Another Good Harry Potter movie

Rating: 8/10 (13 February 2006)

The movie was very well filmed. It showed amazingly well the problems of adolescence, and I can't tell you how many times people in the theatre were "aaawwing" and "oooing" when Cho couldn't go to the Yule Ball with Harry, or Ron gave Harry a look that rivaled with that of a Basilisk. The special effects were not especially spectacular, but they were very very cool. And the movie, although very dark and being the first in the series to be rated PG-13, was very humorous throughout, right up until the point where Harry, Cedric, Krum, and Fleur entered the final task by going into the hedge maze. The scene where Voldemort comes back was incredibly well done, and so was the scene where Harry and Voldemort's wands connect and the ghosts of Voldemort's kills come forth from his wand. I thought it could have used a little more dramatism. When Harry brings back Cedric with the Triwizard Cup Portkey, and he yells at everyone that "Voldemort's back!!" amidst cries of anguish over Cedric's death, the movie seemed to lack a little bit of the importance about how HORRIBLE Voldemort coming back was.
My biggest problem with the movie was everything they cut out. Now, obviously, some things don't really need to be in the movie, and aren't that important. The scene that they cut out that annoyed me the most, however, was the Quidditch Cup. They showed the very beginning of it, and then once the Snitch was released by Cornelius Fudge, the movie cut straight to the Weasleys celebrating over the Irish's victory. This means that, for the first time in the franchise, there is no actual Quidditch playing in the movie. Undoutedly the biggest disappointment in the movie. They also cut out the entire subplot about Hermione's quest to free the house elves that make the food for Hogwarts. In the movie Harry only makes one trip into the Pensieve, whereas in the book he makes several. Also, in the book when Harry wins his million Galleons from winning the Triwizard tournament and gives it to Fred and George to open their joke shop......well, that's not in the movie. Hopefully they will mention it in number five.
If I went exclusively by how much they cut, I would give this movie a 4. However, it is a movie, and as a movie, it must be judged not by how much it cut from the book, but by its worth as a movie. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire is a spectacular movie in its own right, however, as a fan of the books, I must dock it little bit for being as unfaithful as it was to the book. Another reason I docked it points was because for someone who hasn't read the books, the movie might be a little confusing. The entire scene where Harry finds out Mad-Eye Moody is actually Barty Crouch is glossed over in a few minutes, entirely skipping the intricacy that the book shows us quite clearly. In the book we are slammed with the realization that Mad-Eye is Barty, probably one of the best endings to the Harry Potter books because of its sheer Sherlock Holmes/Sixth Sense type feel. In the movie it could be potentially confusing to someone who hasn't read the books. Another problem I have with the movie is that it is even shorter than the first movie, which doesn't really make sense, as the book is four times as long as the first one. Why are the filmmakers afraid to make a longer movie? The children fans of the series have proved that they can sit through a very long movie - why doesn't Hollywood trust them (and us) to sit through a three hour movie? We did it with Lord of the Rings, and many young kids went to see that too.
For any fans of the books, it is well worth the price of admission. Though be forewarned, you will be slightly disappointed by the amount they have cut off, if not completely disappointed. Goblet of Fire, in relation to the book, is a very good movie. Taken by itself, it is a very very excellent movie.