Movie Talk

As part of the "Invalid Item"  contest, I've been asked to post a bit here on...well, it doesn't actually say I have to talk about the Harry Potter movies, but I'm guessing that's the point. So here's my thoughts on that series of eight (or nine, depending on how you see it):

Short version: I like them, but not as much as the books.

Long version: As adaptations, they do a pretty good job. In the books, a huge amount of the story rests on seemingly throwaway details, which films by their very nature just can't replicate, but they come much closer than might be expected. Even as products of the Hollywood machine, there's no attempts at dumbing down, and the very British variety of whimsy is maintained.

I'm not one of those people who thinks that adaptations have to be a word-for-word recreation of their source material. Every alteration they made was for the sake of the medium they were working in, which is how it has to be, and how it should be. That being said, I do feel that their version of Voldemort's final defeat was a definite let-down...but it also rests on some very arcane and convoluted wand lore, so I can see how it wound up that way.

As an aside, the films also provide for a great study in the history of visual effects. Comparing the CGI in Philosopher's Stone (2000) with that in Deathly Hallows (2010/2011)...you can really see the advances that have been made.

As another aside, Fantastic Beats and Where to Find Them is a very interesting watch. Being designed for the cinema from the ground up, the difference that makes to the structure and pacing is palpable. It's also a great film in its own right, in case you've yet to see it.

Well, that's what I think, or at least as much of what I think as I can express intelligently. What do you think?


-Matt Appleby-