there are very few experiences that are as bizarre as a midnight opening of a harry potter movie. i tend to see myself as a rather delightful geek. i have my weird moments. we all do. but the weirdness found at the harry potter premieres take on a whole new level. i love every weird moment - for - if nothing else, the fact that it makes me feel better about myself.

oh harry potter.

i could and will argue that the harry potter series is the world's greatest piece of modern literature. i know this is true because as i look around me in the theater...the mother of the witch dressed like a sexy hermione is every bit as excited as her child. the types of stories that can bridge these gaps are few and far between. its rare to come across a story so universal that everyone who reads it can find an understanding that is made up of:

1 part "the world"

and 2 parts "their inner being."

what i mean is - that on the base level harry potter is a story full of adventure and drama and it can be appreciated for that sole fact. but on a deeper level it is part of us. its the story of all of us. no matter who we are or where we are from...we feel like we belong in harry's world. we've all felt alone, abandon, confused. we know the pressure of friendship and love and the importance of putting those 2 things above all else. we all fight the battle between good and evil.

Here is my review of Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince

These movies have come a long way since they first began. i think this is probably the only franchise in history to manage to get better with each installment as opposed to embarrassing themselves. the half blood prince is an excellent movie.

really. the quality of the cinematography, the editing, the acting....is all an improvement.

the movies are starting to feel like actual movies. the half blood prince could stand on its own (if it wanted) - which is a very impressive feat. the story-line felt more true to the book than any of others have. maybe we're just getting used to seeing the sparknotes version?

Actors:

i was fairly impressed with daniel radcliffe's performance. he's been barely staying above water for the past 5 movies, but in this installment he is the one pulling his co-stars up. it's about time harry potter.

rupert grint (ron) and emma watson (hermione) are good...considering. they are not giving much to work with, so i will be excited to see how they take hold of their characters when it really matters. after being downgraded to serving as background and comic relief for the past few movies....i hope they both get the chance to let their characters evolve in the finales. 

michael gambon (dumbledore) and jim broadbent (slughorn) were both outstanding. tom felton (drako) did a wonderful job as well. as did the girl cast as lavender...while she was not what i was expecting, she was definitely one of the highlights of the movie. 

i was less impressed this time around by alan rickman (snape) and helena bonham carter (bellatrix). although neither got near enough screen-time to do anything. so i will forgive them. 

i was thoroughly creeped out by the adorable child they found to play young tom riddle. it was a fabulous casting choice.

bonnie wright (ginny), however, creeped me out too (and not in the good way). maybe its just me, but she has a strong, silent, "able to destroy a person with my eyes" thing going on. i wouldn't want anyone else to play her, but i would appreciate some form of emotion every now and then.

The Story:

oh....this is always the catch and always the main factor to my disappointment. 

however, this time around i am a lot less disappointed than i thought i was going to be.

first, my 2 main complaints:

1.) the mix between the muggle world and the wizarding world is not play out well at all. there is like a 10 second clip at the beginning of the movie and that is it. except maybe for one line hermione's says later one. i've always found this transition into muggle world a very crucial part of this story. it is what makes fighting this battle against evil important. it should be known that this is no longer an underground battle but that this evil is spilling out everywhere and will destroy the world - the world that is shared by everyone. 

2.) this is not a love story. this is a story about friendship. while i know the books deal with the passage into adult love. that was never the intended focus. this is the story of something deeper than that. unconditional love. the movie seemed focused on hormones rather than the actual important elements of the book. 

other than that i was please. i really enjoyed the "i killed sirius black" scene that wasn't even in the book. i thought it was a nice addition. it played out nicely on screen too. the scene of obtaining the horcurx with harry and dumbledore is waayy scary too. the person next to me screamed. i guess the PG rating has gotten lenient. 

i was also amused that they gave all 3 of the kids separate scenes where they had to act like they were either drunk or on something. on a side note did everyone hear that the kid who plays crabbe was growing marijuana in his mom's basement. niice. his jail sentence is not so nice tho.

overall i give it an A and a thank you for not letting me down.