The Worst Yet

Rating: 1/10 (2 August 2007)

This movie had me really excited, as the Prisoner of Azkaban was my favourite book. But in the end I was really, honestly disappointed.
Another reviewer claimed that this was the best Harry Potter yet. I claim the exact opposite-- I think it's the worst. It was horribly shortened, and many scenes were altered to fit Hollywood standards. Practically everything was turned into a joke, even the things that really shouldn't have been.
I also think that the appointment of this new Dumbledore was a dreadful mistake. While he certainly redeems himself a bit in the fifth movie, in this one, he was the opposite of what I imagined of his character (albeit, it was much worse in the fourth). He was hardly the gentle, soft-spoken, graceful wizard I had envisioned, or that was portrayed in the 1st and 2nd movies, which, in my opinion, were the best.
The scene in the Shrieking Shack was summarized sloppily and altogether too quickly. Exemplified in this scene was the worst portrayal of Sirius Black we could have hoped for. Sure, we knew he was fervent, anxious to kill Pettigrew and get revenge, but we didn't think of him as insane. And the scene with Lupin turning into a werewolf--they added and awful bit with Sirius telling Lupin something like "This is who you truly are, this heart, in here!", which is hardly the kind of thing you'd be saying as your best friend transformed into a deadly monster.
I eventually just turned the movie off. I couldn't watch it anymore. I was awfully disappointed after the stunning accuracy of the first two films. In those, the casting was spot-on, and the accuracy was impressive; here, the casting left a lot to be desired, as did the acting of those who were decent in both the Sorcerer's Stone and the Chamber of Secrets. Hermione seemed eerily preppy ("Does my hair really look like that from the back?"), Dumbledore I've already criticised, and Hagrid--quite the perfect match in all of the other movies--seemed to fall apart in this one. Even Malfoy, who was perfect before, was made into a stereotypical bully here, not the deeper character portrayed in the books.
All in all, this was the worst Harry Potter to date, and I would only suggest it to hardcore HP fans or those who are entirely un-picky when it comes to accuracy.