Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005)
(PG-13) 157 mins

If there’s one thing I can say about the ‘Harry Potter’ series, it’s that it effectively captures what it’s like to be a certain age. The first two films were mostly about innocence and wonder at a world of magic (which is partly why I found them boring). The third film showed them becoming teenagers while introducing a darker side to Hogwarts. So what was the theme to the fourth installment? The awkwardness of being a teenager. Oh, plus we (finally) meet Lord Voldemort.

The film works for just those reasons. We jump from sequences in which our hero Harry is truly in danger of losing his life to sequences with Harry and Ron bumbling around women. It’s quite entertaining. What’s even more entertaining is watching the trio (Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson and Rupert Grint) grow into their roles and begin to show off their acting chops. We see a lot more subtlety to their performances. Hermione is still a bookworm but doesn’t mind if she catches the eye of the alpha-wizard of another school. Meanwhile Ron is always at the short end of the stick, and Harry never quite seems to be comfortable with the various scenarios he gets tossed into.

The film does suffer from the same problems as the rest of the series however, though I expect that little can be done to shake that feeling that Harry will get out of any situation he’s put in whatsoever. Even Voldemort has a cartoonishness to him a la Shredder from ‘Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.’ Does anyone see him ever besting young Harry? Nah.

I have one further gripe I’d like to share. Early on in the film, Harry and his friends use a magical shoe to transport them to a distant land. We also see many scenes with flying brooms and the like. So with all these possibilities before them, why in God’s name would anyone ever take the train?

+2


Oscar Nominations
Achievement in Art Direction