Product: Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005)
Rating: 5.0
getting better and better
While Prisoner of Azkaban was the most daring of the films, this one is the best. As Rowling's books progress she is allowing them to grow in their depth and complexity. Goblet captures these themes (trials and tribulations of adolescence, jealousy, sexual awaking, inherent potential for evil in bureaucratic systems, duality of human nature and the good and evil we are all capable of). What started as a simple fantasy story is emerging into a sophisticated analysis of the human condition. Magic has become a metaphor for Rowling to convey these rich themes. All of these issues just are starting to develop in Goblet, but they come into fruition in Order of the Phoenix. The hints though are all appropriately placed by Newell.The acting is excellent, I enjoyed Michael Gambon's Dumbledore, it took a film to step into the big shoes of Richard Harris but he has finally done so and made Dumbledore his own. Ralph Fiennes makes a frightening Voldemort. The fellow Hogwart's students are slowly becoming real characters with their own potential arcs and not merely window dressing. I hope this trend continues.The DVD package is complete with documentaries, deleted scenes and children's games, this is a package the entire family can enjoy.I am expecting great things for Order of the Phoenix.