Goblet of Fire Burns Brightly

Rating: 8/10 (8 January 2015)

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire is a fantastic movie and a more than worthy addition to the Harry Potter movie series. Ironically Goblet has always been my least favorite Harry Potter book. This movie isn't the most faithful to the book but in this case that benefits the movie. The book contains too much recap of previous stories, too many trivial details, and too many unnecessary subplots. The movie is much better paced than the book thanks to the removal of much unnecessary content. The filmmakers mostly made the right choices about what to include in the movie and what to omit. The main parts of the book are about the Triwizard Tournament and Voldemort's return. All three Triwizard Tasks and Voldemort's return are included so we're in good shape already. Other important scenes such as Moody's first class, the opening chapter, and Dumbledore's speech about Cedric are included. The only thing I would have done differently is that I would have omitted the Yule Ball and instead included more of Barty Crouch Jr's backstory. The Yule Ball is completely unnecessary and adds nothing to the plot or the story. On the other hand it would have been nice to have seen the movie explain more of Barty Crouch Jr's backstory such as how he was smuggled from Azkaban, how he came to return to Voldemort, and how he came to be at Hogwarts. Barty Crouch Jr is an important character who is underdeveloped in the movie. Overall I think this movie was well structured. The casting and acting are outstanding as is always the case in Harry Potter. Amongst the newbies Ralph Fiennes gives an awesome portrayal of Voldemort. That graveyard scene really captured the darker tone the series is starting to take. Voldemort truly feels scary here. And Brendon Gleeson's Mad Eye Moody is so goddamn entertaining. So the new cast members fit right in with the high quality actors in this series. The special effects and visuals are awesome. Obviously the production quality is top notch. But there's more to it than that. The way this movie was made really captures the venture into darker territory Harry Potter is starting to take at this point in the series with its darker colors and cinematography compared with the previous Harry Potter movies. The settings and environments also help capture this. This movie knows what it is and where it is going and brings that out well. Andi really enjoyed how they made Voldemort. Patrick Doyle's score is good but nowhere near as good as John Williams. It's a shame that Williams couldn't score all 8 Harry Potter movies. The score heard here is good but a noticeable step down from John Williams classic scores on the previous Harry Potter movies. The pacing is mostly good. However the Yule Ball scene really drags on. When I watch this movie on DVD I skip ahead from Harry and Ron making up in the aftermath of the First Task to the part where Voldemort says "Let me see it again." and the movie has a much better and more enjoyable pace without the Yule Ball. This movie should only be viewed by people in middle school or older. The emotional intensity of Cedric's death, the entire graveyard scene, Harry having to carry Cedric's body back through the maze, and Dumbledore's speech about Cedric are too much for elementary school children to handle. Faithfulness to the book: 5 out of 10. Casting and acting: 10 out of 10. Music: 7 out of 10. Pacing: 8 out of 10. Special effects and visuals: 10 out of 10. Overall: 8 out of 10.