Another Lousy Adaptation

Rating: 2/10 (30 December 2006)

Okay first off I am a Harry Potter fan but first and foremost I am a movie fan. This said I gave what I believe was a fair grade. Let's start off as why this movie got a 2.
Now I could sit here and go on and on about how the movie isn't like the book but to be fair I will only go into this briefly. Like it's previous installments the movie has omitted some well known characters in the series Peeves still hasn't appeared in this movie nor has Cho, Harry's dream girl, so I was quite since Peeves adds the comedic effect and Harry's love for Cho adds a little more depth to his character. Then there's the typical character and plot change often seen in this particular series of films and the plot holes are numerous. Plus the character portrayal left much to be desired.
Now on to the aspects of the film. Like all the previous installments this film once again features a cast of well known British actors which, while they are some of my favorites, are way too many. A few unknowns would be welcome on the scene. The scenery has changed to give it a darker setting despite this fact it didn't help the film too much. Daniel Radcliff, as our heroic boy wizard, didn't really do too much for me in terms of his portrayal. Yes the boy does look like Harry as I and quite a few others imagined him, at least that's as close as the physical interpretation is going get. The acting on his part is lacking as always. I don't know it could just be me but he only seems to have a few expressions and he never seems to display the right emotion. Ron was good though I don't agree that he should be reduced to a sniveling coward so much. The kid needs to have some guts. Hermione yeah I think she did well enough. The others did what was and has become expected of their portrayals not much to say there. I however did not like Gary Oldman's portrayal of Sirius Black.
Look I know the guy has been in Azkaban for years but Sirius was a cool kind of guy who had not done what others thought he did. That's what was so special about Sirius even though the man spent years in a place where even the darkest wizards go insane not even the Dementors could get him because Sirius was without guilt. Instead in this movie what few times he's seen he's portrayed as borderline insane like he's just about to go over the edge. Not Mr. Oldman's best performance by a long shot. There was Thewlis' portrayal of Lupin. For the most part the man did a moderate portrayal of the werewolf/teacher. Then again his performance was one of the better ones of the film.
There's that repetitive score that was good in the first film but by now is heard in every single scene. Then there's the monotonous CGI effects that appear so frequently in this film series. Sure Buckbeak was well done and was one of the higher points of the film. This said the CG werewolf was not ferocious or threatening but instead seemed sickly and underfed. The Dementors would have struck fear in me if I was four years old and every other computer generated character looked oddly deformed in someway.
My list of dislikes could go further so time to rap it up. All around if this movie weren't based on a book series I might have liked it more. But since it is there isn't really much boosting it up. If you've read the books avoid this and all previous and future HP films. If you've seen the previous movies and liked them then I guess you'll be easier to please with this one.