Good, but....

Rating: Null/10 (4 June 2004)

Well, I just saw the 3rd, and for my money, least effective of the Harry Potter films. The first were made by Chris Columbus, who created and held the interest of the famous books, and also delved into special effects magic to create exciting, and yet, somewhat dramatic films. This 3rd film, directed by Alfonso Cuaroz, who directed the far over-rated "Y Tu Mama Tambien", fails to understand the true efforts of the novels. He has created a dark and somewhat moody film, but one, also that has the slowest pacing of all 3...(and this is the shortest). it simply drags on, no interesting new characters..(one is an obvious villain from the start) and the other, Emma Thompson, no less, is so broad and silly, she fails to communicate the intricate comedy she attempts to. And the special effects here, as sadly disappointing. A creation introduced by Robbie Coltrane, looks pale in comparison to some of the greater effects in the earlier films.
Many of the original characters, as well, seems placed into this film, for no purpose that to fill space, and so that we have a recognizable face to see. This is especially true of the character Malphoy, who shows up here and there, and it seems totally thrown in. It has no real supporting reason to be there...(except to see Hermione slug him, I guess). This is not a bad film, but it's certainly far less than it's 2 predecessors. Also, the 3 leads are now starting to look..(and it shows) far too old for these roles. I understand they are growing in the books as well, but they all seem out of their reach in this movie. It's obvious this will be a smash hit, and that's fine. Mike Newell is directing the 4th, which will be out in 2005. I only hope, when the film comes out, it turns itself around, get's back to the real fun, excitement and entertainment of the books, and turns away from a over-zealous director, who thinks he knows best. Many will not want to diss this film and it's director, but I will, because, like all others, I pay to see these films. I'm not a hired critic who can say what he wants, even if it's isn't true, not to upset the masses. Some of us, need to speak the truth. I'm glad it's me. My rating on 1-10, would be a "6"....PS: The first 2 movies received a 7.