Darker and quirkier than the first two. The best so far

Rating: Null/10 (3 June 2004)

I've been eagerly anticipating the release of PoA for months and it definitely lives up to my expectations. It's the best so far.
It is much darker than PS and CoS, but it needed to be, given the material of the book. It features a much angrier Harry (very well done by Daniel Radcliffe) and much more emphasis on danger and a lot of focus on the characters growing up. There's plenty of humour too though, with some excellent comic asides. Snape in a dress stands out, as does Rupert Grint's Ron (toned down a lot from the last film, which is good).
There's plenty of emotion also, particularly regarding Harry and his discoveries about his parents. For the most part, these scenes are nicely underplayed. Radcliffe shows a lot of potential here. As do Grint and Watson. All three have grown into the roles nicely.
As for the new cast members, Oldman and Thewlis do really well as Sirius and Remus respectively. The scenes between them and Harry are really touching. I wasn't sure about Thewlis when I heard he'd be playing Lupin, but I happily retract any qualms I may have had. I can't say the same for Michael Gambon's portrayal of Dumbledore however. Although he is good at bringing out the mischief of the character, he just doesn't have Harris' benevolence or serenity. He's not grandfatherly enough. For me, the late, great Richard Harris will always be Dumbledore.
I've read a lot of criticisms about the changing of the plot, particularly the omission of the explanation of who Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs are. While I would have preferred an acknowledgement that they are actually Lupin, Pettigrew, Sirius and James Potter respectively, I actually give Harry the credit of figuring it out for himself, particularly when Lupin knows the spell to make the map vanish. Remember that this is an adaptation, things are bound to change. Anyway, any plot changes would have had to be run past Ms Rowling, so if she didn't like it, I'm sure it wouldn't have been done.
My only real criticism is that all we get when the Dementors approach Harry is a faint scream. It would have been more effective if he had seen his parents, as he did in the books. I really don't think there's enough torment for poor Harry, and I realise that I sound a bit mean, but I think a visual representation would have been more effective.
Let's hope Mike Newell (the director of GoF) takes a leaf out of Cuaron's book, or should that be film? Book 3 is my favourite and this more than does it justice.