?

I enjoyed the film overall, more than Yates work with 5. Here are some random thoughts/impressions that the film left with me, rather than a complete review, as I agree with what's been said so far. As a movie it was a good adaptation, even if its loyalty to the book was about considerably less.

Agreed, they did make some strange changes, which must be tied to explanations in the next two films, as people here suspect.

That's what I suspect with the ring. They'll have to review the ones destroyed so far, and not destroyed. It was inferred that the ring was important, and was in the drawer with the diary, but it seems a bit vague to deal with it that way. *shrugs* .

They also chose to have Ginny hide the potions book. If they are going to use the Room of Requirement again as a hiding place for the Diadem, then they'll have to take her along, or put in some exposition where she tells Harry where to look. This could mean that she'll be a little more central to the action after they return to the school. That's not necessarily a bad thing, since I always felt her character was sort of short on screen time. I know they think that 95% of people have read the book, and know what the Room of Requirement is, but it literally wasn't spoken about at all. Yes, yes, it was in film 5, but some people don't remember detail very well, I've found. But his is a minor quibble, with the sole exception that I find this kind of "let the reader/websurfer fill in the gaps" method of film-making rather shoddy.

On the good side, I liked all the character work.

The three main characters were all pretty comfortable in their roles again, although I just don't see much chemistry between Ron and Hermione on screen. I guess we'll have to see more of their banter/opposite attract idea in 7.1 to see this get the full treatment.

Standouts were Jim Broadbent as Slughorn, who really nailed that character. I really enjoyed his scenes the most. The small roles for the young actors playing Tom Riddle were also well done, and Lavender Brown was amusing.

It's also clear that screen time for the supporting cast is getting more difficult to include. We're down to cameos for some of them, and the opening montage was just a bit short on tying 5 & 6 together.

The Dumbledore/Harry sequences were good, and Gambon finally seems connected to the role, just in time!

The movie seemed long, but not boring in the least.