Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince Review Thread

[GreenScar]

Originally Posted by Vcize

Oh yeah, and...

[Show spoiler]What the heck was the purpose of the vanishing cabinet if there was no fight at the end? He brought in all the deatheaters so they could....run away together? Riiiigghhtttt....

Don't take it too personally.

[Show spoiler]
Seriously though, Beatrix didn't trust Snape to follow through either. That's most likely why they came as well.

It would have been great if they could've done this movie in two parts and included everything.

[nbxfan]

Saw the movie this morning and thought they did a pretty good job with the story up until the end of the movie. The penultimate portion of the story is the end of the sixth book, at least up until this point and, the way they handled it I thought was a bit of a flub. It made me want to back and reread the end of the book because I don't quite remember exactly what happened but, know that what they did wasn't correct and in fact I believe it changes Harry's character.

Spoiler:
Not sure how to do the blued out text thing so...I thought that the death eaters arriving in Hogwarts at the end of the movie made little sense based on their basic non-activity. How did that effect the way they ended the movie? I wasn't bothered with the non-funeral portion of the story more that the lack of activity by the death eaters, the non-explanation of why Harry did nothing, and the fact that he makes a statement of how he just watched Dumbledore die without doing anything, really effects the overall story.

Splitting the seventh book into two movies should be interesting as some of the ommisions from the earlier movies and what I think is a large enough change at the end of the sixth movie should make for some interesting story edits.

[STARSCREAM]

Originally Posted by Neil_Luv's_BLU

Whilst on the topic of Harry Potter I really hope that John Williams return for the 2nd part of the final movie happens:

http://filmonic.com/john-williams-re...eathly-hallows

This would be amazing if he comes back!!!

[SeanMF]

I saw it...I liked it. I thought it was the best so far of the series. I didn't read the books on these because they were so long and I'm sure the parts missing would tick me off. Some movies are ruined if you read the book. Really though I have like 20 or so books I've bought that I've yet to get to reading and I'll make due without reading these books.

[coachD]

I saw at midnight last night. Overall 3 stars.

My wife and son are Potter nuts. I finally got around to reading the books after watching the first 3 movies.

My biggest complaint? The movie is called Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. Well, they never really got around to explaining what that meant. I know from having read the books, but those who haven't have no idea how the Half-Blood Prince fits into the whole Potter storyline.

All the other objects or people in the titles of the other Harry Potter books played big parts in the respective stories (Chamber of Secrets, Goblet of Fire and so on). But not so the Half-Blood Prince.

[walruswarrior]

Originally Posted by coachD

I saw at midnight last night. Overall 3 stars.

My wife and son are Potter nuts. I finally got around to reading the books after watching the first 3 movies.

My biggest complaint? The movie is called Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. Well, they never really got around to explaining what that meant. I know from having read the books, but those who haven't have no idea how the Half-Blood Prince fits into the whole Potter storyline.

All the other objects or people in the titles of the other Harry Potter books played big parts in the respective stories (Chamber of Secrets, Goblet of Fire and so on). But not so the Half-Blood Prince.

Exactly. The whole Half-Blood Prince storyline ties into how that person is so related to the antagonist. The storyline is very important on how Harry feels about this certain character, and also leaves everyone is suspense as to what the real motives are behind this character. I'm not a fan of this movie with it's respect to it's canon, which I think it ridiculously better than the movie. LOL It's hard trying to be as ambiguous as possible.

Originally Posted by Vcize

Oh yeah, and...

[Show spoiler]What the heck was the purpose of the vanishing cabinet if there was no fight at the end? He brought in all the deatheaters so they could....run away together? Riiiigghhtttt....

Exactly. Made no damn sense.

[Show spoiler]I also hated how Harry was not "frozen" by Dumbledore and hidden by the Invisibility Cloak, and how Snape sees Harry and tells him to be quiet and stay low. This automatically shows the motives of Snape and renders the whole Half-Blood Prince's storyline mute. Also the development of the Half-Blood Prince's storyline was utter garbage. Man this movie pissed me off lol.

[dgator783]

Originally Posted by seanfarley2

I saw it...I liked it. I thought it was the best so far of the series. I didn't read the books on these because they were so long and I'm sure the parts missing would tick me off. Some movies are ruined if you read the book. Really though I have like 20 or so books I've bought that I've yet to get to reading and I'll make due without reading these books.

the books too long?...lol....they have a reading level of probably 6th grade...its not knocking the books at all, they are an awesome read for any age and the pgs fly by before u know u just read a few hundred pgs....I got into the game late around when Goblet of Fire was released and chose to do J.K. Rowling for my 12th grade English author project as I thought it would be easy considering what I thought at the time for probably "Baby books" boy was I wrong....I read the 1st four books in about a 2 week period and ended up reading the entire series and now I consider myself to be a very big fan

I dont want to say that the books were better then the movies or the movies are better then the books, they are to different mediums and ultimiley, cant be compared....but the books are insanley good and more detailed...

[Afrobean]

Originally Posted by Vcize

Oh yeah, and...

[Show spoiler]What the heck was the purpose of the vanishing cabinet if there was no fight at the end? He brought in all the deatheaters so they could....run away together? Riiiigghhtttt....

[Show spoiler]They were there to aid Malfoy in his getaway. It ended up being unnecessary as they were able to get away with only one person on their tail, but had the teachers been able to group and mount a defensive in time, Malfoy and Snape alone would've been easily subdued.

Notice also that it's not all that realistic for everyone to form such an effective defense as they do in the book. The Death Eaters would be out of there within a few minutes, most would have never had a chance of even being near them, let alone fighting with them, let alone even being aware of their presence before they'd already left.

You might feel like you had a great fight stolen from you, but it's not unreasonable and its absence serves the overall story, not only of this film, but of the next two, and even the entire series (as it makes the climax at the end of Book 7 that much more impactful).

[Show spoiler]I wasn't bothered with the non-funeral portion of the story more that the lack of activity by the death eaters, the non-explanation of why Harry did nothing, and the fact that he makes a statement of how he just watched Dumbledore die without doing anything, really effects the overall story.

[Show spoiler]The Death Eaters were there for backup to ensure the job was completed. Harry did nothing because he thought Snape was going to handle it, he had no chance against the lot of them (and was contemplating acting regardless), and Snape went right up and just killed Dumbledore. It's not like Harry was just sitting there twiddling his thumbs, there was nothing he could do.

It all hinges on the fact that Harry was sent for Snape, Snape came, and indicated that Harry should remain quiet, but did so in a way that indicated he was trying to protect Harry from harm rather than to dissuade him from stopping the act.

Originally Posted by walruswarrior

Exactly. Made no damn sense.

[Show spoiler]I also hated how Harry was not "frozen" by Dumbledore and hidden by the Invisibility Cloak, and how Snape sees Harry and tells him to be quiet and stay low. This automatically shows the motives of Snape and renders the whole Half-Blood Prince's storyline mute. Also the development of the Half-Blood Prince's storyline was utter garbage. Man this movie pissed me off lol.

[Show spoiler]Snape's implied motive is still in tact in the film. Just think, he's an evil dude who is about to go kill the greatest sorcerer in the world. But first he has to get by Harry. How does he do this? He does this by fooling Harry. He makes it seem that he is on Harry's side, trying to keep him safe so that he himself can stop the Death Eaters.

To put it bluntly, were there no book before this, people would STILL have thought Snape had gone evil. The whole intent is to throw into question what side he's truly on, and the film does that just fine, even if it is in another way. It's not as though it is revealed earlier in the book exactly WHAT Dumbledore had asked of Snape. A casual fan of the movies who hasn't read the books would have merely thought that Dumbledore asked Snape to do something for the side of good and Snape was ultimately unable to do so (and instead killed Dumbledore).

I am basing all of this on the fact that my mother who I saw the movie with had NO idea what was going on with Snape and was mad when I told her that Harry doesn't kill Snape in the last book.

[Batman1980]

Originally Posted by Afrobean

[Show spoiler]They were there to aid Malfoy in his getaway. It ended up being unnecessary as they were able to get away with only one person on their tail, but had the teachers been able to group and mount a defensive in time, Malfoy and Snape alone would've been easily subdued.

Notice also that it's not all that realistic for everyone to form such an effective defense as they do in the book. The Death Eaters would be out of there within a few minutes, most would have never had a chance of even being near them, let alone fighting with them, let alone even being aware of their presence before they'd already left.

You might feel like you had a great fight stolen from you, but it's not unreasonable and its absence serves the overall story, not only of this film, but of the next two, and even the entire series (as it makes the climax at the end of Book 7 that much more impactful).

[Show spoiler]The Death Eaters were there for backup to ensure the job was completed. Harry did nothing because he thought Snape was going to handle it, he had no chance against the lot of them (and was contemplating acting regardless), and Snape went right up and just killed Dumbledore. It's not like Harry was just sitting there twiddling his thumbs, there was nothing he could do.

It all hinges on the fact that Harry was sent for Snape, Snape came, and indicated that Harry should remain quiet, but did so in a way that indicated he was trying to protect Harry from harm rather than to dissuade him from stopping the act.

[Show spoiler]Snape's implied motive is still in tact in the film. Just think, he's an evil dude who is about to go kill the greatest sorcerer in the world. But first he has to get by Harry. How does he do this? He does this by fooling Harry. He makes it seem that he is on Harry's side, trying to keep him safe so that he himself can stop the Death Eaters.

To put it bluntly, were there no book before this, people would STILL have thought Snape had gone evil. The whole intent is to throw into question what side he's truly on, and the film does that just fine, even if it is in another way. It's not as though it is revealed earlier in the book exactly WHAT Dumbledore had asked of Snape. A casual fan of the movies who hasn't read the books would have merely thought that Dumbledore asked Snape to do something for the side of good and Snape was ultimately unable to do so (and instead killed Dumbledore).

I am basing all of this on the fact that my mother who I saw the movie with had NO idea what was going on with Snape and was mad when I told her that Harry doesn't kill Snape in the last book.

[Show spoiler]No if the movies do it right, Snape will get choked to death by Riddle's snake, poor guy.

[dahoover]

I voted it 5 stars! It was, IMO, one of the best movies this summer (behind Star Trek) and got everything practically perfect except for the omission of the battle scene at Hogwarts that was at the end of the book.

The mood/atmosphere was absolutely perfect and I enjoyed the humor. Also the acting in this was outstanding, which has always been one of the weakpoints of the series (at least among Ron, Harry, and Hermione).

[Batman1980]

Originally Posted by dahoover

I voted it 5 stars! It was, IMO, one of the best movies this summer (behind Star Trek) and got everything practically perfect except for the omission of the battle scene at Hogwarts that was at the end of the book.

The mood/atmosphere was absolutely perfect and I enjoyed the humor. Also the acting in this was outstanding, which has always been one of the weakpoints of the series (at least among Ron, Harry, and Hermione).

I gotta say that while critics and fans alike SLAM Emma Watson for her performances, she IS the reason I continue to be an avid fan of the movies and I doubt she'll let me down when I go see this next month.

[TheZoof]

I voted 4 stars. It was shot well and acted EXTREMELY well...

The loss of 1 star was the lackluster ending and ho-hum musical score.

It is my 2nd favourite Potter Movie...

It was almost the best.... BUT... it just missed a few key scenes in the end....

[Vcize]

Originally Posted by dahoover

Also the acting in this was outstanding, which has always been one of the weakpoints of the series (at least among Ron, Harry, and Hermione).

See this is what I can't figure out. I thought the trio has done a phenomenal job of acting throughout the series, but was entirely lackluster in the 6th movie. I felt absolutely no emotion from any of them, completely opposite of the other 5 movies where I thought they did infinitely better.

Originally Posted by Wolverine1980

I gotta say that while critics and fans alike SLAM Emma Watson for her performances, she IS the reason I continue to be an avid fan of the movies and I doubt she'll let me down when I go see this next month.

Really? I wasn't aware she got slammed. I've always thought she did a spectacular job.

[jarth3000]

This was probably my favorite out of all the films. Excellent job with the script and cinematography.

[kpkelley]

I saw this last night, and I think all in all they did a serviceable job adapting this book to the screen, certainly better than the previous two films. The curious thing will be how they reconcile all that Harry doesn't learn in this movie that he does learn in the book.

[Show spoiler]The tower scene was obliterated, quite disappointing. It works ok in the movie but the book's version is a hundred times better.

They should have kept the final fight scene in the movie instead of the stupid and pointless Burrow attack. I understand that they wanted an action sequence at the middle of the film, but that could have easily been solved by upping the thriller and mystery elements of the Draco situation. BTW, they totally botched the Draco is a Death Eater thing, Harry just seems like a twit. Also, why is Fenrir Greyback even in the movie if they fail to introduce him.

Harry does not have his Invisibility Cloak with him at any point in this movie(other than the train scene, which was a decent attempt to stay true to the book) despite Dumbledore imploring him to go nowhere without it.

The ring is not explained at all, which could prove troublesome for movie 7.

[BigB88]

Originally Posted by STARSCREAM

I'm a huge fan of the books and can't help but come away feeling disapointed after just seeing this. They completely gutted one of the best parts of the book, the castle fight. I mean the freakin death eaters just strolled right out the front of the castle with no reisistance in the movie!

The reason for this is to setup for the next two installments and you can't have "fight's" every two minutes! Book 7 has plenty of "fighting" that will satisfy even the most morbid of fan. I think this movie was extemely well done and constructed, they can't put every piece of an 600+ page book into a 2 1/2 hour movie. They left out more fighting at the end and the funeral, big deal, neither were crucial to the story. As other posters have said, perhaps they will include the funeral at the beginning of movie 7 part I, but I hope they don't. As in this installment, Movie 7 Part I should follow the important segments of Book 7 Part I.

[Ernest Rister]

Originally Posted by BigB88

The reason for this is to setup for the next two installments and you can't have "fight's" every two minutes! Book 7 has plenty of "fighting" that will satisfy even the most morbid of fan. I think this movie was extemely well done and constructed, they can't put every piece of an 600+ page book into a 2 1/2 hour movie. They left out more fighting at the end and the funeral, big deal, neither were crucial to the story. As other posters have said, perhaps they will include the funeral at the beginning of movie 7 part I, but I hope they don't. As in this installment, Movie 7 Part I should follow the important segments of Book 7 Part I.

I'm going to keep repeating it -- the funeral will begin the 7th film. Then the wedding. Then all hell breaks loose.

The funeral has to be in the film because the tomb (its look, its location, who is inside of it) has to be established, as the tomb is an important plot point in the narrative.

Just chill about the funeral. You'll get one.

[rbd3000]

I saw it yesterday and enjoyed it like I have the entire series. This was the first movie I saw after reading the books and it definitely affected my thoughts on it. I was just expecting more, especially from the cave sequence, which was fine on its own but had a much creepier vibe in the book.

I would like to know where everyone puts this one in the series as a whole. Just going by the movies, I still think that Prisoner of Azkaban is the best. I would put this one third.

1. Prisoner of Azkaban
2. Order of the Phoenix
3. Half Blood Prince
4. Goblet of Fire
5. Chamber of Secrets
6. Sorcerer's Stone

What do you think?

[MountainBlu]

My family went to the 9:30 show last night and we enjoyed it. I'd say it would rank as my second or third favorite of the series. I'd read the book but had forgotten most of it so the movie was a good refresher. This movie really focuses on the main characters with little time for the supporting roles. One minor complaint was a few of the lines seemed rather flat. Malfoy's character was well done.
Overall, I'd give it a 4/5 stars

[kpkelley]

Originally Posted by MountainBlu

One minor complaint was a few of the lines seemed rather flat.

This is a complaint I've had of the whole series. The mature actors generally do a good job with Bonham Carter, Thewlis, and Oldman being the standouts in the previous films. In this film i felt that Broadbent did a very good job most of the time, but there were still a couple that felt flat. Gambon is usually pretty good and is here, but he has never been as funny as he was in POA. Radcliffe and Watson are the ones who get the most dialogue and they seem to miss the most lines, although Jessie Cave as Lavender Brown was pretty good whenever she was given dialogue.