At last, a Harry Potter movie

Rating: 8/10 (5 June 2004)

I have to confess that when my three young sons insisted on taking me to the latest Harry Potter incarnation, I thought it would be a good opportunity to catch up on a bit of sleep. Having read the two previous books and endured the subsequent films, an afternoon of shopping would have even sounded more appealing. So imagine my surprise when I left the theatre having thoroughly enjoyed this most recent episode. Now I don't care that it didn't follow the book exactly, this was a movie. It had a decent script, developed the characters so that I actually cared about them and moved along at a pace that didn't have me reaching for a pillow. Sure there are flaws, Daniel Radcliffe will not win an Oscar and Michael Gambon, though good, did not have the same presence or charm of Richard Harris. However, it is rattling good entertainment and when the time comes for me to shell out £15 on the DVD, I shall do so with a bit more grace.