Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince Review

Director: David Yates
Screenplay: Steve Kloves (The Harry Potter screenwriter extraordinaire)
Starring: Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, Emma Watson, Michael Gambon, Jim Broadbent (The Borrowers, Bridget Jones' Diary), Alan Rickman, Helena Bonham Carter, and Tom Felton
Gross Revenue: $933,959,197
Rotten Tomatoes TomatoMeter: 83%
IMDB Rating: 7.3
Awards: Nominated for an Academy Award for Best Cinematography
     Making a film to follow the stupendous Order oft he Phoenix was an arduous task.  This is the first film since Chamber of Secrets where the same director directed back-to-back installments, and this is very evident in the way the source material is handled and the way the film is shot.  This film is very important in terms in terms of storytelling, as it is the final installment before the last film Deathly Hallows.  And after Order of the Phoenix's less then usual critical acclaim, there was a lot of pressure on director David Yates to craft an excellent film.  Fortunately, he was up to the task, and Half-Blood Prince is a surprisingly quiet, reflective film, that is the darkest yet (Sense a trend with this?).
      Half-Blood Prince takes place during Harry's 6th year at Hogwarts, and it is his most tumultuous yet.  Voldemort's return has sparked near-war in the wizarding world, and Harry is at the center of this conflict.  As Harry learns more about Voldemort's past, he and his friends must deal with romantic relationships that threaten to split one of cinema's greatest friendships apart.
      Half-Blood Prince is the most quiet and reflective of the franchise since Prisoner of Azkaban.  After the frenzied pace of Goblet of Fire, and the action movie antics of Order of the Phoenix, a more reflective and emotional story was just the right move for the franchise.  While there are not as many flashbacks as fans of the book (Or myself, I love flashbacks) would like, there are just enough to fill in holes with Voldemort's backstory, rounding him out as a character.  The production values are superb, and the cinematography is so beautifully dark, that totally fits with the tone of the movie.

    This movie is the showcase for the cast.  Each of the three characters is put in different and uncomfortable circumstances, and all the actors portray them as real kids.  One of the best parts about this movie is that it reminds the audience that despite all the these magical adventures these kids go on, they're still just kids.  It reminds the audience that they have the same problems that all teenagers go through: love.  As much as I wish the movie would focus on a little more on the brewing war and Voldemort's backstory, I love that the filmmakers had the courage to make a quiet and reflective film that really takes time to develop the characters before the life-changing events of Deathly Hallows.  And Harry and Ginny forever.  <3

   I would briefly like to mention one character that I absolutely despise above all other: Draco Malfoy.  I don't know how he is portrayed in the books, but he has absolutely no redeeming qualities.  He is supposed to be a rival to Harry, but he never does anything to him, other then make rude remarks to his friends and get punched in the face by girls.  Even in this movie, he couldn't even be evil correctly, and he is the only character that I find pretty much useless.  Sorry, rant over.
     Half-Blood Prince is truly a great film.  It features so many wonderful storylines, it just doesn't have time to give each one the adequate screen time it deserves.  Which is the main problem in this movie.  The film summary for Half-Blood Prince was the hardest for me to write, because I feel that this movie is really unbalanced, even more then Chamber of Secrets.  It seems like there is no main plot, just several very good sub plots, each taking its turn in sequence.  For this reason, the movie seems kind of..."jumpy".  David Yates does his best to keep the movie under control, and he does a superb job of keeping the movie moving linearly and quickly, but it does feel jumpy, and important plot points are left unsaid.  Even though the subtitle of the movie is "Half-Blood Prince" that story line is mainly an afterthought in service of the greater theme of the movie, which is moving through adolescence.  Even though I am saddened that this storyline was shifted to the side, I commend the filmmakers for making an entire movie devoted to character development, and one that moves surprisingly quickly.

     The more I write about Half-Blood Prince, the more I like it.  While far from the most exciting or focused film of the franchise, it is a wonderful exploration of the characters, that is feature some of the most heartbreaking scenes in the entire franchise.  It's also one of the funniest of the franchise, which is a nice offset to all the darkness.  While far from perfect, it's probably the most satisfying and certainly the most romantic  and darkest yet.  Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince forgos action and adventure for quiet and reflective character development, while though the darkest of the franchise yet, it is also one of the most sincere, despite being very unbalanced and unfocused.  4/5.
"Did I know then that I just met the most dangerous dark wizard of all time?  No." -Albus Dumbledore
1. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix 4.5/5
2. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince 4/5
3. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban 4/5
4. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire 4/5
5. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone 4/5
6 Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets 3.5/5