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Review: New 'Potter' Wields Shaky Wand
Elements Present For Great Film
POSTED: 12:00 am CDT July 11, 2007
'Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix' (PG-13)
(out of four)For all the doom and gloom, all the posturing and panicking, what becomes inescapable in the closing minutes of "Harry Potter and Order of the Phoenix," is how little weight this universe now holds, and how little consequence it brings to a battle that supposedly holds the fate of the world in the balance.At the end of 2005's "Goblet of Fire," Harry came to face-to-face with Lord Voldemort (Ralph Fiennes), a dark lord so feared and so awesome in his abilities that he is more casually referred to as "you know who" by people who tremble at the sound of his name. With "Goblet" ending on such an apocalyptic note, those of us who have not picked up a Potter book will enter the new film expecting to see this thread continue -- expecting to see Potter and Voldemort duking it out.Yet for almost the entirety of "Order of the Phoenix," we see much the same thing we did in "Goblet of Fire," a fearful preparation for the day when Voldemort will return, when anarchy will reign supreme.If the 2005 chapter brought us from the naïve daylight that was the early days of Harry Potter into the ominous sunset on the eve of the dark days to come, then "Order of the Phoenix" is little more than the second half of that twilight. We don't feel any further along than we did when we started, and therein lies the problem: With this multi-chapter franchise, soon to be updated in parts six and seven, we're starting to lose any sense of momentum.And this latest "Harry Potter" seems like the most rambling installment yet.Not that most of the hero's most devout fans will notice all that much. From the beginning of this big-screen franchise, it's existed less as a big-screen interpretation of a popular book (a la "Lord of the Rings") than a big-screen rendering of the book's plot points. Audience want to see Harry's (Daniel Radcliffe) journey brought to life, step by step, and if that is all audiences are seeking this weekend, then "Order of the Phoenix" boasts one of the most dazzling visual sequences of the past five films.It's the scene everyone in the Potter universe will be talking about until "The Half-Blood Prince" hits theaters next year, featuring the forces of good battling back against the dark lord, a big-screen duel as impressive as anything in the "Star Wars" universe. It's also one of the film's few moments where lives feel as if they are being put on the line, as if the fate of Harry's world is hanging in the balance.That's why it's a pity we have to wait more than two hours to get there.The majority of the film, as promised in ads and on posters, revolves around a rebellion at Hogwarts, a school under siege by the bureaucracy of the Ministry of Magic.Determined to convince the public that the dreaded Voldemort has not returned, and that powerful headmaster Dumbledore (Michael Gambon) is using the claims of the dark lord's return only to steal power away from the minister and towards the wizards, the Ministry has put Dolores Umbridge (Imelda Staunton, in a wicked performance) in place of the school, and given her authority to run Hogwarts as she sees fit.A sweater-wearing, tea-sipping reactionary, Umbridge is a brute of a more subtle variety, less likely to attack a student than to invite them in to detention and make them hurt themselves as punishment. Her method of torture is less noticeable, but just as efficient, and when she re-writes the school's curriculum to ban student organizations and to eliminate basic defense courses (clearly the Ministry fears young wizards who know how to use their powers), some in the school turn to young Harry, and ask him -- the only one to face down Voldemort himself -- to show them a thing or two about how to use their wand.The elements are here for a great film, and while "Order of the Phoenix" is indeed intriguing, watching as the kids resort to training themselves, as the new administrators rush to uncover what's going on in Hogwarts' secret rooms, and as the dark storm gathers on the horizon, it's all for naught in the end. We never seem to get anywhere.Ominous feelings beget ominous feelings, and while all the people in this universe are scared, the one thing they don't do is grow very much. They are treading water in a turbulent sea, and while the movie's computer-generated turbulence is fun to look at, what's clear at the end of "Order of the Phoenix" is that we're no closer to reaching land; no closer to the real adventure that Harry Potter alludes to every time he refers to "he who must not be named."Next time around, we're told. But why, then, should we buy tickets this time?
(out of four)For all the doom and gloom, all the posturing and panicking, what becomes inescapable in the closing minutes of "Harry Potter and Order of the Phoenix," is how little weight this universe now holds, and how little consequence it brings to a battle that supposedly holds the fate of the world in the balance.At the end of 2005's "Goblet of Fire," Harry came to face-to-face with Lord Voldemort (Ralph Fiennes), a dark lord so feared and so awesome in his abilities that he is more casually referred to as "you know who" by people who tremble at the sound of his name. With "Goblet" ending on such an apocalyptic note, those of us who have not picked up a Potter book will enter the new film expecting to see this thread continue -- expecting to see Potter and Voldemort duking it out.Yet for almost the entirety of "Order of the Phoenix," we see much the same thing we did in "Goblet of Fire," a fearful preparation for the day when Voldemort will return, when anarchy will reign supreme.If the 2005 chapter brought us from the naïve daylight that was the early days of Harry Potter into the ominous sunset on the eve of the dark days to come, then "Order of the Phoenix" is little more than the second half of that twilight. We don't feel any further along than we did when we started, and therein lies the problem: With this multi-chapter franchise, soon to be updated in parts six and seven, we're starting to lose any sense of momentum.And this latest "Harry Potter" seems like the most rambling installment yet.Not that most of the hero's most devout fans will notice all that much. From the beginning of this big-screen franchise, it's existed less as a big-screen interpretation of a popular book (a la "Lord of the Rings") than a big-screen rendering of the book's plot points. Audience want to see Harry's (Daniel Radcliffe) journey brought to life, step by step, and if that is all audiences are seeking this weekend, then "Order of the Phoenix" boasts one of the most dazzling visual sequences of the past five films.It's the scene everyone in the Potter universe will be talking about until "The Half-Blood Prince" hits theaters next year, featuring the forces of good battling back against the dark lord, a big-screen duel as impressive as anything in the "Star Wars" universe. It's also one of the film's few moments where lives feel as if they are being put on the line, as if the fate of Harry's world is hanging in the balance.That's why it's a pity we have to wait more than two hours to get there.The majority of the film, as promised in ads and on posters, revolves around a rebellion at Hogwarts, a school under siege by the bureaucracy of the Ministry of Magic.Determined to convince the public that the dreaded Voldemort has not returned, and that powerful headmaster Dumbledore (Michael Gambon) is using the claims of the dark lord's return only to steal power away from the minister and towards the wizards, the Ministry has put Dolores Umbridge (Imelda Staunton, in a wicked performance) in place of the school, and given her authority to run Hogwarts as she sees fit.A sweater-wearing, tea-sipping reactionary, Umbridge is a brute of a more subtle variety, less likely to attack a student than to invite them in to detention and make them hurt themselves as punishment. Her method of torture is less noticeable, but just as efficient, and when she re-writes the school's curriculum to ban student organizations and to eliminate basic defense courses (clearly the Ministry fears young wizards who know how to use their powers), some in the school turn to young Harry, and ask him -- the only one to face down Voldemort himself -- to show them a thing or two about how to use their wand.The elements are here for a great film, and while "Order of the Phoenix" is indeed intriguing, watching as the kids resort to training themselves, as the new administrators rush to uncover what's going on in Hogwarts' secret rooms, and as the dark storm gathers on the horizon, it's all for naught in the end. We never seem to get anywhere.Ominous feelings beget ominous feelings, and while all the people in this universe are scared, the one thing they don't do is grow very much. They are treading water in a turbulent sea, and while the movie's computer-generated turbulence is fun to look at, what's clear at the end of "Order of the Phoenix" is that we're no closer to reaching land; no closer to the real adventure that Harry Potter alludes to every time he refers to "he who must not be named."Next time around, we're told. But why, then, should we buy tickets this time? Distributed by Internet Broadcasting. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
