Film
What's on at the cinema plus reviews of the latest movie and DVD releases
'Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire' review
Time Out's casts a critical eye over the fourth Potter film.
Nov 11 2005
And so we come to part four in the proposed septet of fantastical wizard flicks. Brit helmsman Mike Newell's made a fine fist of Steven Kloves' screenplay, injecting even more Angloisms into JK Rowling's quintessentially British fantasy tale. If there’s a problem, it's with the length of Rowling's source material; it's simply too long to fit into 160 minutes without having large chunks of storyline left on the cutting room floor.
Consequently, those who haven't read any of the Harry Potter books may find this latest episode particularly confusing: characters flit in and out without explanation and scenes change without warning (indeed, the first 100 pages or so – dealing with the Quidditch World Cup – are dispensed with in less than two minutes).
As a spectacle, though, 'Goblet' is deliciously dark, wickedly funny and superbly mounted; it also sports some fine turns, especially Ralph Fiennes' evil Lord Voldemort and Brendan Gleeson's cockeyed wizard, Alastor Moody. Newell keeps the action centred on two key events from the book: the Hogwarts Yule Ball and the Triwizard Tournament (a distinctly dangerous trio of tasks involving stupendously rendered CGI dragons, scary mermaid-like octopuses called Grindylows, and an ominous maze).
Along the way, loyalties are tested as Harry (Daniel Radcliffe) falls out of favour with his misguided chums, most notably Rupert Grint's Ron Weasley (who's grown into a strapping longhair who says 'bloody hell' a lot) and Emma Watson's Hermione Granger (who's pissed off because neither Harry nor Ron have asked her to the ball). The ten-year-olds I took along loved every minute of it, despite the creepy opening and violent climax. Stroll on number five, then.
'Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire' is released on November 18.
User comments on this story
-
- Asia said...
- To Dan... I tinkink your very handsome and very cute. I hope you to engglish, because is I am a,Very Very, Very, Very Very Very Very Very Vey Very Very I Love You Posted on Jan 24 2009 05:12
- Report as inappropriate
Most popular on this site
Top Stories
The ultimate 'Harry Potter' crib sheet
Our resident potter professor, Wally Hammond, offers the ultimate introduction to 'Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince'
Bruno is here!
Sacha Baron Cohen hits the streets as Austria's premiere gay fashionista in 'Bruno'. Read our review of the film plus see the pics from our cover shoot
Lars von Trier's 'Antichrist': joke or masterpiece?
Dave Calhoun invites seven experts to watch Lars von Trier's latest and share their reactions
Classic Film Club: 'Smiles of a Summer Night'
Each week Tom Huddleston watches a classic film he's never seen before. The rules are simple: each film must be considered a masterpiece and each must be completely new to him.
Has Michael Mann lost it?
Adam Lee Davies mourns the passing of a major Hollywood talent as Michael Mann's 'Public Enemies' sees the great director running on empty
Why 'Ice Age 3' is really for adults
Tom Huddleston takes a look at a selection of films which bring adult problems to a pre-teen audience
Is this Summer 2009's best film?
The French filmmaker Claire Denis speaks to Dave Calhoun about her new film, '35 Shots of Rum', a tender portrait of a father-daughter relationship in Paris
Outdoor film screenings in London 2009
Derek Adams offers a guide to the best places to see films outside in London this summer
50 essential sci-fi films
With 'Star Trek' making serious waves, we thought it would be a perfect time to select 50 must-see sci-fi films











What do you think?
Post your comment now