Somehow I never did one of these when I went to the actual cinema and saw it. Since we rewatched it last night for the first time since, a few summary thoughts for the blog-record:
- Dark, dark, darkety-dark. That’ll continue through the next two flicks.
- Finally feeling sorry for Draco.
- A moderate amount of changes from the book. I disagree with some, though I understand them.
- Alas for those trying to figure things out, the “half-blood prince” story line, already scant in the book, practically vanishes in the movie.
- The FX are downplayed here, vs some other movies. That works well, as this is much more of a character film. Indeed, where the FX do show up, they feel forced in (even if they echo bits in the book).
- Dumbledore’s continued manipulation of Harry (and others) — all in a good cause, mind you — grates even further here.
- Why is the penseive different in every movie we see it?
- Again, a lot of Tom Riddle background is chopped here, though what there is (around Slughorn) is good. (Slughorn is also portrayed quite nicely.)
- Snogging ahoy! The book was thick with the build-up of hormones and the growing relationships between the characters, and the movie carries that on, though with mixed success. Part of that’s my problem, because I’ve never much cared for the character of Ginny Weasley (or the actress portraying her in the movies), and thus never “got” the Harry/Ginny thing (my personal vote would have been for Luna).
Overall, an okay movie, albeit suffering from being mid-series and largely a setup for the events of the book/movies to follow.
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