As teenage angst sets in, Harry Potter must face once again his greatest enemy.

Rating: 10/10 (23 November 2005)

If people aren't hooked by the very first shot in this movie, then there is really no hope for them. I knew from the very first instant of this film that it would be outstanding in every way. As opposed to the kid-friendly, John Williams tinker-bell score that sounds so similar to "Somewhere in My Memory" the movie begins with a much darker variation on the Harry Potter theme. The opening shot follows a snake to the crypt of the Riddle family and a statue that looks ominously like a Death Eater. I adore this first shot so much because it lets the viewer know that right away this film is going to be a lean, mean thriller. And thankfully, the opening scene of Voldemort, Peter Pettigrew, from here on known as Wormtail, and Barty Crouch Junior, immediately immerses you in the "magical world" as opposed to the "real world" of Harry's dreadful relatives, the Dursleys. Thankfully, the Dursleys are absent from the beginning of this film, and the story begins with Harry, Hermione, and the Weasleys journeying to the Quidditch World Cup. Right away we realize that that opening scene was just a dream, a dream sequence that would become a dramatic motif throughout the rest of the film that often unifies disparate elements into a thriller format.
From the very beginning the cinematography in Goblet of Fire is so much more epic than in the other films with its vast sweeping crane and helicopter shots of breathtaking vistas. The mise-en-scene is infinitely darker than the other films even from the first few moments. I love the extremes in the production values here. I adore how so many of the shots throughout feature the darkest gray lighting and yet are of such sweeping expanses.
The film is expertly paced from the very beginning, instantly immersing the viewer in this magical world without the often awkward transition of Harry enduring the Dursleys for a while and then entering his world of magic. The dream sequence at the beginning casts a specter over the entire rest of the film, setting the overall mood. This chilling opening is continued with the brilliant attack on the Quidditch World Cup by Voldemort's followers, the Death Eaters. The shots of the playing field after the attack are stunningly bleak, and the appearance of David Tennant as Barty Crouch Junior, who conjures the Dark Mark, is chilling. Barty Crouch Junior seems almost like some sadistic member of the Black and Tans with his leather boots and jacket.
So much plot is crammed in this movie that it is almost overwhelming to consider all that happened. I think that in terms of action scenes, the segment beginning the Tri-Wizard Tournament where Harry battles a dragon is one of the most exhilarating, edge-of-your-seat thrill rides I've ever seen.
I really have mixed feelings about the teenage romance aspects of this film. Although I think that there might be more there than just a copycat of a 1980s teen comedy, I can't ignore that this whole segment really does slow down the overall plot, especially since it was charging ahead with such glorious speed earlier. And I don't think the film gains back that same momentum until the very end. I think the underwater challenge is not nearly compelling enough for the amount of time allotted to it, but this is nearly forgotten by the brilliance of the final challenge in which Harry must enter a maze of doom. In this maze he and Cedric Diggory are transported to the graveyard of the Riddles seen at the beginning of the film, and there Harry confronts his old nemesis Lord Voldemort, after being forced to give him life by Wormtail. The Dark Lord is played brilliantly by Ralph Fiennes, who turns in a performance of such over-the-top glee perfectly fitting the mountains of set-up in the first four movies leading up to this moment. Voldemort is half-serpent, half-Hamlet, a character really unlike any other I've ever seen. His genius is evident, but also his insecurity as he feels it necessary to duel Potter in order to prove his powers. The final moment of their duel when Harry's parents arrive to help him is the best surprise I could've imagined in that moment.
What more can I say about this film? It is a wildly entertaining roller coaster-ride, certainly not without its flaws, but an exhilarating experience nonetheless. Despite the crawl of the middle-section of the film the beginning and end are so perfectly paced it's hard afterwards to even remember that there was a time when it dragged. More than anything I just love how this movie franchise has now grown up with Harry. Gone is the predictable whimsy of a John Williams score. Absent is the kid-friendly, cartoonish sensibility that made the first movie, and even to some degree the second, rather formulaic. Mike Newell knows when it is important to have frenetic visual, loud sound effects, and a bombastic score and never overplays any of these elements like Chris Columbus was wont to do. In Chris Columbus's films never would there have been the quiet chill of Harry's exploration of the foggy maze or the eerie silence of the ruined Quidditch World Cup venue. Patrick Doyle's score is understated for the most part and only supplements the action occurring on screen. Mike Newell has learned from the previous installments that less can be more, not every moment has to be another peril, not every shot has to be filled with frenetic action or deafening sound effects. But when he does include these elements they have so much greater emotional intensity because they punctuate moments of relative quiet simplicity.