| Here's my review of "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" that ran in today's paper. I miss reviewing movies. I haven't written one in forever. 
Fifth 'Harry Potter' film lacks full appeal of predecessors By KRISTIN REICHARDT
Staff Writer
As
if all the happiness were sucked out of the world, the fifth
installment in the blockbuster “Harry Potter” series offers an
intensely darker and slightly less satisfying glimpse into the
continuing fight of good versus evil waged with magic wands.
In
“Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix,” director David Yates
successfuly conveys the increasing tension and stress as war mounts in
the wizarding world.
Accused of lying about his battles with dark
Lord Voldemort, the boy wizard Harry Potter (a significantly matured
Daniel Radcliffe) feels nearly ostracized by his peers, including his
two best friends Ron (Rupert Grint) and Hermoine (Emma Watson), and is
struggling with teenage angst coupled with an intensifying mental
connection with Voldemort. To add insult to injury, he discovers he
is expelled from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry for
performing underage magic outside of school. Never mind that magic was
used to save himself and his cousin from life-sucking Dementors.
After standing trial before the Ministry of Magic’s Wizengamot, Harry
returns to school to discover a new obstacle — recently appointed
Defense Against the Dark Arts professor Dolores Jane Umbridge (Imelda
Staunton). Appointed to act as a Ministry of Magic mole, Umbridge’s
mission, with Harry as her primary target, is to restrict students from
actually learning any useful magic that could help them in battle.
The task falls to the students, appointing Harry as their leader, of
course, to educate themselves in defense and they forge a covert class
called Dumbledore’s Army.
The students inadvertently end up facing
Voldemort and his minions — including the psychotically seductive
Belatrix Lestrange, beautifully cast with Helena Bonham Carter — in the
Ministry of Magic, assisted by members of the rouge Order of the
Phoenix.
With a duller color palette, more intrusive camera angles
in the beginning, and rampant anger swirling around Harry, Yates jumps
into the uncomfortably intense emotional action author J.K. Rowling
lays out in the novel. And, as is pattern, “Phoenix” is even more
visually breathtaking at times than those that came before, especially
the ginormous battle scene toward the end, spattered with special
effects.
(Tip: Splurge and see the film in IMAX if for no other
reason than to watch Harry, Dumbledore and Voldemort duke it out in
3-D.)
As each novel (and consequently, film) become less happy and
more morose, Yates begins well, but choppy transitions and uneven
pacing leave viewers feeling let down at times.
Screenplay writer
Michael Goldenberg, replacing Steve Knowles who wrote the first four
films, does an admirable job of condensing more than 800 pages of novel
into 138 minutes of film. While the primary plot lines are there,
certain omitted subplots and condensed parts work for film fans who
know no better, but may bother those who swear by the novels and will
know what is missing.
However, since Rowling signs-off on every
screenplay, those looking for hints regarding the series’ finale before
they read the answers in nine days when the seventh and allegedly final
novel is released may find them in paying attention to what segments
were included — such as the brief but telling appearances by Bonham
Carter and house elf Kreacher — and which were deleted — such as
Sirius’ two-way mirror.
Radcliffe gains ground by showing he is
more than able to give Harry the emotional depth the situations his
character is thrust into demands.
Recurring supporting characters
show no notable development, but nor do they falter, except Watson who
seemed to struggle with meter and authenticity at times.
The
Standout New Character award is split between Staunton as the
perpetually pink, annoyingly perky and obviously sinister Umbridge, and
Evanna Lynch as the sweetly loony, awkwardly honest Lunna Lovegood.
While failing to beat “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire” for best
film in the series on this critic’s list, “Phoenix” is worth seeing.
Probably more than once.
Three-and-a-half stars out of five.
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