A solid continuation of the series

Rating: 8/10 (16 June 2004)

Once again, I sold my soul to Satan and took in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, adapted from the third novel of J. K. Rowling's blockbuster series of juvenile fantasy.
Harry's third year at Hogwarts School of Wizarding and Wizardry is about to begin. After Harry loses his temper during dinner and causes his abusive Aunt Marge to inflate and float into the night, he decides that leaving is preferable to apologizing, packs his things, and heads out. On the street, Harry is picked up by a wizard bus that takes him to London and the Leaky Cauldron. En route he learns that notorious murderer Sirius Black has escaped from the wizard prison of Azkaban. To "protect" the students in case Black should come around, Hogwarts is now guarded by Dementors, the ghoulish and amoral guards of Azkaban. Dementors feed on human happiness, and unfortunately for Harry, they seem to take a liking to him. Thanks to Harry eavesdropping while under his invisibility cloak, we learn that Black is his godfather and his father's best friend, and that he betrayed Harry's parents to the evil Lord Voldemort. Harry resolves to have his revenge.
After Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Chris Columbus gave up the director's chair to Alfonso Cuaron. It shows. Stylistically this movie often differs dramatically from its predecessors. Visually the film is darker and more Gothic, as much of the action takes place outdoors, at night, or in the rain. We get to see more of the Hogwarts castle and the surrounding environs. Some of these establishing shots are stunning. Unfortunately some of the new visuals also offend established continuity, but not too badly.
The acting is pretty solid. The three principal actors are maturing, and so are their characters. Daniel Radcliffe as Harry is taller and broader-shouldered. The rubber-faced Rupert Grint plays a more restrained Ron Weasley this time around. For some reason Emma Watson's Hermione Granger is played as more of a tomboy than a by-the-book student, but she's not terribly out of character.
The redoubtable Robbie Coltrane returns as the slow-witted grounds keeper Hagrid, now promoted to teach Care of Magical Creatures. Michael Gambon replaces the late Richard Harris as Headmaster Dumbledore; while the physical resemblance is there, Harris' kindly-grandfather interpretation of Dumbledore is gone. Alan Rickman again masters the sinister Professor Snape. However, Dame Maggie Smith is terribly underused as Professor McGonagall, having all of two or three lines in the entire film. David Thewlis joins the cast as Professor Remus Lupin, the Defense Against Dark Arts Professor du jour. The almost unrecognizable Emma Thompson chews scenery beautifully as Professor Trelawney, the flaky fraud who teaches Divination. Gary Oldman, who excels at portraying characters who are on the border of insanity, is a natural for Sirius Black, though he too is hard to recognize under his heavy beard.
The Prisoner of Azkaban's two predecessors were straight, mostly faithful, adaptations of the source material. That wasn't necessarily a bad thing, but this time minimalism carries the day, and much of the novel's superfluous material disappears. Gone, for the most part, are classes and the Quidditch season, apart from one match that is crucial to the plot. Hagrid holds one Care of Magical Creatures class to introduce Buckbeak the Hippogriff; we don't get to see the students learning about Flobberworms or Salamanders. This undoubtedly rubs the Potter purists the wrong way, but it does make for a tighter plot. On the other hand, some of the deleted scenes provide information that explain the scenes that are left, and so a little more padding would have been nice.
Many of the novel's crucial clues are revealed through exposition or dialogue. Here they are often shown visually. We are shown that Professor Lupus' greatest fear is a full moon. (Why?) Harry acquires a magic map authored by Messrs. Mooney, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs, but their true identities are not revealed, nor is the reason Lupus knows the spell to reveal the map's secrets. But the answers are right there in plain sight, if you are paying attention. It's nice to watch a movie that doesn't insult your intelligence by assuming you have to be told everything up front.
Final note: Take the time to sit through the end credits. Not that there are any surprises or secrets revealed, but they are well crafted and have a touch of humour.