Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (Widescreen Edition) (2009)






Starring: Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint

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Product Description
# Actors: Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, Emma Watson, Jim Broadbent, Elarica Gallacher
# Directors: David Yates
# Writers: J.K. Rowling, Steve Kloves
# Producers: David Barron, David Heyman, Lionel Wigram, Tim Lewis
# Format: Color, DVD, Widescreen, NTSC
# Language: English
# Number of discs: 1
# Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
# Studio: Warner Home Video
# DVD Release Date: December 8, 2009
# Run Time: 135 minutes

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Reviews Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince


Now we follow up with "Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince" and....what a difference. There are plenty of cuts of course, no Harry Potter movie can be free of cuts without being waaaay too long. But the movie's length was at least comparable to some of the others. The 3 lead characters were as spot on as ever. Michael Gambon finally brings a bit more warmth to his portrayal of Albus Dumbledor than he brought to the last few movies. Tom Felton played Draco Malfoy with all the depth one would hope for in his most important role in the series. Alan Rickman isn't seen too much as Severus Snape, but when he is he's as wonderful as ever.

-Good Things-
1) Jim Broadbent is an excellent selection for Slughorn, and his character is as jovial and unique as out of Rowling's novel.

2) I also believe this is the best performance by Michael Gambon as Dumbledore - he appeared too neurotic in the previous films, as Dumbledore is never supposed to be overly-nervous, as he always has an idea of what's going on. The scene in the cave is straight from the book, and we see Dumbledore exactly as Rowling had intended: a vulnerable person, just like everyone else. Plus, the setting was fantastic and very suspenseful.

3) Ron vs. Hermoine! Very enjoyable scenes between these two characters, adding extra humour to a very dark film.

4) Draco Malfoy's character is more prominent in this film, and viewers enjoy seeing a side of the younger Malfoy that perhaps is hinted in the previous films/books - overconfident on the outside, but different on the inside. This scene also shows a side of Harry's character that will further show in the final film.

-Bad Things-
1) For goodness sakes, WHY do they see it as their prerogative to change CRUCIAL sections of the book?? And then add other useless junk?? The waitress - completely unnecessary scene, as we get many glimpses of Harry's developing maturity in other scenes. It made no sense to add it. The fire at the Burrow - this is just plain ridiculous. The Burrow is the place of Harry's salvation, where the Order meet on countless occasions, etc. etc. I don't understand why they chose to burn the place up - where do they propose Ron's family live for the Dealthly Hallows dialogue??!

2) One thing I am really disappointed was removed from the films was the story of Neville's parents. They were NOT killed by Bellatrix Lestrange (as the previous film hinted) - and there was a key scene in this film that gives the background to Neville's determination to prove himself in the final book. Mr. Weasley's attack was removed completely. Moreover, there was what would have been a very funny revival of a glimpse of Lockhart connected with these events - I for one like these references back to earlier books, and am not happy with this exclusion.

3) They also seem to have removed the older Weasley boys from the movies, and this is not acceptible, as Bill, Fleur, and Charley play a key role in battle against the Dark Lord, and Bill's attack by the warewolf gives further credit to their parts to play. The upcoming wedding also sets the scene for the Deathly Hallows and I am sadly thinking perhaps this will be completely removed from the next film.