Resolutions and a Movie Review
Well, as is customary for the start of a new year, I have made a couple of resolutions.
1) Lose weight - along with about 3/4 of the rest of the planet. I figure I need to lose about 40 lbs, but I'll be ecstatic if I get rid of half that.
2) Eat better - doesn't really work well in my house, but I can always dream, right?
3) Drive slower - yup, you heard right. I have an awful tendency to try to fly without wings, and one of these days, that's gonna bite me in the butt. So, I'm trying to take it a little easier.
4) Go on a real, honest to goodness vacation with my family. That's the biggie. Usually, we vacation at home, because we usually spend "excess" money on other things. Like food.
That's about it. Nothing too out there.
Now - onto other things.
MOVIE REVIEW
I just need to get this out. Mike Newell is a GOD. We went to see Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire over the holiday weekend, and - in my opinion - it was one of the best adaptations of the HP series. Many people will argue with me and state that Alphoso Cuaron did better with Prisoner of Azkaban, but I just felt he left entirely too much pertinent information out of POA.
Don't get me wrong - there was a hell of a lot left out of GoF, but the stuff that was left out was really nothing very important. So, we don't know that Rita Skeeter's an animagus. Did we need to? Nope. And the viewing audience knows nothing about Blast Ended Screwts. Thank God for that. And we weren't subjected to Hermione's House Elf campaign. Woot! And as interesting as it was, we really didn't need to know about the Crouch family's affinity for the Imperius curse, nor Jr.'s whole backstory.
The one thing that really should have been expounded upon was why Ron reacted the way he did. Other than that, is was a wonderful adaptation of the book. I really wish Newell would hang in there and do Order of the Phoenix. However, a quick trip over to IMDB reveals that some unheard of guy is helming the 5th installment. Damn.
1) Lose weight - along with about 3/4 of the rest of the planet. I figure I need to lose about 40 lbs, but I'll be ecstatic if I get rid of half that.
2) Eat better - doesn't really work well in my house, but I can always dream, right?
3) Drive slower - yup, you heard right. I have an awful tendency to try to fly without wings, and one of these days, that's gonna bite me in the butt. So, I'm trying to take it a little easier.
4) Go on a real, honest to goodness vacation with my family. That's the biggie. Usually, we vacation at home, because we usually spend "excess" money on other things. Like food.
That's about it. Nothing too out there.
Now - onto other things.
MOVIE REVIEW
I just need to get this out. Mike Newell is a GOD. We went to see Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire over the holiday weekend, and - in my opinion - it was one of the best adaptations of the HP series. Many people will argue with me and state that Alphoso Cuaron did better with Prisoner of Azkaban, but I just felt he left entirely too much pertinent information out of POA.
Don't get me wrong - there was a hell of a lot left out of GoF, but the stuff that was left out was really nothing very important. So, we don't know that Rita Skeeter's an animagus. Did we need to? Nope. And the viewing audience knows nothing about Blast Ended Screwts. Thank God for that. And we weren't subjected to Hermione's House Elf campaign. Woot! And as interesting as it was, we really didn't need to know about the Crouch family's affinity for the Imperius curse, nor Jr.'s whole backstory.
The one thing that really should have been expounded upon was why Ron reacted the way he did. Other than that, is was a wonderful adaptation of the book. I really wish Newell would hang in there and do Order of the Phoenix. However, a quick trip over to IMDB reveals that some unheard of guy is helming the 5th installment. Damn.
posted by Callie | 1/04/2006 01:20:00 PM
6 Comments:
Good luck with those resolutions! I'd like to eat better also but it's actually quite expensive to buy healthy.
Great review. I love HP. Haven't seen GOF yet, but plan to. Hurray is all I can say about leaving out the house elf debacle. I really thought it added nothing to the story.
I don't think it did, either. However, you never know what is going to happen in Book #7, so I'm not going to say that it adds nothing. It may very well have something to do with the outcome. But if it doesn't, then all I can say about that whole thing is that Hermione can be really really annoying when she gets something in her head. Then again, it's people like her who end up getting things changed.
I think you'll like the movie. Like I said, there's a bunch of stuff that had to be left out, but it's not anything important like - oh, I don't know - who the actual makers of the Maurader's Map were, and certain people's nicknames, and what the main character's patronus actually stands for.
Good luck with your resolutions. I'm trying to lose weight, too, but I didn't make it a resolution. As for number four. COME VISIT US! It'll be a cheap trip...just gotta drive (or fly) across the country, but you can stay with us when you get here! Honest!!!
As for POA, I agree, Callie. I was very disappointed with the parts that were left out. Also found Hermione to go through a whiny, holy-pain-in-the-ass phase for a couple of books, but that might just be Jo Rowling making it as true to life as possible. After all, I have an 11 year old here who's turning whiny, prepubescent pain in the ass.
I did thoroughly enjoy GoF and so did Mossy AND the kids. I've actually seen it twice in the theatre. I like the way this one introduced a lot of the subplots, but did it subtly. Like the whole Ron/Hermione thing.
I can't wait for the next movie or the last book. I read somewhere that Jo Rowling has announced she's finished the first rough draft of the last book and has disclosed that the very last word in the book is "scar".
So my son and I were trying to deduce what sentence would end with "scar". As in, "Harry reached up and touched his scar." Or, "No one would ever forget the boy who gave up his life for them. The boy with the scar."
We're shooting for the former.
How about, "Harry touched his forehead, and found only smooth skin where there used to be a scar."
:-D
As for the Ron/Hermione thing, Chris Columbus introduced us to that way back in Chamber of Secrets at the very end.
I have to say, I am really not looking forward to the movie on the 5th book. Of all the books, it was my least favorite. I understand JKR wanted to keep the characters as normal as possible, and in that frame of mind, she made Harry the most annoying character in the book. I would hate to see Daniel Radcliffe having to portray that, and getting blamed for being a "one note" portrayal. However, if they leave the Twins' bit of defiance out at the end, I will personally throttle the film-maker.
Vacation here!!!!!
Personally I liked what they did with not having certain things in the movie BUT I think they overdid the special effects and didn't like the maze at all. I also didn't like how they had Harry grandstanding after he beat the dragon. I found it more boring than the other ones....
I also didn't like how it ended with them too cheerful.
Sweetheart, the animal kingdom here will greatly appreciate you improving your driving.
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