Movie review: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
It has been a summer of sequels. Shrek, Pirates of the Caribbean, and Die Hard have all received updates in the last few months, as have countless other Hollywood films. While sequels are generally notorious for their ability to disappoint movie goers, one sequel that has managed to surpass audience expectations is the fifth Harry Potter film, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix.
I have heard a few complaints that the fifth movie in the Harry Potter series does not stay faithful to the fifth book, and as a fan of both I truly could not care less. The fifth book is 870 pages long. Anything short of a miniseries would not be able to faithfully tackle that much information. Say it with me now, “movies and books are two very different things.” I do not believe that a movie has to faithfully recreate a book page-for-page in order to be enjoyable, and Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix proves just that.
Following the story of Harry Potter’s fifth year at the wizarding school Hogwarts, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix finds dark times in the magical community. The Ministry of Magic refuses to accept Potter’s story that Voldemort has returned, and so launches a smear campaign to ruin Potter’s reputation. A sadistic new teacher delights in making life at Hogwarts difficult for all students, and Potter has horrifying visions that speak of a deeper connection with Voldemort. It’s a typical year in the very atypical life of Harry Potter - a life that quite often includes tragedy.
The most stunning thing about this film is the visual imagery. Gone are the dark days of poorly constructed CGI creatures that plagued Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix brings magical creatures and events to life in a way that adds to their mysticism and wonder. The dementors are realistic and frightening, the thestrals are hideous and yet oddly appealing, the Ministry of Magic is both grand and intricately detailed, and even Grawp the giant, who admittedly is on the poorer side of the visual effects spectrum, is not without merit.
The script has been adapted in such a way that it covers the most important information from the fifth book while still remaining fast paced and exciting. The action never slows, even in the more serious scenes. Images from the previous films have been spliced in flawlessly, and add to the overall coherence of both this film and the series at large. The returning actors reprise their roles with zest, especially Alan Rickman (who plays Severus Snape) and Gary Oldman (who play Sirius Black). The new additions to the cast, Imelda Staunton (Dolores Umbridge), Evanna Lynch (Luna Lovegood), and Helena Bonham Carter (Bellatrix Lestrange) are perfect in their roles and I look forward to seeing more of them in the future films.
Although I admit to being a bit biased towards the series, I have not been a fan of all of the Harry Potter films. That said, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix is everything I wanted in a Harry Potter movie; funny, action-packed, and true to the characters and tone of the book, but able to stand on its own as an entertaining film.