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It's another year older, another year wiser for everyone's favourite young wizard. And, it's with relief, that the very same ...
It's another year older, another year wiser for everyone's favourite young wizard. And, it's with relief, that the very same sentiment can be applied to director David Yates' sophomore effort in the Harry Potter franchise. After the many trials endured during "The Goblet of Fire" and "The Order of The Phoenix" thanks to the Dark Lord, Harry is all but unrecognisable here - he's a confident young man. No longer the Boy Wonder at all but Dubledore's right hand man (quite literally for long stretches of the film) and he's determined to live up to his billing as the 'Chosen One' despite the ever-circling dark forces. Perhaps as a result, "The Half Blood Prince" feels like the most confident, and very nearly the most accomplished, instalment to date. With the Death Eaters causing havoc in both the Muggle and wizarding worlds alike, you'd think there would be little time for Harry to be checking out the girls of Hogwarts. But notice them he does as our Harry is all grown up now - something that's not lost on Dumbledore as the old Prof allows Potter closer into his circle of trust. They're now seeing eye-to-eye with Harry conscripted full time to help in the fight against Voldemort. Unfortunately for the good guys, said fight will only succeed with the help of Horace Slughorn and his shady past with Hogwarts' second most illustrious student - Tom Riddle (AKA The Big Bad). With Snape taking an all too unhealthy interest in school bully boy Drako Malfoy, and an old Potions Book belonging to the titular Prince throwing up more questions than answers, the last thing Potter needs right now is the glad eye from any number of his classmates. And they're all at it as trusty friends Ron and Hermione discover a few home truths about their friendship. On paper "The Half Blood Prince" may well be the slightest Potter thus far. There's romantic sub plots ago go and murmurings of conspiracy (aren't there always!) - something to do with a magical cupboard - but that's about it. Gone are the rip-roaring competitions of "The Goblet of Fire" and the twists of "Azkaban". Instead we're left with a fairly linear, no-nonsense story to follow but one brought home thanks to a certain wizard's fall (no spoilers here but fans know of whom I speak).It's to the credit of all involved then that "The Half Blood Prince" remains thoroughly watchable and likable. The cast are clearly by now the masters of their characters with Daniel Radcliffe demonstrating great comic timing and generally holding his own as a leading man. It's Michael Gambon (Dumbledore) and the debuting Jim Broadbent as the pompous, vainglorious Slughorn who steal the show however and suitably bedazzle. Gambon's Professor here lets loose a little by showing a gentler side to a man in his dotage. In fact, one scene in particular, alongside Radcliffe in Voldemort's lair will go down as the most impactful in Potter lore - not for the pyrotechnics but for the power play between the two as the student looks after the teacher and visa versa. Alan Rickman, great value as always, perennially snacks on Potter scenery and his all-too-brief appearances, despite his key role in this one (the clue is in the title folks), drive the film forwards. The only gripe may be Rupert Grint and Emma Watson's involvement or lack thereof. Their budding romance may be for the future films but here it's a sideshow, a distraction to the real business of wizard sleuthing. Yates, after Phoenix, has delivered another enjoyable year at Hogwarts but "The Half Blood Prince" has graduated into a whole new class thanks to its alumni getting to grips with their characters and maturing, in every sense of the word, where necessary. Perhaps the series has been under "Azkaban's" spell for too long and the third outing still feels like the most well rounded so far but "The Half Blood Prince" comes mighty close.
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Press Association
David Yates returns to the director's chair after the disappointing Harry Potter And The Order Of The Phoenix for the ...
David Yates returns to the director's chair after the disappointing Harry Potter And The Order Of The Phoenix for the penultimate instalment in JK Rowling's magical series as the boy wizard faces his toughest test yet. Thankfully, the sixth film is a marked improvement, riding some of the same dark undercurrents as Harry Potter And The Prisoner Of Azkaban, which remains the strongest filmed adaptation to date. The gloomy tone is set from the opening sequence in the grey, charm-free Muggle world, where three Death Eaters cause the collapse of the Millennium Bridge in London, and with it the loss of countless lives. Younger viewers may need to hide behi, nd their hands - or a parent - as Draco Malfoy (Tom Felton) stamps on Harry's head, Katie Bell (Georgina Leonidas) comes under attack from a cursed necklace and Bellatrix Lestrange (Helena Bonham Carter) and her cronies launch a nighttime attack on the Weasleys. To counterbalance the darkness and violence, screenwriter Steve Kloves focuses as well on the frequently comical growing pains of Harry (Daniel Radcliffe), Ron (Rupert Grint) and Hermione (Emma Watson) as they fall victim to raging, teenage hormones. Ron tries to extricate himself from a scarily passionate Lavender Brown (Jessie Cave) while Harry wrestles with his feelings for Ron's sister Ginnie (Bonnie Wright), who already has a boyfriend, Dean Thomas (Alfie Enoch). As for Hermione, she tries to rouse the green-eyes monster in Ron by lavishing her affections on vain Cormac McLaggen (Freddie Stroma). Dark clouds gather in Harry Potter And The Half-Blood Prince as the boy wizard and his ever loyal chums Ron and Hermione return to Hogwarts for their eventful sixth term. Professor Severus Snape (Alan Rickman) appears to align himself with the rejuvenated Death Eaters and is duly announced as the school's new Defence Against The Dark Arts teacher to the delight of Slytherin house. While Ron and Hermione continue with their studies, Harry spends a great deal of time with headmaster Albus Dumbledore (Michael Gambon) and a Pensieve, delving into Voldemort's past. The new Potions master, Horace Slughorn (Jim Broadbent) - a man weighed down by the shame of the past - may hold the key. Harry's bitter rivalry with Draco Malfoy (Tom Felton) threatens to boil over in the classroom, coming to a head atop the school's Astronomy Tower where one of the youngster's dearest friends sacrifices himself for the greater good. Harry Potter And The Half-Blood Prince condenses Rowling's hefty book into a mere 156 minutes, which pass at a fair lick. Screenwriter Kloves is forced to sacrifice key scenes and amalgamate others, with brief appearances by Hagrid (Robbie Coltrane), Remus (David Thewlis) and Wormtail (Timothy Spall). Visual effects are near flawless as usual, seamlessly melded with the live action, including the welcome return of Quidditch. The central trio continue to improve as actors, showing deft comic timing as the characters wrestle with their feelings, and Broadbent makes his mark as the guilt-ridden addition to the Hogwarts teaching fold. Evanna Lynch is a delight too in her few scenes as oddball Luna Lovegood who confides dreamily, " I sleepwalk, you see, that's why I wear shoes to bed!" Director Yates marshals all of the technical elements with increasing confidence and skill but there's still something missing from this sixth film, an emotional resonance that has readers of Rowling's books in floods of tears. Crucially, the film's most important sequence doesn't deliver the emotional sucker punch we're expecting - Radcliffe cannot cry convincingly on camera. The rallying cries of the final minutes set the scene neatly for the final film, Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows, which will be released in two parts in November 2010 and July 2011 respectively.
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