Comments for Half Blood Prince ^o^

I watched Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince ^~^
Venue: Cheras Leisure Mall
Date: 16th July 2009 (Thursday) --- 1st showing day
Time: 9.00 pm

My seat: E24 (lucky no. 24 ^^)

Dark, fast, thrilling, exciting and occasionally funny, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince is also visually stunning and emotionally satisfying.


DIRECTOR
Producer David Barron said that earlier directors such as Chris Columbus, Alfonso Cuaron and Mike Newell were given the options to direct the entire franchise but they all turned it down due to fatigue. "Chris Columbus had the strength of 10 men, and he was able to go from the first film to the second one. Alfonso and Mike had a wonderful but terribly tiring experience. By the end of it, they just weren't ready to do another one. But David here, he has the strength of 20 men! He loves making films and we are obviously fans of his work, otherwise we would not have asked him back," Barron said during an interview, complimenting the director.

SCRIPT
Steve Kloves, the scriptwriter said in an interview that David Yates is the most determined director he has worked with. "David was so sure and determined on which part of the story to keep and which part to left out. Different from the other directors, who felt hard to choose what to left out," claimed Steve and personally, I think he has wrote a very good script for HBP. There's more funny scenes (Ron & Harry fight for the advanced potion making book, the slightly odd & more enthusiastic way Harry acted after he took the Felix Felicis, Ron accidentally took the love potion, Ron sit in between Harry and Ginny with pies at the Burrow, Cormac tried to seduct Hermione etc) Merlin's beard! In this movie, love is spreading over Hogwarts and hormones are indeed racing at the speed of light. I like the way David explores that side of it. Lavender, played by Jessie Cave is totally obsessed with Ron and she is infuriating Hermione. This newcomer is quite interesting. The chemistry between Ron and Hermione is much more highlighted this times which has lighted up the whole film from the dark forces. It is more of a romantic comedy. Besides, quidditch is back! The traditional crowded and jolly crowd on the field added a joyful scene to the film. However, there's no more snitch seeking in this one instead the keeper is under the spotlight. It is a breath taking scene at the cave where Dumbledore drank the potion and Harry attacked by the dark creature. The climax, the scene at the lightning-struck Tower is dark and exciting. Dumbledore's death scene is one of my favourite. It is a touching and heart breaking scene when everyone pointed their wands to the dark mark of the lord on the sky. In conclusion, for this one, the majority of the plot is still staying true to what Jo Rowling has given us.

VISUAL EFFECT
This times around, Yates offered the audience something different. While the feel of the movie is somewhat lighter than its predecessors, the look of HBP also differs from the rest. The forty-something director explored a new way of bringing the Harry Potter world to the screen. He hired director of photography, Bruno Delbonnel. Some of the scenes in HBP rumoured to cost US$250 mil (RM893 mil) to make them look like paintings.It's all very layered and incredibly rich.

CREWS
In this movie, costume desginer, Jany Temime has been introduced the new quidditch costume which wear by the seeker and keeper which was inspired by the American football. Plus, the always peculiar Luna's costumes are more spookier in this one. The lion hat, feather cloth, spangled robes and the Spetrespecs are fascinated. I like the colours of Luna's and Lavender's costumes. Those have brightened up the atmosphere.
In the other hand, Struat Craig, the production designer has done a wonderful job! The Weasley Wizard Wheezes set is fantastic with thousands of playful and colourful products. There's a harmonious combination of colours at the Burrow set during Christmas as well.

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Half Blood Prince is truly a remarkable film of the franchise.

Comments for Half Blood Prince ^o^