Thursday, July 21, 2005
My Top Potter List
1.) Goblet of Fire
A rather strange choice, I know. Most people are Azkaban fans. And that's great. That's great. But this one has it all for me -- the world cup, the death eaters, the dark mark, the school year, the tournament, the shocking ending. Whew! Probably the toughest to get on film. I'm honestly just hoping they don't blow it.
2.) Prisoner of Azkaban
Last 200 pages are impossible to put down. Lupin, Black, Buckbeak, the time-turner. She's completely hit her stride here.
3.) Half-Blood Prince
Seems more balanced than Order, but also more layered. Many more questions are posed and the lead-in to the finale could not have been plotted better. A lot of obvious set-up with a lot of over-long exposition at the end, but there is enough left to the imagination to make it worthwhile. It's hard to look ahead to 7 and believe Harry has any sort of chance of surviving. The structure of this one makes it easier to film than 3 or 4, so we have something to look forward to. Additionally, there should be some great scenes for actors to cut their teeth on, namely the players of Dumbledore, Malfoy, Harry, and Snape.
4.) Sorcerer's Stone
It's the opener, when everything was fresh and new. I'm not a big fan of the ending sequence, though book 6 really does clarify it a bit better for me now.
5.) Order of the Phoenix
Harry's pretty pissed-off here, and may be a bit overdone in that respect. Excellent conclusion, though. Should make for a fine movie, and some lucky filmmaker must be drooling, dreaming up that final wizards' battle. This one, like others, bothers me with so much of its exposition at the end. She's definitely latched onto an outline, but she makes up for it with that new Umbridge character everyone loves to hate.
6.) Chamber of Secrets
Half-Blood clarified the whole diary as a Horcrux thing, but as a stand-alone, this one seems a bit manipulative and predictable with the whole school suspecting Harry. It does have its moments, though, and I enjoyed the movie.
A rather strange choice, I know. Most people are Azkaban fans. And that's great. That's great. But this one has it all for me -- the world cup, the death eaters, the dark mark, the school year, the tournament, the shocking ending. Whew! Probably the toughest to get on film. I'm honestly just hoping they don't blow it.
2.) Prisoner of Azkaban
Last 200 pages are impossible to put down. Lupin, Black, Buckbeak, the time-turner. She's completely hit her stride here.
3.) Half-Blood Prince
Seems more balanced than Order, but also more layered. Many more questions are posed and the lead-in to the finale could not have been plotted better. A lot of obvious set-up with a lot of over-long exposition at the end, but there is enough left to the imagination to make it worthwhile. It's hard to look ahead to 7 and believe Harry has any sort of chance of surviving. The structure of this one makes it easier to film than 3 or 4, so we have something to look forward to. Additionally, there should be some great scenes for actors to cut their teeth on, namely the players of Dumbledore, Malfoy, Harry, and Snape.
4.) Sorcerer's Stone
It's the opener, when everything was fresh and new. I'm not a big fan of the ending sequence, though book 6 really does clarify it a bit better for me now.
5.) Order of the Phoenix
Harry's pretty pissed-off here, and may be a bit overdone in that respect. Excellent conclusion, though. Should make for a fine movie, and some lucky filmmaker must be drooling, dreaming up that final wizards' battle. This one, like others, bothers me with so much of its exposition at the end. She's definitely latched onto an outline, but she makes up for it with that new Umbridge character everyone loves to hate.
6.) Chamber of Secrets
Half-Blood clarified the whole diary as a Horcrux thing, but as a stand-alone, this one seems a bit manipulative and predictable with the whole school suspecting Harry. It does have its moments, though, and I enjoyed the movie.
