If you have not read the book...not as easy to follow as the first 3, not as much depth to plot, not recommended as a first glimpse in Harry Potter line

Rating: 6/10 (25 November 2005)

A fan of the other HP movies, I am glad to have seen GoF on the big screen, even though for me it was not up to par with the first three. With cast and characters now cemented as familiar old friends, it was nice to visit them once again, and to see they have grown comfortably in acting skill.
As a young adult, Ms Hermione Granger has blossomed from cute kid to beautiful young woman with sex appeal, though I feel a bit of a perv for pointing that out since I am considerably older. But the fact is that adding the dimension of young adulthood to all of the characters helps us more ripened folk stay attracted to the movie series, though one has to wonder if the next HP movie to follow will be the last for this soon to be over-the-pubescent-hill group of actors.
Special effects in HP4 are possibly better in some respects than the first movies. Sadly, the spell that wore off on me is the plot which did not have the depth as the previous movies. This was an adventurous action romp unraveling the dreams(nightmares) of Harry as they entwined with ongoings at Hogwarts. Nothing wrong with that, however, the mystery element in the other HP movies offered more intrigue to keep my interest. The others had twists and curves and a moderately challenging mystery to solve. HP4 carried on more like an action/chase scene. One comment I've heard is that this movie was darker, and short on whimsy compared with the previous HP films. I didn't see that. Plenty of worthy whimsy in HP4 if you ask me, some a bit more sophisticated than the previous films.
I did not read this book, nor any of the HP books (I can just imagine sitting at a coffee shop, at my well-seasoned age, whipping out a Harry Potter book), and this movie lost me at times, but not because it was too complex. It just seemed to have holes that only someone who had read the book could instinctively fill in.
All-in-all a good movie worth seeing if you're a fan of the others, but not recommended to the uninitiated as a first foire in Harry Potter genre.