More than another ‘Harry Potter’s Greatest Hits’
I saw the IMAX 3D version of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, so your results may vary.
To do justice to such a sprawling episode in the Harry Potter saga would be impossible for a reasonably long movie; this one doesn’t feel too long. But it also doesn’t hold together too well as a narrative. If you’re one of the few people not to have already read the book, many of the plot elements will feel arbitrary or confusing, especially in the climactic battle scene. (Incidentally, there’s a moment in that battle that feels lifted straight from The Fellowship of the Ring.)
I enjoyed this movie: Harry is becoming more complex and has begun to understand the “real world” repercussions of the use of magic. Unfortunately, this thread is underdeveloped: we see too little of Neville Longbottom, and Dolores Umbridge’s hold over Hogwart’s seems too quick and too overt.
The best part of the movie was the type design, especially in the various newspaper layouts. It’s worth the price of admission on its own.
The most frustrating part of the movie? The 20 minutes of 3D by necessity interrupt the movie’s pacing. We are visually informed when to put our glasses on, have to adjust to a different way of seeing (and one that doesn’t always work very well), and then are notified when to take the glasses off. Nothing says excitement like having giant green (or red, crossed-out) glasses flashing across the bottom of the screen!
The creepiest part? Umbridge looks an awful lot like Laura Bush.
Review: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
Grade: 