Disappointed

Rating: 3/10 (27 November 2005)

I was unfortunately disappointed by this film installment. I really enjoyed The Prisoner of Azkaban, and felt it really worked for people who did and did not read the book. It felt whole and coherent, though obviously a lot of stuff had to get dropped in order for that to work.
In the case of Goblet of Fire I hadn't read this one, so for much of the film was pretty lost as to what was going on. It felt very disjointed - scenes started and ended abruptly, and weren't allowed to play out their natural rhythms. It felt more like a very long preview than a complete movie, constantly rushing on to the next thing. Many older characters barely got a word in while new ones were brought in without any kind of introduction or context, they just showed up and started saying lines.
The whole Quidditch World Cup was a real let down - you saw the lead up, and then the celebrations afterward. What happened to the most interesting part?
The special effects were generally very well done, though visually I didn't find it as imaginative as Prisoner, though it inherits much of its dark style.