A respite from the dark

Rating: 7/10 (17 June 2019)

Are there any of you out there who really love the Harry Potter movies but wish they were shorter and funnier? Your favorite of the eight-part series will probably be the fifth: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. Clocking in at twenty minutes less than the previous movie, several montages, set to new composer Nicholas Hooper's lively and comedic music, help move the plot along. This is the only installment Steve Kloves didn't write, and the new screenwriter Michael Goldenberg tries to turn the film into as much of a comedy as he can, probably to console the audience after the dark ending of the previous film. As the students grow older and battle their raging hormones, the audience gets to laugh at them and relax.
Joining the cast is Imelda Staunton, playing a sickeningly sweet and secretly sadistic new teacher. She plays her part so well, it's almost impossible to believe she played different, sympathetic roles in her career. With their new hormones, new haircuts, and new teenage angst, the students band together to form a secret club to rebel against their new teacher and the organization she represents. They practice combat spells, and while there are quite a few pratfalls in those sequences, it's a reminder to the audience to treasure their laughter while they can. The next few movies will be considerably darker and more violent.
There is a bit of violence towards the end of this movie, so if you're watching it with little kids, you might want to encourage them to fall asleep before it's over or give them a warning of what's about to happen. Helena Bonham Carter makes her first appearance in this movie, and without spoiling what happens, be prepared to absolutely hate her.
One of the plot points in this film involves the link between the hero and villain, through mind control. Since Harry has some secrets he doesn't want Ralph Fiennes to discover, he attends special mind control training with Professor Snape. These scenes were easily the most interesting in the novel, and while they're considerably paired down in the movie, they give the audience a taste of what they've been craving the most: insight into Snape's character. It's been an ongoing struggle wondering whether he's a bad guy or not, and since Alan Rickman captures all his nuances it's impossible to tell for certain. Is he Hans Gruber from Die Hard or Colonel Brandon from Sense and Sensibility? This movie won't tell you, but you'll get to see some brief flashbacks of his schoolboy days at Hogwarts to help you make up your mind. If you like these scenes, you'll really enjoy the next movie, but for now, enjoy what's generally referred to as "The Riverdance One".
DLM Warning: If you suffer from vertigo or dizzy spells, like my mom does, this movie might not be your friend. During some of the montages and mind control training sessions, there are some spinning or twirling visuals. Also, when Harry dreams about the dark hallway, the camera is in his POV for a few seconds, and it will make you sick. In other words, "Don't Look, Mom!"
Kiddy Warning: Obviously, you have control over your own children. However, there's some upsetting violence at the end of the movie, so I'd wait until my kids were pre-teens before letting them watch it.