Did the producers even glance through the book?

Rating: 1/10 (19 November 2005)

A fabulous film -- if you haven't read the books. Really exciting, and nothing left out -- if you haven't read the books. However, if you have read the books, it is a complete and utter disappointment. I went into the theater thinking, 'This shouldn't be too bad,' but, after seeing what they did to Mad-Eye Moody (i.e. the HUGE BLACK STRAP) I wasn't all that thrilled. Dumbledore - completely out of character. During one scene, he actually shakes Harry and yells in others. The Albus Dumbledore of the books is a wise, calm old man, not a raging but clueless crackpot. Many things are left unexplained; such as Neville's fear of the Cruciatus (sp?) curse, and what exactly happens to Barty Crouch (senior). Of course, if you have read the book, you know exactly what is going on, but as an innocent movie-goer who has never even glanced in the books, you are left wondering. And as Emma Watson already being quite pretty, the supposed transformation when she appears at the Yule Ball is muted and almost nonexistent; it simply that she put her hair up. All house-elves are not mentioned at all. S.P.E.W. is gone (though, despite it being a interesting subject in the book, it wasn't particularly important to the story). And it is Neville who gives Harry the gillyweed, instead of Dobby. Of course, that still works quite well, as Neville is so good at Herbology. But, did anyone think that Voldemort was far too jolly? Or is that just me? 'Oh, Harry, I'd almost forgotten you were there!' Can you honestly picture that coming from the great Dark Lord's mouth? There were many other examples during that scene; it was extremely annoying. As for the Dark Mark appearing in the sky, it comes too late. The tents are set on fire (where are the people suspended in the sky?) and everyone is running. Yes, that's reason to be scared, but surely the Dark Mark appearing is far better. So, after everyone has left, who should come along but Barty Crouch Jr. Then he fires the Dark Mark into the sky, and the producer thinks, 'Oh, good. We've got that in the story; people shouldn't complain.' Nope; wrong. He fires it a bit too late. After EVERYONE has left he brings out what should have started the terror. How stupid. (And it was also disappointing when they only made one comment that might suggest who won the World Cup. I'm Irish; I would have been very pleased if they had made that a bit more apparent. While we're on the subject of Barty Crouch Jr., I will bring up that his character totally changed. Instead of being this sniveling, scared young man who calls out to his father in desperation only to have Barty (senior) say, "You're no son of mine," we have him as a weird, explosive monster who comes up and licks his lips at his dad and is all, "Nyehehehe. Hello, Father." The 'son of mine' line only works if you make Barty (Jr.) a proper, terrified, misunderstood boy. And Sirius. Gary Oldman makes no actual appearance; how do we even know that it was him who was talking to Harry? And that was done horribly. Instead of Sirius's head appearing in the flames, we have a grotesque thing (that did not look anything like Sirius) popping out of the embers. And also, when Harry sends off his letter to Sirius at the beginning, it is clearly marked on the front to go to Sirius Black. But how ridiculous! His letter could have been intercepted, and then everyone would know that Sirius was somewhere nearby, and that someone (if they weren't one of the people who knew either Harry's handwriting or Harry's owl) was in contact with him. But, as for the acting and the special effects, it was all fine.