Sunday, August 16, 2009

Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince review


Release - 2009
Country - UK
Rating - M
Runtime - 153
Director - David Yates
Cast - Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint, Michael Gambon, Alan Rickman, Maggie Smith, Tom Felton, Jim Broadbent


The Harry Potter franchisee has all but taken over the western world. J.K Rowling having started something of a marvel and a monster with her addictive seven book childrens series. For me the films have always been something of a sore point. I strongly believe they should have waited until all the books were released before even attempting a film adaptation. The film series have always seemed clumsy and uninterpretable with none of them making very much sense for those viewers out there with no background knowledge of the story of the world in which it takes place.

Surprisingly the films, while still below par, seem to be getting increasingly better with each consecutive one. The Half Blood Prince being the most enjoyable yet.
The sixth film sees the young actors we've come to know so well being almost unrecognizable having hit that awkward stage of puberty where you're no longer a child but certainly not an adult either.

The Half Blood Prince is not only a tale of dark wizardry and peril but that of a coming of age story, with the three main characters all dealing with new feelings of both lust and love.

The films have always been awash with famous British actors including, Alan Rickman, Maggie Smith, Julie Walters, Michael Gambon and Robbie Coltrane and The Half Blood Prince is no exception with the inclusion of Jim Broadbent as Proffessor Slughorn. Broadbents inclusion to the cast was one of pure genius. His highly lovable approach to the somewhat misunderstood character is charming at least and classic at best.

For fans of the films this is a must see. For fans of the book I honestly think it's more a take it of leave it scenario. The actors are getting less cringe-worthy as the grow older and the scripts are becoming more tolerable. All good things but as far as award winning cinema is concerned I think they still have a ways to go.

6/10

-Lesley Rickman

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