Kind of obvious the author

Kind of obvious the author hasn't read the books...it's "Kreacher" and a squib, in Harry Potter language, is a magically-handicapped witch or wizard. But the assumption about the meandering plot in the book is spot on.

Why should the author need to read the book?

Apart from Jk Rowling's series of novels being best selling childrens book that have become common lexicon amongst adults, there is no reason to expect Steve Burgess to have read the books in order to review the movie. It is not as if this was mandatory academic reading, or even much more than a subcultural norm.

However, I have noticed many reviews of this movie come from fans who are glad to see the film rehash the plot of the story so well. Kind of odd that the sole purpose of this entertainment is to be a visual retelling of a story that's already familiar. Then again, Disney.

To be fair

Most literary series, children's ones in particular, suffer in the later episodes from the problem of keeping consistent with the earlier stories. The OZ stories come to mind, and Mary Poppins. Milne didn't do badly with Winnie the Pooh, but he wasn't bound to characters with well developed histories, and even he had to change genre from prose to verse.

Ms. Rowling had blocked out the plots for the whole series, she says, before writing any, but the work became so popular, and then Hollywood moved in before the last stories were written. I think Hundreds of Millions of Yankeebucks will tend to add a certain panicky gravitas to the most promising premise.

Add to that the fact that she was so conscious of the fact that, as she was writing her audience was growing up. Year by year, along with the characters in the stories. This will not be true of generations to follow, who may read them out of order, or piecemeal.

The first number was marvelous, a read aloud masterpiece for people with children to entertain. The next four engaged those children increasingly, to create the famous frenzy we all witnessed. But the task of winding it all up, with editors from tinseltown calling the shots may have just been too much for any mortal author to do, and still keep up the poetry and the excitement.

Besides, by now, the kids who loved it first are kids no longer, much like the actors who play the parts of the heroes of their under-the-covers flashlight fantasies.

Steve, you have not read the books?

Really Steve, you can only review the movies for the fraction of what they can present from the book.

I started reading the series to find out what my son enjoyed so much. I read them all, he never got to #7. What I enjoyed about the books was all that angsty internal dialog of Harry's, which cannot be successfully put in a movie.

Further, as the series progressed, the books got longer and longer, the movies stayed about 2 hours. I've only seen movies 1 thru 3, and found #2 left out too much of the book for my liking.

If I see this one, it will be at home on DVD or Blu-ray after I see 4 thru 6.

Fans will take the good with the bad.

They don't care. It's a unique experience to wade through all the books then all the movies or mix them up a bit, for that matter.

Watch a couple of movies and the books come alive. Who cares if it's somebody else's imagination that fills in all the details.

I'm in my 30s, but I can

I'm in my 30s, but I can still enjoy it. Mostly it brings nostalgia for when I was a young reader and movie watcher. If this had come out in my childhood, I'd have loved it. So I can certainly enjoy it now and be a kid for a while.

Steve

If you ever read the books you're going to feel kinda embarrassed about your reviews of these.

Frank

It would certainly be embarrassing if I had confused "movie" with "book." That would be a very fundamental screw-up. But I'm pretty sure I kept those two straight.

There's a lot of joy to be gained from reading. I highly recommend it. But many times while watching the film series I've been glad I never read the Potter books--it allows me to come to the movies fresh and consider them for what they are. What they are is films.

But even if your attitude is the right one, the ones who should be embarrassed are the exhibitors--they have consistently failed to stop patrons at the theatre door and make sure they brought their books along.

Steve

I appreciate the response. My concern wasn't with your review of the movie itself, I understand that, it was with your belief that the studio strongly influenced the plot of the books. Any problems in the movies, and there are a lot, aren't at all due to the books.

Frank

So are you saying the plot problems do lie in the books? This is one area that I certainly am curious about. My impression has been that the studios dare not mess with the plots at all for fear of reader outrage. What the filmmakers can provide and enhance is mood, a certain tone, imagery, perhaps some character development and a lot of improved and updated dialogue. But while watching I can only guess about who is responsible for what.

Steve

There were very few real plot problems in the book but to be frank, I can't understand how a person watching only the movies wouldn't be confused. There is so much in the books that has been deleted or altered in the movies. The first movie was well done and that is because the book was pretty short. But as the books got longer the movies didn't so what you had was a situation where the movies concentrated on a few highlights and then spent half their time on the book's climax.

One plot "problem" that I thought of when I read book 7 was that the tales Beedle the Bard and the story of the elder wand etc wasn't mentioned previously. Obviously that was because the Potter books had thousands of people going over the books with a fine tooth comb looking for a clue and JK was trying not to give anything away. Whatever, I think it should have been mentioned.

But the main thing was that as you say, those who watch only the movies don't see the importance of the character that dies in the 7th movie. In my opinion he and Hermionie both are examples of what Harry's real weapon is, love. Which is what Dumbledore always said.

Even when Ron leaves them Hermionie stays at Harry's side. Just like early on in the series when Harry was the only person who wanted to be her friend. He didn't care that others disliked her for being either a "mudblood" or a know-it-all, he befriended her and has shown her love and loyalty throughout the series. Just like with the character that dies, he befriended him, has been loyal to him and now when Voldemort is all-powerful, his death-eaters are in control, Harry is most vulnerable, he has all these characters that stand by him and are willing to help him.

Interesting!

That suggests plot problems I ascribed to Rowling should actually be laid at the feet of the filmmakers--apparently they have failed to devote adequate screen time to particular plot threads.

Steve

Exactly, that was my point, sorry I couched it in such a vulgar way. I should have added a smiley or something to let you know it was that particular point of your review and not the whole thing I was disagreeing with.

Take away all the magic and such its actually a really simple kids story. Be good even to unpopular people and treat them the way you would want to be treated and maybe one day they'll be there for you when you need help or a friend.

Unfortunately in my opinion the movies have ignored a lot of that plot and instead concentrated on all the magic, the battles and cool things that make up that world.

I thought #7 was better than 3,4,5 and 6 because they've given more time to the little things, like Harry wanting to dig that character's grave instead of using magic. Even in death he wants to show his love and respect for that character. And of course the non-sexual but unbreakable bond between him and Hermione that is based on friendship, trust and respect.

I should add that I have two daughters who loved the Harry Potter series and I read all 7 books aloud, at a rate of 2 chapters a night. We also discussed all the various theories posted on Mugglenet at many a dinner as we'd wait for the next book to come out :)

Frank

Well, I got a little snippy too, didn't I? Seems to go with the online territory.

My mom read the Chronicles of Narnia aloud to us kids. It's an experience that makes an indelible impression on a kid.

Recapping

The problem with a series of books like this where there are 6 sequels is recapping previous story lines that are germane to the current plot line.

I think Rowling did a pretty good job of handling this issue in the books but it becomes much more difficult to do when you get down to the last movie in the series. As Frank mentions it's not hard to start losing threads towards the end especially when there are time constraints on the presentation.

I haven't watched the last one yet. I was going to take a grandson to see it but I think I'll pass as it would be the first movie he would have watched and therefore completely out of context.

To read or not to read

Seems to me that Harry Potter is a rather unique institution in that ninety-eleven percent of the people who see the movies have read the books as well and I would`ve thought that in order to accurately evaluate this latest offering in the cinema, reading at least the book it is taken from would enhance the reviewers of what he is seeing as it does regular audience.... just a thought