Serious Black

[krylyr]

Yesterday, we went with some friends to see Order of the Phoenix.  How did I think the movie held up?

In general, I almost feel like I have to see the Harry Potter movies twice: once just to get over all the stuff they cut that they shouldn't have and then a second time to really enjoy them.  Order of the Phoenix, however, I mostly enjoyed all the

Comments

[garunya]

I thought it was great. Not quite the best directed (PoA takes that prize), but I did think it was the best paced of the films. And the many cuts didn't bug me as much as some of the stuff in the previous two films. I also thought Gambon's Dumbledore was better in this one too.

I do need to go see it again a second time, though.

[krylyr]

Glad you enjoyed it, too! Did you not like Gambon in the other ones?

The reason I ask is because we were discussing this with some friends and I was the only one who preferred Gambon's Dumbledore to the late Richard Harris. I think it's because Harris seemed a bit too frail to me and Gambon came off a bit more hardcore. OTOH, Gambon doesn't have the nurturing sense Dumbledore does in the books (or the sense of humor). We watched PoA the other night, and I think he was closer to hitting it in that movie than in the last two. It's going to be tricky in the next film if he can't hit it, because Dumbledore is so smooth..."And now Harry, let us step out into the night and pursue that flighty temptress, adventure."

Part of me wishes they'd cast someone else but I'm not sure who. Hopefully Gambon will come through in the end.

[garunya]

Yeah, Gambon never really had the warmth, but I thought he did Dumbledore's playfulness pretty well in PoA. He seemed most off in GoF. In OotP, Dumbledore's pretty distant for most of it anyway, which I think helps - his few moments where that distance is gone worked well for me.

My ideal Dumbledore would have been somewhere between Harris and Gambon. I've always thought that John Hurt would have made an excellent Dumbledore (and then Harris could've been Mr. Ollivander in the first one, or something).

But we've got Gambon, so let's hope for the best. As far as I can see, Dumbledore and Snape are the two most important characters in the next one (and we have absolutely nothing to worry about from Rickman).

[anonymous]

I liked it as well. It's been awhile since I read the book -- and I think that helps forgive the movie what it's missing -- since I only remember the high-level bits.

The Sorcerer's Stone seems so far away from the current installment -- it's amazing how dark the story has become.

I'm toying with the notion of attending Barnes and Nobles' Midnight Magic next Friday night. I will probably read the last chapter first as I do not like waiting.

[krylyr]

Part of what I love about the series is how they continue to mature and become darker. Ah, I'd really like to go to the midnight thing but I probably won't be able to make it. Have fun, mystery person.