STOP! SPOILERS AHEAD! IF YOU HAVE NOT SEEN THE FILM YET, BEWARE! SPOILERS!
The movie was...okay. It was not the best Potter movie but it certainly was not the worst (Ahem, Prisoner of Azkaban). Now I've been reading the books since the first one was released so my expectations going into the films are very high. That being said, I loved the first two films. It seems though that after the loss of director Christopher Columbus and the death of Albus Dumbledore portrayer Richard Harris, the movies have been losing more and more magic with every one being made. This sixth film had the least amount of magic by far.
Let's start with the film's loyalty to the book. Before criticising the filmmakers for an unloyal portrayal of the book, one has to keep in mind that the book is massive and to stick to it 100% would result in a twelve hour movie. That being said, why are we adding sequences into the movie that weren't even in the book?! Nowhere in the novel did the Weasley's beloved Burrow burn down! If they had taken out that sequence, they could have made the ending into the intense finale that was in the book!
That brings me to my next point: the ending. In the book, remember the epic battle between the good and the bad? The Order and Dumbledore's Army against the Death Eaters? Yeah, it's non-existant in the movie. Why? My guess is that the producer's thought that there was a great battle scene in the last film and they didn't want to bore the audience with another. What they don't understand is that the fans want to see the book onscreen! Dumbledore didn't get the amazing funeral that was in the last chapter of the book. (By the way, what's with the new Dumbledore?! He's no where near the Dumbledore described in the novel.), Harry didn't have his final words with Ginny, Bill Weasley--Wait a minute, Bill Weasley wasn't even in the movie! All in all, the ending was crap.
The good, you ask? There was some good. They nailed the teenage romance that everyone goes through growing up (yep, even wizards have that awkward teenage phase!). At times, it was a little overdone and cheesy, but for the most part it was hilarious. Rupert Grint stole the show here with his perfect comic timing. Who knew that he had the funny in him? His scenes with Lavender Brown were priceless and exactly how I imagined they would be from the book. The Harry/Ginny relationship was barely developed. All we saw was that they were interested in each other. Boooooooring.
Overall, the film was a build-up, a segway, to the final film. We didn't see Voldemort once (except for in flashbacks of course). Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, which will be split into two parts, one to be released in 2010 and one in 2011, is the final film. I am so looking forward to that one now, hoping that they can recapture the magic from the first two films. Yes, the later films are darker, but they can still be magical!
I give Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince 2 stars out of 4. The next time we see our favourite trio will be when they are finally free of their Harry Potter personas in the final film, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.
Stay tuned for The Trilogy Post Part Two: The Music.
So true, this movie was so frustrating. I was so angry when i left the theatre.
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