Best in the Series.

Rating: 9/10 (18 November 2019)

Review:
'Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban' is a fantasy film directed by Alfonso Cuarón. It is based on J. K. Rowling's novel of the same name and which is the third instalment in the Harry Potter film series.
This movie is where the franchise starts to get darker while its core audience gets more mature. Alfonso Cuarón brings a dark tale which feels like a Soviet revenge story and it's so good!
The story follows Harry Potter's (Daniel Radcliffe) third year at Hogwarts as he is informed that a prisoner named Sirius Black (Gary Oldman) has escaped from Azkaban and intends to kill him.
I feel like Daniel Radcliffe is the weakest actor in this movie. That's unfortunate because all of these focus around him, and this is one of the most important movies in the series. When he was in a scene leaning his Patronus with Professor Lupin, he was good, and I was invested. But when he learns a secret about Sirius Black and gets angry, he doesn't do a good job at showing emotion. It took me out a bit. However, everybody else brings their A-Game. Gary Oldman being brought into the series is fantastic, and this is the first time we see Michael Gambon as Dumbledore. Michael Gambon is fine, but I did find myself missing Richard Harris as the soft spoken and wise Professor.
This is the 'Harry Potter' film that stands on its own and as a tremendous cinematic achievement. It challenges viewers and yet doesn't patronize them or attempt to offer answers to all of the questions presented. The plot contains the requisite amounts of twists and turns. And above all else it is beautifully shot and edited.
Overall, in my opinion this is the best in the series. It has so much story to tell and adds important characters to the main story of the series.
4.5/5