You should read the book The Fault in Our Stars by John Green. If you've known someone who has died, you should read it. If you assume that someday you will die, you should read it. If you are or were once a teenager, you should read it. If you spend most of your days engaging in but not really thinking about the miracle that is breathing, you should read it.
Does that cover everyone? Good. Just in case, I'll say it again: You should read this book.
I devoured the book, in the most intense figurative meaning of the phrase. My copy arrived at my house around 1 PM. I sat down to read it around 9:30. Approximately four and a half hours later, I finished the 313th and final page. I went downstairs and ate two sticks of string cheese, went to the bathroom, and began this blog post.
For those unfamiliar with the novel, its main character is Hazel Grace Lancaster, who was diagnosed with Stage IV thyroid cancer at age thirteen but has somehow managed to survive more than three years. The cancer eventually spread to her lungs, so she's dependent on a portable oxygen tank. She has few friends, she reads the same novel over and over, and she thinks about death a lot -- not in a particularly dramatic or macabre way, but in the way that any of us who use more than a tenth of our brain ponder whatever situations realistically lie in our near future. Hazel reluctantly attends a weekly support group for kids with cancer, and it's there that she meets Augustus Waters, an intelligent, irreverent, extremely good-looking kid who's in remission for a relatively treatable form of bone cancer.
Hazel and Augustus hit it off so quickly and completely and are so unabashedly attracted to each other that at first it felt a little unbelievable, but I have immense faith in John Green as both an author and a human being, and I was not disappointed. I have thankfully never known a family member or friend living with a long-term illness, so it took a few chapters to understand that for Augustus and Hazel and their peers, a good portion of their lives are shaped by all-or-nothing decisions: You don't know how much time you have left, so you enthusiastically pursue the things you want and you don't waste time on things of little importance.
I really can't think of another piece of literature that I've read that was so immediately thought-provoking (even among John's earlier books, which are each more thought-provoking than most of the rest of the young adult genre combined). The Harry Potter series is full of deep truths and timeless, ageless themes about life, love, humanity, and death, and as most of the seven or eight people who read this blog are aware, it has helped to shape myriad facets of the person I am right now, but I've spent more than a decade of my life thinking about those books. (And let's face it, I read the first four with the life experience and self-awareness of an eleven-year-old.) The Fault in Our Stars has been in my possession less than twenty-four hours, and it's caused me to contemplate the complexity of life, the inevitability of death, the existence of fate (or lack thereof), the narcissism of the universe, the power of attraction, the blessing and fragility of health, the realities and imagined aspects of heroism, the credibility of Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs, the beauty of a well-designed Venn diagram, and the power of words (and I mean I actually combed through my own thoughts on these topics, in addition to taking in John's and the characters'.)
I have long held John Green in high esteem. Aside from being my second-favorite author (I know he would be honored to learn that he was even a distant second to J.K. Rowling, and he's really not very distant), he's a brilliant video blogger, a radically compassionate and logical humanitarian, a discerning curator of other people's words, and an unintentional co-founder of the Nerdfighter community, which has greatly influenced my life and choices lo these past three years. That I could someday write one-hundredth as well as John and that my books could be one-hundredth as important to one-hundredth as many people is more than I can imagine. Also that I could use capital letters with such Significance and Aplomb.
Though The Fault in Our Stars deals with a wide array of intense topics, nothing is ever treated superficially. Additionally, though the book is narrated by a self-described "terminal" teenager, it manages to altogether avoid being depressing. The total acknowledgment of the frightfully sad and utterly unfair is woven seamlessly with the snarky observations of rebellious adolescents, the split-second decisions that make life hilarious, the complexity of suburban family dynamics, and the self-consciousness and excitement of true love, along with a perfect smattering of nerdy references. I have rarely been so charmed by a male lead, and I have never before enjoyed video games as much, felt such disdain or such despair for a raging alcoholic, or cried so hard over a paragraph about math. (Though my spectacular family did teach me, many moons ago, that math can, at times, be supremely beautiful.)
As I read the novel, I occasionally jotted down things that resonated particularly strongly with me on the nearest piece of paper, which so happened to be my to-do list for the last few days. I wrote down the word aqueous, which I'm not sure I had ever heard or read before, but which is so beautiful that I keep staring at it and repeating it over and over in my head. I also wrote down the word vitrine, which is also quite intriguing in its physicality, but whose meaning I could not quite divine from its context. (I just looked it up. Vitrine: noun; a glass cabinet or case, especially for displaying art objects.) I recorded a quotation from Augustus on page 123: "You are so busy being you that you have no idea how utterly unprecedented you are." On page 138, Hazel feels bad for scrambled eggs because they have been so stigmatized that one cannot mention them without conjuring up images of breakfast, which is exactly the sort of ridiculous manner in which I often feel bad for totally innocuous inanimate (try saying that five times fast) objects. I actually tore off the list (without everything on it having been completed! Gasp!) to scrawl across the back of it a sentence that I can't repeat without giving away a major plot point, but it suddenly put into perspective something that happened immediately after I was informed of my grandfather's death almost five and a half years ago and which has occasionally bothered me ever since. (For those who've read the book, it's the last sentence in the second paragraph on page 262.)
A lot of things in this book made me think about Grampy and the comparatively brief time he was ill and my memories and feelings surrounding his death. I've actually been thinking about him a lot in recent weeks. It seems I miss him most at Christmas time and during the first month of baseball season. But I digress.
I know The Fault in Our Stars has been a very long time in coming. John has said he's been working on it in one form or another ever since his time as a chaplain at a children's hospital more than a decade ago. It's obvious that it was influenced by Esther Earl, who touched the greater community of Nerdfighteria indelibly if fleetingly, and John has admitted as much, though I think the main purpose of the author's note at the beginning is to gently remind Nerdfighters that he could never and would never attempt to write a biography of Esther disguised as a novel. There's been a lot of furor surrounding the publication and release of this book, not only among John's rabidly loyal fans, but within in the industry. Few other books have had so many copies pre-ordered, and John made history by signing every one of the 150,000 books in the first printing. (For those wondering, my J-scribble is green, but sadly without a hanklerfish, yeti, or special note.) TFiOS was originally supposed to be released in April, and we're all grateful that the date was moved forward several months.
Sometimes when I anticipate something so much and for so long, I start to worry that there's no way it could possibly live up to the monumental expectations I've developed. Sometimes, that turns out to be the case (see: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2; LeakyCon 2011). Thankfully (given how easily excited I am), more often than not the actual finished product absolutely lives up to my idealization of it. It's rare, however, that something far outstrips those expectations, more than I ever could have imagined, and The Fault in Our Stars does just that.
Showing posts with label review. Show all posts
Showing posts with label review. Show all posts
Sunday, January 15, 2012
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
Reactions to Half-Blood Prince (Spoilers!! Spoilers!! Spoilers!!)
Well, I saw it!! Last night at 11:59 P.M. (Why not just actually make it midnight?? It makes no sense.) I guess on the whole I was really impressed, but there were a couple of big things that really, really bothered me. So here are my thoughts...
(Spoilers!!)
(SPOILERS!!)
(Beyond here there be SPOILERS!!)
*The very first thing, the little bit of Harry and Dumbledore at the Ministry at the end of OotP, was very odd. At first I thought it was going to be a dream. It seemed a little random and unnecessary, and it was weird that it was before the movie title came up, but it wasn't a big deal.
*We'd heard all this talk about Harry flirting with a waitress, and I was a little unsure how that was going to come off, but it was cute and amusing. I really feel the movies are lacking without the Dursleys, but it still made for a pretty good opening.
*Slughorn was brilliant. I had no doubts about Jim Broadbent at all, as he's one of my favorite actors because of Moulin Rouge and Narnia. He didn't look exactly like I wanted him to, but McGonagall in the movies hasn't ever looked quite like the McGonagall in my head, and I wouldn't want anyone other than Maggie Smith in the role.
*I really liked the first Burrow scene. The shot of Ginny sitting in her window was really sweet. It would have been fun to see them getting their O.W.L. scores, since I'm sure Emma was just like Hermione with her A-Levels, but it does make sense that they cut that out.
*The Unbreakable Vow was good as a movie scene. The blatant turning-inside-out of the canon rankled a little, but Helena Bonham Carter was really creepy and kind of funny. I thought Narcissa acted well, but I couldn't get over the Cruella DeVil hair.
*Weasley's Wizard Wheezes was perfect!! That was probably the thing I was looking forward to the most. I just wish it could have lasted a little longer, and I wish they didn't make the twins always speak in unison, but I'm greedy. ;)
*It was clever how they changed the Borgin and Burke's thing to an initiation. I didn't mind that at all. But having the Trio climb up on the roof?? Seriously, THEY'RE WIZARDS. And they'd just come from WWW...why couldn't they have resurrected the Extendable Ears?? Those couldn't have cost the CGI folks too terribly to produce.
*The train scene was pretty good. Luna was great as always, and I thought it did a great job of establishing how frustrated Harry was getting with Ron and Hermione and vice-versa. My friend Carie and I almost died laughing when Malfoy was talking about how Hogwarts was getting so bad...it was totally, totally crying out for a "Pigfarts" reference!! (If you don't know what I'm talking about, please, please, PLEASE go watch "A Very Potter Musical" by StarKidPotter on YouTube!!) Draco stomping on Harry was just exactly like I was hoping it would be. I'll say right now that Tom Felton was absolutely brilliant throughout the entire film. Of course I didn't expect anything else, but even so, I was totally blown away!! I would have liked to have Tonks find Harry, since I just love Tonks, but I didn't mind that it was Luna. And I'm really glad that they didn't make her Spectrespecs able to see through the Invisibility Cloak, because that would have just been blatantly wrong. Maybe Wrackspurts do exist!!
*I loved that Hermione was freaking out over Harry and Ron just cared about the food. Dumbledore's comments to the whole school about Tom Riddle were a little off canon, since very few people know Voldemort's real name, but I'll let it slide.
*I really love that Professor McGonagall got some comedic lines!! That's rare even in the books. I really, really loved the comedy throughout the entire movie. The romantic, flirting, cat-and-mouse stuff was really fun, as well as just the friends kidding around with each other, and I thought Lavender was perfect. I think they struck a really good balance between the humor and the dark stuff in this film, which OotP lacked somewhat. Most people, including me, don't often think of the books as having comedy in them, but there really are so many little out-and-out hilarious moments.
*Potions class was pretty close to perfect. I loved Harry and Ron fighting over the books in the cupboard. I thought this was funny about myself: For some reason, probably because the actually HBP book is purple and green, I was expecting the copies of Advanced Potion Making to be purple and green too!!
*Quidditch was great, although it was a little random that Ginny was helping Harry with try-outs. MacLaggen was hilarious, and I'm so glad Rupert finally got a chance to do some real showing off!! I so wish they would put more Quidditch in the movies, because it's so much fun, but I understand why they don't.
*I really liked the scene where Harry was comforting Hermione and Ron and Lavender burst in. It was a bit different from the book, but I really, really liked it. And I'm sure Frak was happy that they put in the "Oppugno!" I remember him going on and on about that.
*The scene with Katie and the necklace was really good. Really freaky too.
*I thought the Pensieve scenes came off really, really well (although you can't actually pick up memories!!). Michael Gambon really had some shining moments in this one, which is more than you can say about the previous three. And both young Riddle and teenage Riddle were really, really good.
*The Slug Club scenes were great too, except for Neville. Poor Neville, who had maybe two lines in the whole film!! That really, really ticked me off. For one, movie audiences wouldn't have clue why Slughorn thought Neville was important enough to be at the dinner, and then having him be a waiter at the Christmas party just made me really mad. I know that the movies are specifically from Harry's POV, but I think including Neville's backstory makes our understanding of Harry's trials and his destiny so much richer. I'm really looking forward to Neville at the end of DH, of course, and I honestly don't think they'll screw that moment up, but I was really hoping to see Neville grow into his BA-ness. The rest of the Christmas party scene was really hilarious, though.
*Lupin and Harry's conversation at the Burrow was good. I really wish the movies had done more to develop Lupin's character, and also David Thewlis has just never quite fit the role for me, but that scene came off well. I really could have done without the attack on the Burrow. I actually had high hopes for that scene even though it wasn't in the book, but it was just random and patchy and didn't really accomplish anything. It occurred to me later...was there any mention anywhere of Greyback being a werewolf, or were you just supposed to pick that up?? When he started chasing Ginny all the fans gasped, because we knew what he was, but I'm not sure people who have only seen the movies would get that.
*Ron and the love potion was beyond hilarious. "Harry, I'm in love with her!" "Okay, you're in love with her. Have you ever actually met her?" "No...Can you introduce me?" So great!! And the poisoning was good too, although the bezoar probably wouldn't have made sense if you hadn't read the books. The hospital scene was really good as well. More cat fighting done well.
*Sectumsempra...Oh. My. Gosh. Incredible. I wish Snape had forced Harry to give him his book, though, because that would have been an important underscoring of its significance. For a movie called Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, they really spent way too little time on figuring out who the Half-Blood Prince was.
*And then...the Room of Requirement scene. Minor complaint first: I wish they'd put the diadem in, because that's such a great surprise in DH. Major complaint: IT WAS SOOOOOO CHEESY!!! Oh my gosh, Ginny said her first line in that scene, and I went, "Did George Lucas write this dialogue?!?" It was terrible. It was awkward and cringe-worthy and I was so disappointed. I loved the way Harry and Ginny's kiss was in the book, and I'd heard Bonnie say in an interview that this kiss was different and softer and more private, and I was okay with that. But I was not okay at how it turned out. Fail, Steve Kloves, FAIL. And you know what?? I don't think they ever mentioned Ginny and Dean breaking up, so I suppose Ginny was being a player. But that's minor compared to the epic fail kiss.
*Felix Felicis was awesome. "Harry on drugs," as Emma referred to him at the press junket in New York, was sooooooo funny. I love Dan so much. Aragog's suddenly needing a funeral was a little random, but c'est la vie. (C'est la morte?? Lol.) I thought what Slughorn said about Lily and the fish and then what Harry said in return were really beautiful.
*Horcrux hunting: Apparating to the rock was really neat. And the set inside the cave was really cool...I hadn't pictured the rocks all crystal-y, but I liked that. The coloring was so completely two-tone, though, that it suddenly seemed like a black-and-white movie. I really would have liked the horcrux to be emitting green light, because it would have been easier on my eyes and of course the green would have been symbolic. It would have been better if Harry had seen the hand in the water and they'd had the conversation about Inferi while they were crossing in the boat, because it would have made much more sense for Harry to try to get water from a charm rather than the lake at first, and it would have been much more suspenseful while he was reaching toward the lake. And the Inferi were not as truly creepy as I was expecting. They were too much like Gollum and not enough like faceless, soul-less zombies. And we'll ignore the fact that Harry would have been dead if he'd gone under the water.
*Why did we not see the Dark Mark before Harry and Dumbledore arrived back at Hogwarts?? How on earth did Dumbledore know that he and Harry were in danger?? And if he had known the Death Eaters were coming before they went horcrux hunting, he wouldn't have left the school at all. Malfoy and Dumbledore's conversation was brilliant. Really, really, really brilliant. But without a battle raging downstairs, and without Harry being invisible and immobilized, it was like, "Harry, you're an idiot, run and get some help!!" I was really, really disappointed in Dumbledore's death and the subsequent chase after Snape. I really didn't feel affected at all. I think it lost about 90% of the emotional impact without the battle raging downstairs and knowing the sense that they had lost their greatest ally while they were all fighting for their lives. Bellatrix destroying the Great Hall without anyone trying to stop her felt really annoying and pointless. Snape's revelation that he was the Half-Blood Prince didn't really have any gravity to it because so little was mentioned about the HBP throughout the film. The wand salute that wiped out the Dark Mark was really powerful, however.
*I really didn't like that there wasn't a funeral scene for Dumbledore, even though we've known for a very long time that it wasn't going to be included. That scene might have induced some emotion into Dumbledore's death for me. It also feels like Harry's relationship with Ginny is just a loose end without him breaking it off with her. It won't make any sense when we get to DH. I liked Harry and Hermione's conversation at the end, but it felt really, really wrong that Ron was just sitting there and not saying anything. Poor Ron gets overlooked again. However, I loved the last shot. Ending on the image of the phoenix was really poignant and beautiful.
*A couple of final film-y things: There were some really awesome transition shots of the castle. I especially loved the one that panned from Ron and Lavender making out in the window to Draco standing on the balcony and staring out into the snow. I really disliked most of the coloring in this film, however. Everything, everything, except maybe Weasley's Wizard Wheezes and Quidditch, seemed SO washed out. I can see doing that for effect in the Muggle world, but the Wizarding world should be so rich and bright and saturated. Hogwarts might be dimly lit, since they don't use electricity, but it should still be full of color.
So those are my thoughts. I know, I'm picky and long-winded and I have trouble separating the book from the movie. But frankly, if you're going to do something, do it right. There were high points and low points, and the title "Madeline's Favorite HP Movie" is currently up in the air. I'm seeing it again with my dad this weekend, so we'll see what I think then. I'd love to know what you thought of it!!
(Spoilers!!)
(SPOILERS!!)
(Beyond here there be SPOILERS!!)
*The very first thing, the little bit of Harry and Dumbledore at the Ministry at the end of OotP, was very odd. At first I thought it was going to be a dream. It seemed a little random and unnecessary, and it was weird that it was before the movie title came up, but it wasn't a big deal.
*We'd heard all this talk about Harry flirting with a waitress, and I was a little unsure how that was going to come off, but it was cute and amusing. I really feel the movies are lacking without the Dursleys, but it still made for a pretty good opening.
*Slughorn was brilliant. I had no doubts about Jim Broadbent at all, as he's one of my favorite actors because of Moulin Rouge and Narnia. He didn't look exactly like I wanted him to, but McGonagall in the movies hasn't ever looked quite like the McGonagall in my head, and I wouldn't want anyone other than Maggie Smith in the role.
*I really liked the first Burrow scene. The shot of Ginny sitting in her window was really sweet. It would have been fun to see them getting their O.W.L. scores, since I'm sure Emma was just like Hermione with her A-Levels, but it does make sense that they cut that out.
*The Unbreakable Vow was good as a movie scene. The blatant turning-inside-out of the canon rankled a little, but Helena Bonham Carter was really creepy and kind of funny. I thought Narcissa acted well, but I couldn't get over the Cruella DeVil hair.
*Weasley's Wizard Wheezes was perfect!! That was probably the thing I was looking forward to the most. I just wish it could have lasted a little longer, and I wish they didn't make the twins always speak in unison, but I'm greedy. ;)
*It was clever how they changed the Borgin and Burke's thing to an initiation. I didn't mind that at all. But having the Trio climb up on the roof?? Seriously, THEY'RE WIZARDS. And they'd just come from WWW...why couldn't they have resurrected the Extendable Ears?? Those couldn't have cost the CGI folks too terribly to produce.
*The train scene was pretty good. Luna was great as always, and I thought it did a great job of establishing how frustrated Harry was getting with Ron and Hermione and vice-versa. My friend Carie and I almost died laughing when Malfoy was talking about how Hogwarts was getting so bad...it was totally, totally crying out for a "Pigfarts" reference!! (If you don't know what I'm talking about, please, please, PLEASE go watch "A Very Potter Musical" by StarKidPotter on YouTube!!) Draco stomping on Harry was just exactly like I was hoping it would be. I'll say right now that Tom Felton was absolutely brilliant throughout the entire film. Of course I didn't expect anything else, but even so, I was totally blown away!! I would have liked to have Tonks find Harry, since I just love Tonks, but I didn't mind that it was Luna. And I'm really glad that they didn't make her Spectrespecs able to see through the Invisibility Cloak, because that would have just been blatantly wrong. Maybe Wrackspurts do exist!!
*I loved that Hermione was freaking out over Harry and Ron just cared about the food. Dumbledore's comments to the whole school about Tom Riddle were a little off canon, since very few people know Voldemort's real name, but I'll let it slide.
*I really love that Professor McGonagall got some comedic lines!! That's rare even in the books. I really, really loved the comedy throughout the entire movie. The romantic, flirting, cat-and-mouse stuff was really fun, as well as just the friends kidding around with each other, and I thought Lavender was perfect. I think they struck a really good balance between the humor and the dark stuff in this film, which OotP lacked somewhat. Most people, including me, don't often think of the books as having comedy in them, but there really are so many little out-and-out hilarious moments.
*Potions class was pretty close to perfect. I loved Harry and Ron fighting over the books in the cupboard. I thought this was funny about myself: For some reason, probably because the actually HBP book is purple and green, I was expecting the copies of Advanced Potion Making to be purple and green too!!
*Quidditch was great, although it was a little random that Ginny was helping Harry with try-outs. MacLaggen was hilarious, and I'm so glad Rupert finally got a chance to do some real showing off!! I so wish they would put more Quidditch in the movies, because it's so much fun, but I understand why they don't.
*I really liked the scene where Harry was comforting Hermione and Ron and Lavender burst in. It was a bit different from the book, but I really, really liked it. And I'm sure Frak was happy that they put in the "Oppugno!" I remember him going on and on about that.
*The scene with Katie and the necklace was really good. Really freaky too.
*I thought the Pensieve scenes came off really, really well (although you can't actually pick up memories!!). Michael Gambon really had some shining moments in this one, which is more than you can say about the previous three. And both young Riddle and teenage Riddle were really, really good.
*The Slug Club scenes were great too, except for Neville. Poor Neville, who had maybe two lines in the whole film!! That really, really ticked me off. For one, movie audiences wouldn't have clue why Slughorn thought Neville was important enough to be at the dinner, and then having him be a waiter at the Christmas party just made me really mad. I know that the movies are specifically from Harry's POV, but I think including Neville's backstory makes our understanding of Harry's trials and his destiny so much richer. I'm really looking forward to Neville at the end of DH, of course, and I honestly don't think they'll screw that moment up, but I was really hoping to see Neville grow into his BA-ness. The rest of the Christmas party scene was really hilarious, though.
*Lupin and Harry's conversation at the Burrow was good. I really wish the movies had done more to develop Lupin's character, and also David Thewlis has just never quite fit the role for me, but that scene came off well. I really could have done without the attack on the Burrow. I actually had high hopes for that scene even though it wasn't in the book, but it was just random and patchy and didn't really accomplish anything. It occurred to me later...was there any mention anywhere of Greyback being a werewolf, or were you just supposed to pick that up?? When he started chasing Ginny all the fans gasped, because we knew what he was, but I'm not sure people who have only seen the movies would get that.
*Ron and the love potion was beyond hilarious. "Harry, I'm in love with her!" "Okay, you're in love with her. Have you ever actually met her?" "No...Can you introduce me?" So great!! And the poisoning was good too, although the bezoar probably wouldn't have made sense if you hadn't read the books. The hospital scene was really good as well. More cat fighting done well.
*Sectumsempra...Oh. My. Gosh. Incredible. I wish Snape had forced Harry to give him his book, though, because that would have been an important underscoring of its significance. For a movie called Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, they really spent way too little time on figuring out who the Half-Blood Prince was.
*And then...the Room of Requirement scene. Minor complaint first: I wish they'd put the diadem in, because that's such a great surprise in DH. Major complaint: IT WAS SOOOOOO CHEESY!!! Oh my gosh, Ginny said her first line in that scene, and I went, "Did George Lucas write this dialogue?!?" It was terrible. It was awkward and cringe-worthy and I was so disappointed. I loved the way Harry and Ginny's kiss was in the book, and I'd heard Bonnie say in an interview that this kiss was different and softer and more private, and I was okay with that. But I was not okay at how it turned out. Fail, Steve Kloves, FAIL. And you know what?? I don't think they ever mentioned Ginny and Dean breaking up, so I suppose Ginny was being a player. But that's minor compared to the epic fail kiss.
*Felix Felicis was awesome. "Harry on drugs," as Emma referred to him at the press junket in New York, was sooooooo funny. I love Dan so much. Aragog's suddenly needing a funeral was a little random, but c'est la vie. (C'est la morte?? Lol.) I thought what Slughorn said about Lily and the fish and then what Harry said in return were really beautiful.
*Horcrux hunting: Apparating to the rock was really neat. And the set inside the cave was really cool...I hadn't pictured the rocks all crystal-y, but I liked that. The coloring was so completely two-tone, though, that it suddenly seemed like a black-and-white movie. I really would have liked the horcrux to be emitting green light, because it would have been easier on my eyes and of course the green would have been symbolic. It would have been better if Harry had seen the hand in the water and they'd had the conversation about Inferi while they were crossing in the boat, because it would have made much more sense for Harry to try to get water from a charm rather than the lake at first, and it would have been much more suspenseful while he was reaching toward the lake. And the Inferi were not as truly creepy as I was expecting. They were too much like Gollum and not enough like faceless, soul-less zombies. And we'll ignore the fact that Harry would have been dead if he'd gone under the water.
*Why did we not see the Dark Mark before Harry and Dumbledore arrived back at Hogwarts?? How on earth did Dumbledore know that he and Harry were in danger?? And if he had known the Death Eaters were coming before they went horcrux hunting, he wouldn't have left the school at all. Malfoy and Dumbledore's conversation was brilliant. Really, really, really brilliant. But without a battle raging downstairs, and without Harry being invisible and immobilized, it was like, "Harry, you're an idiot, run and get some help!!" I was really, really disappointed in Dumbledore's death and the subsequent chase after Snape. I really didn't feel affected at all. I think it lost about 90% of the emotional impact without the battle raging downstairs and knowing the sense that they had lost their greatest ally while they were all fighting for their lives. Bellatrix destroying the Great Hall without anyone trying to stop her felt really annoying and pointless. Snape's revelation that he was the Half-Blood Prince didn't really have any gravity to it because so little was mentioned about the HBP throughout the film. The wand salute that wiped out the Dark Mark was really powerful, however.
*I really didn't like that there wasn't a funeral scene for Dumbledore, even though we've known for a very long time that it wasn't going to be included. That scene might have induced some emotion into Dumbledore's death for me. It also feels like Harry's relationship with Ginny is just a loose end without him breaking it off with her. It won't make any sense when we get to DH. I liked Harry and Hermione's conversation at the end, but it felt really, really wrong that Ron was just sitting there and not saying anything. Poor Ron gets overlooked again. However, I loved the last shot. Ending on the image of the phoenix was really poignant and beautiful.
*A couple of final film-y things: There were some really awesome transition shots of the castle. I especially loved the one that panned from Ron and Lavender making out in the window to Draco standing on the balcony and staring out into the snow. I really disliked most of the coloring in this film, however. Everything, everything, except maybe Weasley's Wizard Wheezes and Quidditch, seemed SO washed out. I can see doing that for effect in the Muggle world, but the Wizarding world should be so rich and bright and saturated. Hogwarts might be dimly lit, since they don't use electricity, but it should still be full of color.
So those are my thoughts. I know, I'm picky and long-winded and I have trouble separating the book from the movie. But frankly, if you're going to do something, do it right. There were high points and low points, and the title "Madeline's Favorite HP Movie" is currently up in the air. I'm seeing it again with my dad this weekend, so we'll see what I think then. I'd love to know what you thought of it!!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
