Yar, you be here: Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban > Customer Reviews

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban Customer Reviews (97 - 99 of 104 Reviews)

GREAT but a few shortcomings
This is a captivating movie but I was a little disappointed in how much of the book was overlooked. I wish the movie had been longer and I HOPE EXTENDED VERSIONS ON DVD ARE RELEASED IN THE FUTURE OF THIS AND ALL THE HARRY POTTER FILMS. After seeing the extended version of HP#1 on network TV, I am really anxious for more. There just simply wasn't enough time to cover everything from the book. The chaos between Crookshanks and Scabbers was only lightly touched on. Also, the "over-reacting" of Draco to his "Buckbeak" injuries came up short. The negative reaction of Hermione and Professor M. to Harry receiving the the FIREBOLT and Harry's resentment of it being confiscated are left out. Also NOT ENOUGH QUIDDITCH! Also, I really missed Madam Hooch, Oliver Wood, and John Cleese as Nearly Headless Nick. I was really looking forward to Dawn French playing the FAT LADY but her screen time was very short. BUT THE MOVIE WAS STILL FANTASTIC! The great scenery, Harry flying over the lake on Buckbeak, the super creepy Dementors -- EVERYTHING WAS BEAUTIFULLY CARRIED OUT! I love seeing more castle detail and the Whomping Willow in the daylight. Seeing Hermione punching Draco was VERY SATISFYING! The snow-covered Hogsmeade Village was just like something out of a Dicken's novel - beautifully done. I can't wait for this movie to come out on DVD so I can watch it again and again! GO SEE IT - YOU WILL LOVE IT!

about this movie....
I often like to watch movies made from books before their literary counterparts so that I can fully enjoy it without constant comparison. But if you try to watch Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban without a pretty thorough background, you'll be quite lost. Nevertheless, Potter fans will surely enjoy this latest frolic through the world of magic. All the elements are there, even if there is a twinge of disappointment and some of the real emotion lost to time constraints and making sure all the relevant plot twists were covered.
The Prisoner of Azkaban begins the summer before the kids' third year at Hogwarts. And, as Harry (Daniel Radcliffe) is now a teenager, his poltergeist-like tendencies pop up as he accidentally blows up his aunt at the dinner table. When he flees to The Leaky Cauldron, instead of the reprimand he expects, he is greeted with a message of caution from the Minister of Magic (Robert Hardy). Sirius Black (Gary Oldman), madman, murderer, and betrayer of Harry's parents, is on the loose and out to kill him. Dementors, the soul-sucking, evil guardians of the wizard prison Azkaban, are sent to guard Hogwarts, despite Headmaster Dumbledore's (Michael Gambon) protestations that dementors are no protectors at all. And several times, Harry is endangered by these beasts that are there, presumably, to keep him safe. The new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, Professor Lupin (David Thewlis) is well liked by the students, and helps Harry with some advance anti-dementor spells. Harry comes into possession of a couple new fun and useful magic toys and learns more about the people and mysteries surrounding his parents.

Make no mistake about it; the plot of Prisoner of Azkaban is very complicated. You may want to bring a cheat sheet and some paper for note-taking. But don't keep your eyes off the screen for too long lest you miss a key plot detail or a funny character building moment. And these 3 young, but quickly growing actors, excel at these. Their performances carry the very real awkwardness and hyper-emotion of being 13 (and magic). 2 scenes in particular highlighted their diverse abilities. A distraught but tough Hermione (Emma Watson) knocks a sniveling Draco (Tom Felton) to the ground in a moment that is both frustrating and triumphant. The other shows the Gryffindor boys in a moment of male bonding as they huddle around a bag of sound-producing candies. A very "boy will be boys" scene while still quite original, I found it very endearing. Even Ron (Rupert Grint) is beginning to come into his own and filling out a bit, though he is still quite bumbling at times.

The collaboration with director Alfonso Cuarón (of Y tu mamá también fame) was also engaging and productive. His occasional teetering on the edge of PG made plenty of amusing moments for adults and teens while going over the heads of the kids. It also made for convincing adolescent interactions. The supporting cast was also quite colorful. Gary Oldman as Sirius Black is both scary and intense, with enough mystery in his rabid eyes to know that something serious (no pun intended) is going on behind them. Flighty Professor Trelawney is played to perfection by the hugely bespectacled Emma Thompson; Dawn French is perfect as the "fat lady" portrait; and Alan Rickman continues to be the quintessential unforgiving and slightly skeevy Professor Snape.

While these recognizable and sincere characters keep the film very down to earth, magic continues to reign supreme in the world of Harry Potter. The screen is dominated by the awe of flying mythical animals, werewolf metamorphoses, and dark weightless dementors. If you happen to get lost in terms of the storyline, the atmosphere should be enough to keep you aloft. The music was subtle and complimentary and while Rowling's original story may be sentimental itself, the film never took it any farther over the top.

Unlike the first 2 installments, which are really whole stories unto themselves, Prisoner of Azkaban merely begins the tale of Harry's journey into adulthood, and the inevitable and continuous battles he must fight for the rest of the series. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban introduces a multitude of elements that will reappear in the films to come. It is here that the series begins to take on its true weight. It also leaves you wanting more. Once you've seen Prisoner of Azkaban you've become invested in seeing it through. For any Harry Potter fan it's a must see, but if you're not already interested, it might be a slightly confusing romp through the magic of special effects.

- Alley Hector

Bloody brilliant third installment!
Harry Potter ( Daniel Redcliff) has returned to Hogwart's on his third year but there is an escaped convict from Azkaban prison named "Sirius Black" ( Gary Oldman from " The Fifth Element") who was a former friend of Voldermort. Black's job is to destroy Harry but Harry with his friends Hermoine ( Emma Watson) and Ron Weasley ( Rupert Grint) especially a new Dark Arts teacher named " Professor Lupin" ( David Twelis) to put a stop to him including on the ghost-like evil beings called "Dementors".

A well done and excellent addition to a quality fantasy movie series, Alfonso Cuaron ( Director of " A Little Princess" and " Yu Mama Ta Bien") replaces Chris Columbus as director in this installment making it more braver and darker than the first two movies including coming to summer of this year instead of last winter to avoid competetion against AOL-Time Warner's other fantasy movie " Lord of the Rings".

The acting is excellent especially Gary Oldman ( Whom looks like Jesus on The Passion of The Christ) is delightfully wicked as the bad guy, and the film is a little macabre for a PG rated family movie just like " The Dark Crystal" and "Return to Oz".

This is one of the best movies of the year in my opinion! " The Goblet of Fire" is coming next year in November 2005 in 2-volumes, Also look for the references to "Army of Darkness" in this movie.

Previous Page

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35

Next Page