Western Themes in Harry Potter

Rating: 3/10 (26 October 2010)

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire helps to further Hollywood stereotypes to promote Westernized images of heroes and villains. The competitors from the other schools are all portrayed as having the stereotypes of their ethnicities, while the Hogwarts competitors are varied, deeper characters, and generally are just more of what we would see as people than their shallow, continental counterparts.
The fact that the heroes are all well-developed, relatable characters shows that the movie is definitely a Western-made movie aimed at Western audiences. Although the characters and actors are British, the Hollywood production adds its own, distinctly-American overtones to the movie, making it clear who the audience is supposed to root for whether or not they've read the book.
That shouldn't detract from the enjoyment of the movie, however. American movies are made for American audiences, regardless of who's in them, and if there ever was an American crowd-pleaser, it'd be Top Gun. But The Goblet of Fire is fun for the whole American family too.