S.O.S Christopher Colombus!!!!

Rating: Null/10 (15 July 2007)

If you haven't read *ANY* of the books you will be entertained. If you have seen any of the previous movies you will notice several venue inconsistencies. However, if you have read the book you will walk away feeling very robbed.
The actors did, as they always have done, a fantastic job. Emma Watson, Daniel Radcliffe, and Rupert Grint continue their legacy of being perfection. The casting of Imelda Staunton as Umbridge was brilliant. You wanted to strangle her the moment you heard her cough for the first time. Evanna Lynch as Luna Lovegood was amazing, that girl really was made for the role.
In the case of the ever changing, and disappointing, face of the venues...what can I say? The Hogsmeade station was COMPLETELY different from the books not to mention the other movies, the first one (where the stages are set) in particular. The Room of Requirement, although appropriate, was also very different from the way it was described in the book (and those details, mind you, wouldn't have been hard to follow). Hog's Head was a far cry from the book, it looked more abandoned than grungy.
Just as everyone who has posted before me, I realize that condensing an 800 page novel into a two hour movie would be a daunting task..although the other movies managed to keep some of magic from within the books and AT LEAST have scene and plot connecting tissue. The choice of David Yates as director was a catastropihic error.
The movie was as if you were looking at flash cards and in the end..you better hope you found some underlying connection. There are obvious connections..the Dark Lord has returned which is why atrocities are occurring, Umbridge is headmaster which is why drastic changes are occurring..but the subtlety of the book, and the graceful way it moved from one scene (or plot change) to the next is lost. The film seemed VERY VERY rushed. It was as if they only had two hours to deal with and in that two hours they wanted to jam pack as much as possible, regardless of whether or not it flowed or seemed cohesive. They did however make sure they checked the major plot boxes. The way in which is was done is far from entertaining..it's disappointing.
There are things in the film that DON'T EVEN OCCUR in the book. Yet those scenes took up time in the movie in place of things that were left out that ACTUALLY happened.
Cho is not the snitch on Dumbledore's Army. Her friend, Marietta, who came along begrudgingly to the first meeting, was the snitch. Secondly, since in the movie they portrayed her as the snitch as an easier way to resolve removing the character from the plot line, she should've had "SNEAK" written across her face, courtesy of Hermonie's charm on the roster.
It is impossible to conceive that Dolores Umbridge could've forcefully broken into the Room of Requirement - as it goes against the lore of the room to begin with. Not much more I can say about that..aside from David Yates's brilliance is at its best yet again.
The members of Dumbledore's Army were never tasked to sit in the Great Hall and write lines. That ENTIRE scene never happened in the book. It would've been much cheaper (and kept with the book) to just add a few lines for Dumbledore rather than construct an entire fictitious scene.
The Weasley twin's exit should've had you standing infront of your chair yelling and cheering..instead it left you wondering when they were going to incorporate the scene with the swamp. I do admit that the dragon firework that chased Umbridge was brilliant, there could've been so much more than that.
We see poor Mr. Weasley bitten almost to death at the Department of Mysteries one second, and a quick flash later, he's in a wheelchair having Christmas dinner? Enough said.
The entire reason for the movie was the rekindling of the Order of the Pheonix in response of the second coming of Voldemort. In the movie, they seemed to take a back seat to Umbridge - who unfortunately seemed to be the entire reason for the movie ( which is completely incorrect). They just seemed to occasionally take up space at Grimmauld Place, and fight in the last battle scene..rather than do any reconnaissance or plan forming.
Lastly the last scene in the movie. The epic battle scene. It was nicely done I think, left a little to be desired, but still nicely done. Yet the entire reason why the Dark Lord lured Harry to the Department of Mysteries in the first place goes unexplained and cast aside like collateral damage. The prophecy orb was NEVER explained. Nothing ever explained *WHY* Voldemort wanted it in the first place. It is never discussed why it's anything of value to begin with. What makes this little tiny talking glowing orb a weapon in the first place? Why is it so valuable? What is it capable of? It just seems like David Yates used it as an excuse to make an epic battle scene, when the orb is the entire reason *for* the battle in the first place.
In closing, the *first* movie was completely and utterly magical, it left me breathless. It was also directed by Chris Colombus, who also directed the second film. This entire post is meant to be an S.O.S and an outcry to for help. Please reconsider and bring Chris Colombus back on board. He brought the magic to the screen. Save us Chris Colombus!