Pretty darn good

Rating: 7/10 (14 November 2005)

First of all, I must mention that Goblet of Fire is my favourite Harry Potter book, and so I expected great things from this movie. And great things I did get, but they were entirely unexpected.
The movie starts off with Harry being shaken awake by Hermione in The Burrow. This itself gives us a glimpse into Mike Newell's thought process. Mike Newell and writer Steve Kloves seem to be Harry/Hermione advocators to a small extent. It's not so much as the fact that they show Harry and Hermione to be better friends than Ron and Hermione, which isn't really true to the books, it more the fact that they've made Hermione tag along or take care of Harry in several scenes.
As the subject matter of the Goblet of Fire book was too vast, many scenes in the movie have been sliced so that it deals with action rather than explanations. In a way, this works. On the other hand, Potter fans will surely expect some more details, and this, I predict will be the main negative response to Newell's work. The end particularly requires an explanation. Newell leaves things a bit up in the air. But this doesn't mean the movie is bad or disappointing. At least not for me. It is filled with laugh-out-loud moments, thrilling action sequences and a few new surprises that will captivate you. Truly, It has some wonderful scenes which seem like they've been plucked from your imagination. Voldemort's rebirth for instance.
And speaking of Voldemort, I must say Ralph Fiennes has done a remarkable job. The make up artist and computer animation guys must have worked hard too  Voldemort looks just as evil and scary as he should! This is one of the reasons that the movie has received a PG-13 rating. The highly suggestive yet hilarious scene in the Prefects bathroom, as well as a few very suggestive dialogues here and there also explain the rating.
The movie's casting has been tastefully done. The new actors have managed to remain true to the characters that they play, and are very believable. Miranda Richardson makes a fantastic Rita Skeeter. Stanislav Ianevski (Krum) and Robert Pattinson (Cedric) are well cast and play their roles well. Clémence Poésy makes a good Fleur Delacour, but Mike Newell should have let her keep her hair down.
Unexpectedly, Matthew Lewis and Brendan Gleeson gave very good performances. Matthew Lewis, although he has grown out of his short and pudgy first-movie form and has become tall and slim, has nonetheless managed to keep Neville alive and kicking. There are many funny scenes as well as scenes that can only be described as 'cute' involving him. As for Brendan Gleeson, I didn't think much of him as 'Mad-Eye' Moody when I saw the trailers and the teaser pictures. But he makes a great Moody, crazy, loud and sometimes scary.
There was much debate about the casting of Frances de la Tour as Madame Maxime as many seemed to think that she didn't fit the part. I can see their point, since she isn't the best Maxime they could have got, but she wasn't too bad. Pedja Bjelac (also known as Predrag, in case you're wondering) made a wonderful Karkaroff.
As for the carry-over actors from the last movie into this one, I have to say that I am most impressed with Emma Watson's performance. (and of course Matthew Lewis, whom I have already mentioned.) Emma manages to capture the essence of 14-year-old Hermione quite well. Rupert Grint gives his 100% Ron. Sometimes it's hard not to imagine Ron as Rupert while reading the books. Daniel Radcliffe, the 'star' himself, has greatly improved in terms of acting since Prisoner of Azkaban and, although his performance is uneven, he still manages to be a convincing Harry. The Phelps Twins are remarkable as Fred and George and entertain with their hilarious banter and excellent screen presence. Bonnie Wright (Ginny) has a bigger role in this movie than in any of the others. She has almost no dialogue, but is present in many scenes here and there, which is something. Tom Felton, too, has a very small role. In fact he's only present in three scenes, one of which I am pleased to announce involves Professor Moody! But enough about the talented actors that have been a part of this magical movie. What about the scenes everyone has been waiting to see? Are they well done? What has been kept? What has been cut? I'm afraid you'll have to see the movie for that. If I begin to dissect this movie into what was well done and what wasn't, this review will probably be 8 pages long. All I can say is that this movie will make you feel happy, sad, anxious and surprised at the same time. It will make you laugh out loud, jump in surprise and gasp all at once. Prepare yourselves for a ride filled with mixed emotions. It's advisable to be prepared  This ride can get very overwhelming!