Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
Rating: 
The movie was… okay. They left out a lot. In fact, the people who were screaming last year that the plot in Prisoner of Azkaban was excessively stripped should have held their breath until viewing this installment. They left out the entire Rita Skeeter sub-plot, although they did show her nosing in on the students a few times and the actress seemed to have her personality down. I think that was the most important detail to overlook. This movie, much more so than the others, was almost unwatchable without having read the book first. I don’t know how I feel about the director, but I do know I’d take Alfonso Cuarón back any day of the week.
I think what bugged me most was that it constantly cut from one five minute scene to the next. There was no real dialog, no sense of close-knit friends. I understand you can only do so much when you have to cram a book as large as this into a two and a half hour movie. I understand this is why plots were left out. Still, couldn’t they have done it Lord of the Rings style and filmed a long, 5 hour movie which was able to get in more of the plot, and then break them into two movies, showing them a couple months apart? I guess that’s too much to ask.
I don’t know how they’re going to do the next movie at all. It’ll just be a series of 30 second clips going from one scene to the next.
The cinematography and special effects were amazing. This bathtub scene (probably one of the longest in the whole film) provided much needed comic relief. I was disappointed with how little Ron and Hermione were in this. I think the twins may have been in it more than them, not that I’m complaining about their amount of screen time.
I guess overall I was just a little disappointed. It was still worth seeing (even worth paying $25 for tickets and fees) but this is undoubtedly my least favorite of the movies so far. Then again, the Goblet of Fire was my least favorite book as well.
Related Entries
tiiana
Thank you for reminding me about the “Rita Skeeter” subplot. I totally forgot about her. Probably because I couldn’t stand her about as much as I couldn’t stand Umbridge. I was also disappointed that the majority of the ending was left out. I agree that a person would have to have read the book to get the full impact of the storyline. These people will not have any explaination as to why certain things happened in the fifth movie unless they have read the fourth book.
This is just my opinion though.
kym
I was bothered that Luna Lovegood wasn’t in it. Wasn’t she in the 4th book? I know it wasn’t a big part, but I was looking forward to seeing her character.
Christina
I guess I have to disagree. I thought the movie was the best so far. The special effects were AMAZING! I do agree that they left quite a bit out, but the book was REALLY long and there’s only so much you can fit into a movie...it was already 2.5 hrs long. I too, was disappointed that “Looney” Lovegood wasn’t in it...and that they sorta glossed over the events at the Quidditch World Cup...but overall the movie was soooo good, and it seemed like time flew by in the theatre. I definitely am going to have to re-read book 4 though, because I can’t remember everything that happened in that book. I guess that’s what happens when you read those books in a matter of days...not enough time for everything to sink in!
