Harry Potter and the Not Enough Ron Weasley
I am a dirty old woman.
(Warning: I am not knowledgable about movies. I am merely an easily entertained moviegoer. For crying out loud, I really liked Pirates 2, if that tells you anything.)
Actually, there's very little Ron squeeing to do, because Ron wasn't very prominent here. That's my only real complaint, but you'll see that it's a silly one in light of the fact that I'm about to say I understand why his part was trimmed.
I think the director did a really nice job with the necessary cuts. Would I have liked to see more actual Order of the Phoenix? Yes. (Especially Lupin; dear Lord, but I think after rewatching PoA the other night, I have a bit of a crush on the character, so much that I don't care that the actor isn't particularly attractive; and I'm craving some new Remus/Sirius in a major way...y'all didn't know I dabbled in reading obscure HP pairings, did you?) Anyway, did I wish there were a lot of things that could have been explored on the movie screen that weren't? Yes. But the movie would have been years long. (Honestly, the idea of having a HP miniseries makes so much more sense for the longer books. Then they could take 6 or 8 hours if they wanted, and I'm sure people would love it.)
I was impressed with how well they got in the necessary bits of the story so that it didn't feel shoved and slapped together. I think it's because the director did slow down in places, and he chose his exemplary moments really well. Like the scene where the bitch is throwing poor old Trelawney out on her ass, and McGonagal's so upset, and Dumbledore just swoops in and saves the day. I love that.
There were things that I did miss. I wanted more of the Order, and I wanted more of the occlumency, but I respect the director's choice to focus on Harry and his personal quest, even if it meant less time for the excellent supporting characters, including my Ron. Of course, it also meant less of Emma's overacting, so that was okay.
I have no sexual attraction to my beloved underage Weasley. I'm rather more protective of and sort of platonically enamored of the kind of cranky underdog his is, and how he's so foolishly brave despite being the Xander Harris of the group. I smile like an indulgent older sister to think of the problems caused by his wacky hormones.
But Rupert Grint? Legal. Adorable, especially with that shaggy hair. I can't make myself porn Ron Weasley, especially not from the movie, because, ICK!, he's like fifteen. So does this mean I have to write fucking Harry Potter RPS? GAH. What's wrong with me?
Better question: who do I slash him with?
Anyway, things I liked a lot, in no particular order:
1. Gary Oldman.
2. Seeing the big climax at the ministry, which I really think was never a very good part of a novel but rather a mislaid part of a screenplay. Seriously, that part of the book made no sense, but I thought the scene was brilliantly done on screen. I loved the choice of the black tiled building and the way it was destroyed. I loved loved loved Voldemort fighting Dumbledore.
I also got a wee bit choked up at how broken Harry was there at the end, struggling to fight Voldemort's influence even when he just had his world knocked out from under him. But he fought through the pain by remembering his friends and family. I'm always the first to snicker at Daniel Radcliffe's attempts at emoting, but I thought he did a nice job from Sirius's death all the way through the fallout at the Ministry. (Of course, that might be my inner Remus Lupin fangirl appreciating how Lupin held him back; the man is the best sort of mentor for him; or at least the combination of Remus and Sirius would be--the prudent and the reckless, both tough and both brave.)
3. The opening, with the nasty nasty black sky. Throughout, there was this sense that things were getting nastier and nastier for the magical world.
4. Looney Lovegood. Okay, so her delivery made me a little nuts, but she's a fun character.
5. Dear Lord, the kittens on the saucers in Umbridge's office. FUCKING SCARY!
6. The broom ride from the Dursley's to Grimmald Place. So pretty.
7. Dumbledore's army, especially seeing Neville and Ron actually use their wands for something impressive. They're both like the heart of the Gryffindors, so I'm always happy to be reminded that they're competent wizards, too. And Ginny Weasley!
In general, I love seeing Harry get to take that step and be confident about what he knows. He makes a good teacher. I love even more that he first explained to them what the reader already knows: that a lot of his run-ins with evil have been just as much dumb luck and force of will than practiced skill. He needed the practice, too, I think, and he needed the confidence, too, just as much as they did. So much love for these brave kids.
8. Hermione said the word Voldemort. I don't remember if that moment's in the book, but it was a nice one to convey both the pervasiveness of the threat and Hermione's own growth and bravery. The girl is fearless, and now, apparently, she delights in being a rebel. When she's beaming about breaking the rules, I wanna hug her. So does Ron, I'd wager.
9. Very little Draco Malfoy. I'm sorry, but Tom Felton makes me nuts. I wanna kick him in the balls every time he says "Potter." Not because he's a good villain, but because he's irritating.
10. Sirius Black. The director gave us time to see a connection between Harry and Sirius, which was nice. Sirius was a rebel and a badass (my GOD, who didn't love seeing Lucious Malfoy knocked on his ass!), and though he was obviously stuck in some arrested development in a way, he wasn't some completely irresponsible buddy-buddy guardian. He gave Harry a legacy of inner strength and stability just as much as he gave him that push to be brave.
Okay, if I don't stop fangirling this movie now, I might not go to sleep.
Obviously, I'm an easy audience. I'm not saying I thought this was the best movie ever or even the best HP (I still put my money on Curan's PoA for that), but I thoroughly enjoyed it. I usually enjoy reading HP books, but for me, they don't come to life until I see them on the screen (literally; I most of the time can't remember a book's plot after it's done, but the movies stick with me). This was one I needed to see, and it didn't disappoint.
(Warning: I am not knowledgable about movies. I am merely an easily entertained moviegoer. For crying out loud, I really liked Pirates 2, if that tells you anything.)
Actually, there's very little Ron squeeing to do, because Ron wasn't very prominent here. That's my only real complaint, but you'll see that it's a silly one in light of the fact that I'm about to say I understand why his part was trimmed.
I think the director did a really nice job with the necessary cuts. Would I have liked to see more actual Order of the Phoenix? Yes. (Especially Lupin; dear Lord, but I think after rewatching PoA the other night, I have a bit of a crush on the character, so much that I don't care that the actor isn't particularly attractive; and I'm craving some new Remus/Sirius in a major way...y'all didn't know I dabbled in reading obscure HP pairings, did you?) Anyway, did I wish there were a lot of things that could have been explored on the movie screen that weren't? Yes. But the movie would have been years long. (Honestly, the idea of having a HP miniseries makes so much more sense for the longer books. Then they could take 6 or 8 hours if they wanted, and I'm sure people would love it.)
I was impressed with how well they got in the necessary bits of the story so that it didn't feel shoved and slapped together. I think it's because the director did slow down in places, and he chose his exemplary moments really well. Like the scene where the bitch is throwing poor old Trelawney out on her ass, and McGonagal's so upset, and Dumbledore just swoops in and saves the day. I love that.
There were things that I did miss. I wanted more of the Order, and I wanted more of the occlumency, but I respect the director's choice to focus on Harry and his personal quest, even if it meant less time for the excellent supporting characters, including my Ron. Of course, it also meant less of Emma's overacting, so that was okay.
I have no sexual attraction to my beloved underage Weasley. I'm rather more protective of and sort of platonically enamored of the kind of cranky underdog his is, and how he's so foolishly brave despite being the Xander Harris of the group. I smile like an indulgent older sister to think of the problems caused by his wacky hormones.
But Rupert Grint? Legal. Adorable, especially with that shaggy hair. I can't make myself porn Ron Weasley, especially not from the movie, because, ICK!, he's like fifteen. So does this mean I have to write fucking Harry Potter RPS? GAH. What's wrong with me?
Better question: who do I slash him with?
Anyway, things I liked a lot, in no particular order:
1. Gary Oldman.
2. Seeing the big climax at the ministry, which I really think was never a very good part of a novel but rather a mislaid part of a screenplay. Seriously, that part of the book made no sense, but I thought the scene was brilliantly done on screen. I loved the choice of the black tiled building and the way it was destroyed. I loved loved loved Voldemort fighting Dumbledore.
I also got a wee bit choked up at how broken Harry was there at the end, struggling to fight Voldemort's influence even when he just had his world knocked out from under him. But he fought through the pain by remembering his friends and family. I'm always the first to snicker at Daniel Radcliffe's attempts at emoting, but I thought he did a nice job from Sirius's death all the way through the fallout at the Ministry. (Of course, that might be my inner Remus Lupin fangirl appreciating how Lupin held him back; the man is the best sort of mentor for him; or at least the combination of Remus and Sirius would be--the prudent and the reckless, both tough and both brave.)
3. The opening, with the nasty nasty black sky. Throughout, there was this sense that things were getting nastier and nastier for the magical world.
4. Looney Lovegood. Okay, so her delivery made me a little nuts, but she's a fun character.
5. Dear Lord, the kittens on the saucers in Umbridge's office. FUCKING SCARY!
6. The broom ride from the Dursley's to Grimmald Place. So pretty.
7. Dumbledore's army, especially seeing Neville and Ron actually use their wands for something impressive. They're both like the heart of the Gryffindors, so I'm always happy to be reminded that they're competent wizards, too. And Ginny Weasley!
In general, I love seeing Harry get to take that step and be confident about what he knows. He makes a good teacher. I love even more that he first explained to them what the reader already knows: that a lot of his run-ins with evil have been just as much dumb luck and force of will than practiced skill. He needed the practice, too, I think, and he needed the confidence, too, just as much as they did. So much love for these brave kids.
8. Hermione said the word Voldemort. I don't remember if that moment's in the book, but it was a nice one to convey both the pervasiveness of the threat and Hermione's own growth and bravery. The girl is fearless, and now, apparently, she delights in being a rebel. When she's beaming about breaking the rules, I wanna hug her. So does Ron, I'd wager.
9. Very little Draco Malfoy. I'm sorry, but Tom Felton makes me nuts. I wanna kick him in the balls every time he says "Potter." Not because he's a good villain, but because he's irritating.
10. Sirius Black. The director gave us time to see a connection between Harry and Sirius, which was nice. Sirius was a rebel and a badass (my GOD, who didn't love seeing Lucious Malfoy knocked on his ass!), and though he was obviously stuck in some arrested development in a way, he wasn't some completely irresponsible buddy-buddy guardian. He gave Harry a legacy of inner strength and stability just as much as he gave him that push to be brave.
Okay, if I don't stop fangirling this movie now, I might not go to sleep.
Obviously, I'm an easy audience. I'm not saying I thought this was the best movie ever or even the best HP (I still put my money on Curan's PoA for that), but I thoroughly enjoyed it. I usually enjoy reading HP books, but for me, they don't come to life until I see them on the screen (literally; I most of the time can't remember a book's plot after it's done, but the movies stick with me). This was one I needed to see, and it didn't disappoint.