Director: Mike Newell (Donnie Brasco, Mona Lisa Smile)Cast: Daniel Radcliffe (December Boys), Rupert Grint (Thunderpants, Driving Lessons), Emma Watson (The Tale of Despereaux), Michael Gambon (The Good Shepherd, Sleepy Hallow), Alan Rickman (Die Hard, Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves), Maggie Smith (California Suite, Gosford Park), Robbie Coltrane (The World Is Not Enough, Cracker), Robert Pattinson (Twilight), Brendan Gleeson (Troy, The Village), Gary Oldman (The Dark Knight, Leon), Timothy Spall (Enchanted, A Series of Unfortunate Events), Stanislav Ianevski, Clemence Poesy (In Bruges), Julie Walters (Driving Lessons, Billy Elliot), Katie Leung, David Tennant (Doctor Who), Ralph Fiennes (The English Patient, Schindler's List), Jason Isaacs (The Patriot, Brotherhood), Miranda Richardson (Sleepy Hallow, Damage)
The Deal: Following the scare at the Quidditch World Cup, where Death Eaters cast The Dark Mark, Harry Potter (Radcliffe) and friends return to Hogwarts to find that the school will be hosting the Tri-Wizard Tournament. Each of the three main wizarding schools will have a champion to compete for the Tri-Wizard Cup, granting them eternal glory. When the Goblet of Fire, the tournaments selection judge, names Harry as a fourth competitor despite him not entering, fears of Lord Voldemort's involvement slowly rise up. Bound by the magic of the tournament, Harry cannot withdraw, leaving him to take on three difficult tasks, of which he may not come out alive.
Thoughts: Being Harry Potter, I find the film entertaining, but overall, it's easily the weakest of the film installments. It seems to lack much of the magic and enchantment that the previous films had, though it maintains a darker feel like that of Prisoner of Azkaban. The three tasks were fun but slightly underwhelming, but the end of the film makes up for this. The final scenes are quite powerful, very dark, and visually pleasing. They leave the viewer with a very good last impression that overshadows the film's faults.
Another new film brings another set of new characters. Everyone from previous films is continuing to improve, even if only a little. Gleeson plays the DAtDA teacher, and he looks and acts the part perfectly. He has a commanding presence, especially his first lesson about the Unforgivable Curses. Pattnson's role as Cedric Diggory planted him on the map for future stardom. He fits the role here much better than his role in Twilight. Ianevski plays Viktor Krum, a school champion and star Quidditch player. Though his physical appearance may lead to questions, his performance was very fitting for the role. Poesy plays Fleur Delacour, and the same can be said of her that was said about Ianevski. Tennant, Richardson, and Leung all do fine jobs in their roles, but Fiennes deserves my last comments. We finally have a face to Lord Voldemort, and he is absolutely perfect. His performance is powerful, chilling, and truly dark.
Accuracy: This film begins the struggle for writers, as they are tasked with turning a book that is twice as long as the others into a film the is the same length as others. Scenes must be cut, and details must be altered accordingly. For the most part, they did a good job with this. They thankfully cut everything to do with S.P.E.W. (those chapters were some of Rowling's worst), and focused almost solely on the tournament. It was the right move for the film, though disappointing as a Potter fan. Though I have no huge problems with the new castings in the film, I don't find some as good as most of the previous ones. Ianevski is pretty much the exact opposite of his book character. Instead of being skinny, awkward, and duck-footed, he is muscular, confident, and sure-footed. Poesy was doomed to fall short in physical appearance. She's very pretty, but not really the drop-dead-irresistibly-gorgeous her character is described as in the book. Aside from that though, the castings overall were good. ☆☆☆1/2
Overall Verdict: Though entertaining, the fifth film installment lacks much of the magic the previous films sported. The ending scenes stand out as quite powerful, some of the best in the franchise, but the film overall is possibly the weakest. ☆☆☆1/2
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