“Excuse me, I have to go and
vomit.”
I think I may have reached a
turning point. I’ve enjoyed all the Harry
Potter films, but up until now I have somewhat regretted the increasing seriousness
of the films, in contrast to the sense of fun and wonder which the first film
had. With this one, though, I may be starting to appreciate the more serious
later films without pining for a more innocent past. This is probably because
the ongoing plot and character development begins to bear real fruit at this
point.
We begin with Harry and Dumbledore
and a load of iconic London landmarks, which are looking very cinematic and
presented as magical, in a way which evokes Neil
Gaiman’s Neverwhere and the works
of China Mieville. A bit of a scrap
occurs and the Millennium Bridge is destroyed with delightful gusto. It’s an
exciting beginning, which sets us up for a dramatic film. There’s a bit of
exposition as the pair visit an old pall of Dumbledore’s, Horace Slughorn, who
is to be the new potions teacher and who has a very convincing armchair costume!
Probably the most interesting
character in all of these films, partly because of Alan Rickman’s performance, is Snape, who has until now seemed to
be a red herring. However, a visit from Bellatrix leads to the revelation that
he is apparently a baddie! The fact that he later (SPOILER ALERT!!!) murders
Dumbledore, is another subtle hint! But for now it’s a shock to see him
swearing allegiance to the Mallfoy’s and to Voldemort himself.
Eventually, term finally starts,
although not before some argy-bargy in the train (again). Snape is the new
defence against the dark-arts teacher and is suspiciously ineffective in the
role. There is a new MacGuffin in the form of Tom Riddle’s diary, and a new
emphasis on unease between everyone at Hogwarts. Harry’s possessiveness over the
diary drives a wedge between him and his friends, while the mutual attraction
between Hermione and Ron, what with them being teenagers in a movie, predictably
leads to denial and awkwardness between them. Once again, as with previous Harry Potter films, and indeed with Buffy, the moral is clearly that a hero
needs friends.
It’s an uncomfortable term, ending
on the most uncomfortable note as Harry overhears Snape with Draco. The plot
thickens as Harry discovers that Tom Riddle has a past with Slughorn which he
is unwilling to discuss. Slughorn is not the only link to potions; in this film
they positively abound, and Ron seems to be under the influence of a love
potion. Slughorn, meanwhile, is soon the victim of an attempted poisoning. Things
continue to go from bad to worse, and Tom Riddle’s diary is a sort of ring to
Harry’s Frodo.
Fortunately there is such a thing
as liquid luck. There is also such a thing as Hagrid, who is, as ever, a good
friend. As soon as the gang gets back together, all friends again, things begin
to look up, and for the first time we discover what horcruxes are, and the
quest to destroy them all begins. This is, in fact, the beginning of the end of
the film series, and a suitable point for Dumbledore, the father figure, to be
killed off! This is a shocking event. It seems that Snape was the Half-Blood
Prince after all. It is up to Harry and his friends to fulfil Dumbledore’s
mission, destroy the horcruxes and vanquish Voldemort.
I enjoyed that. It was dark, but
had an epic quality that previous films have not. If the final two films are
anything like this then I will enjoy the ride!
No comments:
Post a Comment