I haven't watched all of them but, for what it's worth, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (HP4) because of the appearance of the 10th Doctor (David Tennant). The subtext is obvious; he is so dreamy and suave.
Just like the books, starts out as a unique fairly light hearted fantasy tale, then it became a convoluted epic that saw no true change in its main hero.
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Prisoner of Azkaban is my favorite because the frightening parts are broody and atmospheric, the comedy isn't hammy, and the joyful parts are appropriately paced and not overly "fairy tale"-y. And Cuaron deserve the credit there.
Prisoner of Azkaban is great, but when I first watched it it felt jarring because it was so different from the first two (which I can hardly watch now). I know Cuaron was trying to go for a different feel, but at times it feels like a much different series.
My personal favorite is Goblet of Fire. It's more episodic then the rest which appeals to me and it's the first where things start to feel really serious. Voldemort proves to be a really dangerous villain instead of just a face on a guy's head.
I found the Half Blood Prince to be the best of the 8 movies. The final two were complete jokes that disgraced the books. The other were good, but no where near the extent of the Half Bllod Prince.
Definitely Prisoner of Azkaban for me, though that may be due to how bad I thought the first two movies were and that PoA is my favorite book in the series.
Azkhaban as it improves the most on the book; I thought the book was poorly paced in the extreme and the film doesn't suffer from that.
Order of the phoenix because it has the best wizard battle of any film ever made; vastly superior to its sequals, sadly
And deathly hallows part one because despite being a slow and torturous wander through the woods it was an emotive, slow and torturous wander.
I can't understand voting for six; it is the worst transition from the book I can imagine. Draco's whole 'open the cabinet' makes no sense, as the dark wizards do literally nothing when they enter the castle (rather than having an epic battle). The cuts to the memories were also too deep considering they let the various love scenes go on interminably.
Seven 2 also suffers from having some odd changes to the book that - frankly - make it make less sense. (Like harry can sense the horcruxes because...**** this makes the six not make sense again...or two....). It also needed to lend some story to 7.1 - the film had too much to do and needed to give the fight some room to breathe, rather than just jamming it together and hoping it works. The killing of voldemort is also less...satisfying and thematic.
Sorcerer's Stone: one of the best Potter book-to-movie adaptions; has a great sense of awe and wonder when first seeing the magical world.
Prisoner: for all the reasons stated already.
Deathly Hollows Pt. I: yeah it was slow, but so was the first half of the book; I think its an excellent adaption. It really captures the atmosphere of the current state of the magical world. Also I really love the emotions in the opening sequence of Harry, Ron, and Hermione in particular; how they are saying their "good byes" and coming to terms with the huge struggle ahead of them.
Thoughts/nitpicking on the other movies (or why I didn't choose them):
***Warning = TL;DR follows***
Chamber: Its just "meh" to me; not bad, not great... just kinda there. Of course, I admittedly tend to just shrug off the book the same way, so I guess that's means it was a fair adaption.
Goblet: Decent interpretation and very enjoyable, but I think it could've been done better. I thought the dragon egg challenge was much too long, but alas- in Hollywood, if a dragon is involved give it as much screen time as possible. In my opinion, the time and special effects used in that scene should've been used during the maze. A lot of things happened in the book that they could've used and/or mentioned in the movie, but didn't. All we get is a lot creepy wind, some running "scared" contestants, grabby vines, a posessed Krum and this exchange:
Cedric (to Harry): some game, huh.
Harry: yeah, some game.
(I'm pretty sure "game" isn't the exact quote, but you know the scene I'm thinking of.)
Really? They look completely worn-out, sore, and frazzled... but we just didn't get to see any of it on film. Where was the sphinx, where were the Blast-ended Skewerts, etc.? I think the maze challenge was rushed, just to get to the following:
The part where Voldemort first appears Was amazing, as was the part where he come back with diggory's body and the band is playing... Very moving.
100% agree.
For the lack of a better word, this really "saves" the movie for me. From the moment Harry and Cedric arrive at the cemetary, to Voldemort's return, to Harry vs. Voldemort in the cemetary, to Harry coming back with Diggory's body (and his dad's reaction admist the band playing), to the revealing of Barty Crouch Jr...
All of those scenes were top-notch. I give 'em four-swabs up. What was it, the last 40 minutes of the movie?
Order of the Phoenix: this was the movie I was most disappointed in, because it is my favorite book of the series.
Excluing Hallows, it is the longest book but the shortest movie. Too much editing?
Order of the phoenix because it has the best wizard battle of any film ever made.
I can agree with this. HOWEVER, the events leading up to the duel really disappointed me so, so, soooo much!
I know book-to-movie adapations are never going to be spot-on, but I feel a lot more could've been done in the movie:
1) the kids fighting the Death Eaters in the Dept. of Mysteries = in the book, you get to see what the students have learned from Harry and/or Hogwarts. Yeah they are trying to get away and are afraid, but they hold their own with a variety of spells, throughout different rooms, suffering injuries in the process. In the movie we get nothing but "Stupefy" and an occassional different spell tossed in. And some injuries are mentioned, but not shown. Boo.
2) In the book Umbridge is a cruel, totalitarion, *****. The movie shows that to an extent, but then gives way to montages. You don't really get a "feel" for her mean regime.
Half-Blood Prince: another movie I wish they did more with. They spent time and money adding a scene (the attack on the Weasley's house) rather than more scenes about Voldemort? Really? That's why the book was so good = digging deeper into the villain's past. Couldn't they, at least briefly, show how Voldemort's parents met (and how cruel her family was), or Riddle's time at Borgin & Burkes (I mean, that's how he came to find two future Horcruxes). I loved the book because of those insights, but he movie glossed over 'em. Oh, yeah... the battle when the Death Eaters invade via the cabnit. The movie didn't show any of it = BOOOO **** you BOOOO! 'Tis another instance of our young adult heroes/heroines and the Order doing what they do best... but one wouldn't know it unless they read the book. It could've been a great battle sequence.
Hallows Pt. II = Again, I was disappointed with this movie...especially because I enjoyed Pt. I. I really didn't like the final battle. I love the imagery in the book = the whole school, Hogsmede denizens, family & friends, all watching these two epic showdowns (Harry vs. Voldemort and Mrs. Weasley vs. Lestrange); watching Harry and Voldemort circle each other has Harry explains everything... a wonderful scene when I read it... but.... nadda in the movie. Even the "mini-duels" up to that point weren't really shown in the movie. And they really stole some of Neville's glory. Yeah, he killed the Horcrux Nigini and saved our heroes.. but damn... the way he did it the book was sooo much better than the movie.
I guess I was really wanting a better adaption, but I know the movies were focused around Potter...so...that is what we got. But I can't help thining this finale could've been so much more....!!!
(about the English language) It's kinda like a raft that was cobbled together from parts of three different boats and since then has been kept barely afloat with crude repairs every time a leak appeared.
Anyway Philosopher's Stone for the magic it had of 1st bringing Hogwarts to the screen (Also I liked the 1st Dumbledore) and Azkaban because it actually conveyed the darkness very well.
Get off your high horse. You are wrong about the title. It is Sorcerer's Stone.
Get off your high horse. You are wrong about the title. It is Sorcerer's Stone.
chill, Belgareth is annoyed that they changed the original English title of the movie & book JUST for US ( and Indian? ) markets only, to "Harry... Sorceror's Stone". As if using the correct title, with "Philosopher's stone" would really have bewildered a US or Indian audience... and made then think the books and movie were about "boring" philosophers.
The Book and Movie were both "Harry Potter... Philosopher's Stone" everywhere else.
Kind of an insult really.
The whole movie, they talk about the philosoher's stone, and the US title is "Sorceror's stone". Ridiculous. The US publisher "translated" the book, too, from British English to American English... losing much of the original flavor ( "muffin" for "crumpet", "mom" for "mum", and whatnot.
I voted for Chamber of Secrets... and it was the least voted movie?
First, I've seen all of the movies except for Deathly Hallows Part 2.
I thought 1 and 2 were probably the best self-contained movies and of the two, I think 2 was much better. I just think once the movies started going deeper and deeper into the overall lore, all leading to the end, it was just all done so poorly. I didn't care about the bad guys and they did nothing for me every time they were on screen. (I'll have to watch Azkaban again. I think that was self-contained as well? It's been a while.)
Deathly Hallows Part 1 was definitely the worst for me.
I should also say that I've never read the books and I'm sure they're all much better in book form.
I know the books too well to really enjoy the movies. Every time I see a new one (only haven't seen the last movie now) I feel like they missed out on great scenes and the acting is terrible. I feel like you really have to set aside the books and try to enjoy them from the movies storyline and accept the young actors, but I have a hard time doing that. I'd rather just read the books, heh.
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If you can share your top 3 choices, post it here. (You can vote for more than 1 in the poll)
I thought the 3 best: Prisoner of Azkaban, Goblet of Fire, and Deathly Hallows Part 2.
The last one is definitely the best to me.
Share your thoughts.
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I liked 6 because it entertained me.
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My personal favorite is Goblet of Fire. It's more episodic then the rest which appeals to me and it's the first where things start to feel really serious. Voldemort proves to be a really dangerous villain instead of just a face on a guy's head.
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I think it's my favorite as well, but the first two movies have a certain "magic" about them that was lost in the last 6 movies.
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Since I had read the series after the third, the movies really didn't hold water to the books.
Four was okay. But, they just got too watered down as time went on.
The part where Voldemort first appears Was amazing, as was the part where he come back with diggory's body and the band is playing... Very moving.
Oh and even the part where Hermione cried because Ron spoiled everything.
The part with torturing the spider.
Azkaban was good too.
Azkhaban as it improves the most on the book; I thought the book was poorly paced in the extreme and the film doesn't suffer from that.
Order of the phoenix because it has the best wizard battle of any film ever made; vastly superior to its sequals, sadly
And deathly hallows part one because despite being a slow and torturous wander through the woods it was an emotive, slow and torturous wander.
I can't understand voting for six; it is the worst transition from the book I can imagine. Draco's whole 'open the cabinet' makes no sense, as the dark wizards do literally nothing when they enter the castle (rather than having an epic battle). The cuts to the memories were also too deep considering they let the various love scenes go on interminably.
Seven 2 also suffers from having some odd changes to the book that - frankly - make it make less sense. (Like harry can sense the horcruxes because...**** this makes the six not make sense again...or two....). It also needed to lend some story to 7.1 - the film had too much to do and needed to give the fight some room to breathe, rather than just jamming it together and hoping it works. The killing of voldemort is also less...satisfying and thematic.
Sorcerer's Stone: one of the best Potter book-to-movie adaptions; has a great sense of awe and wonder when first seeing the magical world.
Prisoner: for all the reasons stated already.
Deathly Hollows Pt. I: yeah it was slow, but so was the first half of the book; I think its an excellent adaption. It really captures the atmosphere of the current state of the magical world. Also I really love the emotions in the opening sequence of Harry, Ron, and Hermione in particular; how they are saying their "good byes" and coming to terms with the huge struggle ahead of them.
__________________________________________________________________________
Thoughts/nitpicking on the other movies (or why I didn't choose them):
***Warning = TL;DR follows***
Chamber: Its just "meh" to me; not bad, not great... just kinda there. Of course, I admittedly tend to just shrug off the book the same way, so I guess that's means it was a fair adaption.
Goblet: Decent interpretation and very enjoyable, but I think it could've been done better. I thought the dragon egg challenge was much too long, but alas- in Hollywood, if a dragon is involved give it as much screen time as possible. In my opinion, the time and special effects used in that scene should've been used during the maze. A lot of things happened in the book that they could've used and/or mentioned in the movie, but didn't. All we get is a lot creepy wind, some running "scared" contestants, grabby vines, a posessed Krum and this exchange:
Cedric (to Harry): some game, huh.
Harry: yeah, some game.
(I'm pretty sure "game" isn't the exact quote, but you know the scene I'm thinking of.)
Really? They look completely worn-out, sore, and frazzled... but we just didn't get to see any of it on film. Where was the sphinx, where were the Blast-ended Skewerts, etc.? I think the maze challenge was rushed, just to get to the following:
100% agree.
For the lack of a better word, this really "saves" the movie for me. From the moment Harry and Cedric arrive at the cemetary, to Voldemort's return, to Harry vs. Voldemort in the cemetary, to Harry coming back with Diggory's body (and his dad's reaction admist the band playing), to the revealing of Barty Crouch Jr...
All of those scenes were top-notch. I give 'em four-swabs up. What was it, the last 40 minutes of the movie?
Order of the Phoenix: this was the movie I was most disappointed in, because it is my favorite book of the series.
Excluing Hallows, it is the longest book but the shortest movie. Too much editing?
I can agree with this. HOWEVER, the events leading up to the duel really disappointed me so, so, soooo much!
I know book-to-movie adapations are never going to be spot-on, but I feel a lot more could've been done in the movie:
1) the kids fighting the Death Eaters in the Dept. of Mysteries = in the book, you get to see what the students have learned from Harry and/or Hogwarts. Yeah they are trying to get away and are afraid, but they hold their own with a variety of spells, throughout different rooms, suffering injuries in the process. In the movie we get nothing but "Stupefy" and an occassional different spell tossed in. And some injuries are mentioned, but not shown. Boo.
2) In the book Umbridge is a cruel, totalitarion, *****. The movie shows that to an extent, but then gives way to montages. You don't really get a "feel" for her mean regime.
Half-Blood Prince: another movie I wish they did more with. They spent time and money adding a scene (the attack on the Weasley's house) rather than more scenes about Voldemort? Really? That's why the book was so good = digging deeper into the villain's past. Couldn't they, at least briefly, show how Voldemort's parents met (and how cruel her family was), or Riddle's time at Borgin & Burkes (I mean, that's how he came to find two future Horcruxes). I loved the book because of those insights, but he movie glossed over 'em. Oh, yeah... the battle when the Death Eaters invade via the cabnit. The movie didn't show any of it = BOOOO **** you BOOOO! 'Tis another instance of our young adult heroes/heroines and the Order doing what they do best... but one wouldn't know it unless they read the book. It could've been a great battle sequence.
Hallows Pt. II = Again, I was disappointed with this movie...especially because I enjoyed Pt. I. I really didn't like the final battle. I love the imagery in the book = the whole school, Hogsmede denizens, family & friends, all watching these two epic showdowns (Harry vs. Voldemort and Mrs. Weasley vs. Lestrange); watching Harry and Voldemort circle each other has Harry explains everything... a wonderful scene when I read it... but.... nadda in the movie. Even the "mini-duels" up to that point weren't really shown in the movie. And they really stole some of Neville's glory. Yeah, he killed the Horcrux Nigini and saved our heroes.. but damn... the way he did it the book was sooo much better than the movie.
I guess I was really wanting a better adaption, but I know the movies were focused around Potter...so...that is what we got. But I can't help thining this finale could've been so much more....!!!
yeah. I think that's about it for now.
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Get off your high horse. You are wrong about the title. It is Sorcerer's Stone.
The Book and Movie were both "Harry Potter... Philosopher's Stone" everywhere else.
Kind of an insult really.
The whole movie, they talk about the philosoher's stone, and the US title is "Sorceror's stone". Ridiculous. The US publisher "translated" the book, too, from British English to American English... losing much of the original flavor ( "muffin" for "crumpet", "mom" for "mum", and whatnot.
First, I've seen all of the movies except for Deathly Hallows Part 2.
I thought 1 and 2 were probably the best self-contained movies and of the two, I think 2 was much better. I just think once the movies started going deeper and deeper into the overall lore, all leading to the end, it was just all done so poorly. I didn't care about the bad guys and they did nothing for me every time they were on screen. (I'll have to watch Azkaban again. I think that was self-contained as well? It's been a while.)
Deathly Hallows Part 1 was definitely the worst for me.
I should also say that I've never read the books and I'm sure they're all much better in book form.
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