Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
Review - Matt Mungle
There are a few things you should know going into this
review. First, I am not a Harry Potter follower. I have not seen any of the
first five Potter films nor have I read the books. If you check out the
archives you will see that I have always sent someone else to cover these
releases. Please note that I am certainly not anti Harry Potter. I am just
Harry Potter complacent. I always looked at the films as more for younger
viewers and having never really been into the fantasy world they held little or
no appeal. But for the 6th installment, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince,
I set out to get to the bottom of this craze once and for all and find out
what, if anything I had been missing. So if you are like me then this review is
a must read for you. If you are like the two Potter crazed young ladies who
accompanied me to the screening then you still need to read this in order to
get an idea of what lay in store for you as well.
I joked after the screening that I had just witnessed
Gandalf the Gray help young Anakin fend off a herd of Gollum's with the world's
smallest light saber. For as a newbie that is the feeling I got and how I
processed it. In this installment Harry (Daniel Radcliffe) and his two
companions Ron (Rupert Grint) and Hermione (Emma Watson) are back at school and
settling into a new year. The return of a past professor (Jim Broadbent) seems
innocent enough until Dumbledore (Michael Gambon) confides in Harry that this
teacher has insight into the world of Tom Riddle and Lord Voldemort. The discovery
of an old potions text book by Harry marked "property of the half blood prince"
only adds to the mystery.
I actually enjoyed this film for the most part. I found the
characters charming and witty. The side plots of "who's zooming who" added much
comic relief and made these future wizards quite endearing. Having not seen any
of the earlier films I had nothing to gage this on but went in hoping for a
delightful and engaging film. Other than a few lulls and an absence of any sort
of real action I walked out feeling better than I had for most of this summers
anticipated releases. After talking to my companions I discovered I was at an
advantage having no prior experience since they all seemed a little
disappointed and felt the film did not live up to its predecessors. Once again,
ignorance is bliss.
This installment is rated PG where as the last two (Order of
the Phoenix and
Goblet of Fire) had earned a PG-13 rating. I think I got cheated out on some
intense action due to this and I felt like just when something exciting was
about to happen they pulled back and didn't allow it to come to term. Might be
selfish on my part but I felt this made for a very non eventful film. It was
good for me since I needed more time to get to know the characters and learn my
way around Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry yet those familiar with
these things may have found this one monotonous and repetitive.
Bottom line is that I can state assertively that you do not
have to be a HP fanatic to have fun at this film. If anything it sparked my
curiosity and I now want to go back and watch the first five to see more of
these characters who I grew quickly to like. I would hope that even the most
die hard fans would find something to latch onto in this one but from some of
the discussions I have had, I am not very confident. The PG rating may have
opened the door to a larger audience but in doing so may have offended some of
the returning fans wanting action and intensity. The PG rating is for scary
images, some violence, language and mild sensuality. To call it dark would be a
stretch and the violence comes mainly from the little tinker bell wands they
all wave around. Take away the few very dull and laborious scenes I still found
this to be a decent film. I could have used more action but I am not totally
disappointed in what they offered up in exchange. I give Harry Potter and the
Half-Blood Prince 3.75 out of 5 love potions. It made a fan out of me and I was
a hard sell from the start. Just be careful where you point your wand. So says Matt Mungle
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