Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
United Kingdom/United States, 2009
Director: David Yates
Screenplay: Steve Kloves
Story: J.K. Rowling
I believe film is fundamentally a storytelling art, and that good books often make the best movies. Consider Ben-Hur, Gone With the Wind, the Shawshank Redemption, the Godfather, and the Fellowship of the Ring, to name a few. The Half-Blood Prince is my favorite Harry Potter book for its grippingly dark chapters, the ongoing mystery of the Prince, and some excellent Hogwarts asides. Happily, this all translated very well into what I believe is the best Potter movie to date.
This is contrary to a lot of movie critics, but then I am somewhat unusual in that my respect for the Potter movies has increased rather than decreased with each installment. While many cite the declining sense of wonder of the franchise, I always felt the early Potter movies were too unfocused, a melee of special effects that (perhaps inevitably) felt more wondrous on page than on screen. I also have a tough time with raw actors, and indeed some of the weaker moments in Prince are due to Frank Dillane’s overacted Tom Riddle.
But the central cast is older now, with their craft better honed and the storylines more mature. The romance between Ron and Hermoine comes off a little awkwardly, as I thought it did in the novels, but it provides some nice moments between the three friends (happy is the story that trusts its characters to play off each other). The movie benefits from the familiarity we have with the troika and their real-life counterparts, and there are scenes where I was struck by how enduring Rowling’s creations really are.
A few strong story threads prop up Prince throughout. I might quibble that some moments and moods did not translate perfectly from the book, but this is still the emotional apex of the series. The journey into the seaside cave is nearly as powerful as the written version, while the final scenes have a desperate quality heightened by the consistently moody cinematography. There are times when the movie overreaches a little – I could have probably done without the wand-lifting scene after an otherwise powerful moment – but overall, this is a movie that moves well and looks nice.
Style: 8
I was surprised by how much I liked the look of this film. Yates imbues the landscape with towering clouds and twists of black lightning that befit Voldemort’s ascension. Wide shots frequently convey the scope and grandeur of the Hogwart’s grounds, and the Quidditch sequences seemed tighter than ever. Though there is less overall eye candy than in the earlier movies, on a macro level I think Prince is more visually accomplished.
Substance: 7
There are some lovely moments between the three central characters as they confront the complexities of growing older. The storyline is more urgent than that of previous installments, culminating in a couple excellent scenes. Between Ralph Fiennes and now Hero Fiennes-Tiffin and Frank Dillane, the series just can’t seem to get Voldemort right.
Overall: 7
Like all of the Harry Potter movies, the Half-Blood Prince sometimes wanders towards melodrama. But more frequently it is beautifully executed and quite memorable. It benefits from the strength of Rowling’s plot and the maturation of its principals, ultimately resulting in the most engaging Harry Potter to date.
July 26, 2009 at 5:50 pm
I like the film version of HP6, too. I thought movie really set the mood well (better than the book, in fact, where I thought a lot of the daily Hogwarts moments were too light for the darkness of the times), and, unlike you Jay, I did like the two young Tom Riddles (I thought the older one really captured the smiling menace of Voldemort). It’s hard for me to say if it’s the best of the series (really, with six films, it’s hard to keep them all on track), but I think it’s a contender.
One complaint that I have (and you mentioned) are some of the relationships. I mean, why do Harry and Ginny like each other? More specifically, why does Harry like Ginny (didn’t Ginny have a crush on him in the second book)? That never seemed to be developed to me (or maybe I forgot something that happened in HP5). But was there ever a moment where their relationship really seemed to take off (maybe with Dumbledore’s Army?) that I am forgetting about?
July 27, 2009 at 9:56 am
Yeah, I should probably go back and rewatch some of the earlier films. I can only remember a vague sense of disappointment. It’s really a shame we lost Richard Harris, because his Dumbledore would have made the newer films even better.
Maybe I built Voldemort up in my mind too much (anyone else think you shouldn’t type/say his name in real life, even though that thought is ridiculous?) but I expected a slicker interpretation. Dillane perhaps looked the part, but his pauses were just too over the top for me. I pictured Tom Riddle as being outwardly perfect with an unidentifiable menace about him, more subtle than Dillane’s performance. I may be asking too much.
July 27, 2009 at 2:37 pm
“Half-Blood Prince” (HBP) is a solid adaptation of arguably the darkest of JK Rowling’s “Harry Potter” novels. The principle cast is still comprised of teenagers (Daniel Radcliffe is just 19) and continues to improve as the saga approaches its much anticipated conclusion.
Professors Dumbledore (Michael Gambon) and Snape (Alan Rickman) are the only two supporting cast members that have significant screen time in this film. The rest of the colorful characters are largely absent, appearing in just one or two scenes each and uttering only a handful of lines (if any at all).
I have maintained for some time now that Warner Brothers is the only reputable movie studio in Hollywood. Their willingness to continue to do faithful page-to-screen adaptations of the Potter movies is evidence that supports this theory when compared to say… anything that Fox Searchlight has done in the past 20 years?
Despite the extremely dark nature of HBP, the MPAA let the movie slide by with merely a PG rating. This had me on guard before I ever set foot in theater. Having read the books, I feared the studio had finally chickened out and severely watered down the franchise to make sure that it would be viewed by as many people as possible — the previous two films received PG-13 ratings.
Warner Brothers almost certainly had to do a little cajoling to get a ‘PG’ and I have no doubt that money was the motivating factor. I am happy to report, however, that the film does not suffer for this. HBP does not pull any punches, even in two of the darkest scenes from the novel.
Additionally, the studio had been demanding shorter run-times for the films since Chamber of Secrets (the second — and IMO, best — one for you laymen out there) clocked in at over 2.5 hours. This WAS a detriment to the films as the pacing of the third and fourth movies were far too herky-jerky for my taste. Too many elements of the story had to be compromised or scrapped entirely in order for the films to stay around 2 hrs. 15 minutes. Half-Blood Prince has a run-time of 2 hrs. 35 minutes, so it is nice to see that Warner Brothers has finally awoken to the fact that no one cares if the movies run long. It’s far more important for them to be good and above all, faithful to Rowling’s books.
For fans of the Potter series, you will not be disappointed by this installment. If you are not yet a fan, then you’re probably a lost cause as far as Harry Potter is concerned and this movie isn’t going to convert you.
But for even casual fans of the books and/or films, HBP will take on an appropriately dark and ambient journey through the dark side of the wizarding world that, to this point, we have seen all too little of in the previous installments. It’s not all doom and gloom, though; HBP mixes in some of that Potter-trademark clever and light hearted humor throughout.