Hey, Things Must Be Looking Up- I'm Talking About Harry Potter!

[poliphilo]

We watched Harry Potter and The Chamber of Secrets last night- Ailz on her nine-inch bed-side TV and me on the wide screen at home. Afterwards we discussed it on the phone.

What did you think?

It was fun.

Yes- fun.

I like the Harry Potter films. Like not love. I don't find myself getting drawn into that world- enjoyable as it is- and I don't identify with any of the characters. As I've said before, I actually spent my teenage years at a faux-gothic boarding school in the middle of nowhere and- well- I find Rowling's vision a little starry-eyed.

God, but I bet all the other kids really resent and hate Harry and his chums for repeatedly saving the world and being feted and feasted at the end of the day!

Bloody, little, do-gooding teachers' pets!

And all the stories are exactly the same- and all the villains far too easy to defeat and that wimpy little Malfoy kid must be the least threatening (and worst-acted) screen villain in the history of the movies. All you have to do is look at him funny and he falls over.

Comments

[lblanchard.livejournal.com]

That starts in Book Four.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

Good.

I'm told the latest film is rather different from the first three. I'm looking forward to seeing it.

[lblanchard.livejournal.com]

I would advise reading the book first. There are several plot strands and some nuance that had to be sacrificed to streamline the 600-some page book to a 150 minute film. I found that bringing that to my viewing as backstory meant that I enjoyed the film immensely -- my husband, on the other hand, wasn't so sure, although he's willing to go with me to the IMAX to see it on the Really Big Screen.

[ibid.livejournal.com]

It is, it's darker and more interesting. Have you read the books?