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Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (Full Screen Edition) Customer Reviews (58 - 60 of 101 Reviews)

compared to the other two: FAILURE
While I wouldn't go as far to call this movie "bad", I have to say that I was thoroughly disappointed with it. I saw this in the theater, and I recall leaving the building thinking I can't believe I spent 7.50 to see THAT!


I was anxious to see how this movie would turn out because of the new director, Alfonso Cuaron. I have to say that I think he's the reason this came out so bad. Many of the camera shots just didn't fit the mood. Also, many things are different from the first movie and the book. For example, there's two sub-characters, Crab and Goyle. In the book and the first movie they're rather heavy and chunky. In this third movie one is as thin as stick. Minor things like that.

There was also the new Headmaster Dumbledore, Michael Gambon. While I don't think he did as bad a job as the director, I was a bit disappointed with the change. It wasn't bad acting, but rather, difference (yet again). He talked to fast compared to comparisons with movie/book.

I would suggest renting this if you are following the movie series, but if not, I wouldn't. I will, since I am a fan of Harry Potter, see the next movie, the fourth book, when it comes out. I simply hope that the director does a better job than this one.


Why should Harry believe Sirius?
A very weak adaptation, poorly acted, major plot points omitted ... the heart of the book is completely missing from the big screen.

Contrary to Cuaron, I never viewed Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban as a "coming of age" book or story for Harry & Company. That is more the province of Goblet of Fire and Order of the Phoenix. Prisoner of Azkaban is the book in which we get the "backstory" on James Potter ... without that backstory, the character of Sirius is never revealed as trustworthy, honorable, and wrongly accused of murder. There is no explanation at the climax of the movie as to why Harry all of sudden buys Sirius' innocence and turns on Pettigrew and Snape.

Cinematography on this movie, while interesting, makes Hogwarts look most forbidding and like no place I'd like to visit. Hogwarts from the books and from the first two movies is presented as a magical place ... Cuaron's Hogwarts looks like Azkaban. Wait, maybe that's what he thought he was designing ... perhaps he thought "Harry" was the prisoner of Azkaban. It's understandable considering that I doubt poor Cuaron even read the book, so much is missing.

I simply could not get past the omissions and Dan Radcliffe's embarrassing performance.

Don't waste your money on this one. Let's all hope that Goblet delivers ... if it doesn't, I'm finished with these movies.

Disappointing effort
I found the latest of the Harry Potter films to be very unsatisfying. While the acting was good, the story line was very episodic with no flow that told a coherent story. Too many things were left out such as the winning of the Quidditch cup and the identity of the creators of the Marauder's Map. Nothing was said about Sirius giving Harry permission to visit Hogsmeade. Not enough was made of Percy making Head Boy. Other unnecessary scenes were added, The chorus singing near the beginning of the movie was cute, but not pertinent to the story or even derived from the book. The Knight bus scene was too long and some characters changed. I don't remember a hunchback at the Leaky Cauldron.
The film quality looked very bad. I guess the director was trying to make a statement but it looked more like something that had been videotaped. The colors were muddy and many scenes almost appeared subtly out-of-focus.
Hogwarts looked like it had fallen on bad times and they had been evicted to shabbier quarters. The books talk of a sloping lawn, not an extremely steep hillside, I thought the landscape changes were largely unnecessary and not well done. The addition of the giant clock was totally out of character with the non-mechanical world of the wizarding community in the Harry Potter books. Having the giant pendulum swinging dangerously through the hall bordered on stupidity.
Clearly the director was trying to put his "mark" on the films. He succeeded in making the film much less entertaining and less true to the author's world. The movie suffered from an attention to detail and had a very shallow feeling. There were confusing and unnecessary changes in plot and how characters acted. The shrunken heads and spinal column candlesticks should be sent back to Knockturn Alley where they belong and the director should be sent packing. If he had been responsible for the first two films I doubt they would have been nearly the success that they were.

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