goblet of fire - the movie

just saw the movie. after the disappointment of azkaban, this is quite abit better. i think people who haven't read the books will find this more coherent than azkaban (had friends complaining they couldn't understand azkaban). there is more humour and less pretense at being arty and the effects are stunning. the acting is pretty good though i really didn't quite like the portrayal of dumbledore. i still prefer richard harris. the new characters: rita skeeter is great! karkaroff - he reminds me of christopher lee in lotr. fleur looks much better on screen than in the pics but she didn't come across too snooty. i like madame maxime too tho i pictured her as smart but less well-dressed (in a feminine way) and tho' formidable, not quite as elegant. victor krum and cedric diggory are perfect matches. madeye moody is good tho i thought he would speak in a quieter rasp . barty crouch sr - well, expected him to come across more uptight but in the movie, tho he is really deadpan, the portrayal comes across as comic. cho chang - well, she does really have quite a cute scottish accent. unfortunately, her face is just too swollen looking for me.

sadly, the movies so far have all failed to deliver a fair approximation of the intensity of suspense and mystery found in the books (and dealt with in most masterly fashion by rowling). so i think most of the fun actually just comes from the special effects, seeing how things in the book are visualised on screen. also, because of the movie medium, they do try to cash in on the things that will keep people at the edge of their seats. so e.g., the werewolf chase scene in azkaban that is not in the book, time taken for which could be better devoted to a longer and more coherent scene in the shrieking shed with lupin and sirius explaining how they became animagi in the first place and revealing they created the marauders' map. you get the same fare in the 4th movie (i shall not provide spoilers). and since they have to condense a really long book into just 1 movie, you can already guess that it's just going to focus on the 3 tasks and very little else. it's still alittle disappointing tho', esp since the triwizard tournement has harry involved without hermy and ron. i think what i find so charming about the books is largely the depiction of school life, the age where you see your friends everyday and you all have the same concerns - studying common subjects, having common enemies, etc. and this has been compromised in the movie, understandably cos the main thing is the triwizard tournement and the battle with voldy. but it's really just one task after another with no episodes save for the yuleball in between.

but it's still much much better than the 3rd and still rather fun to watch. was quite overwhelmed in the first 5 min. couldn't believe i was finally watching the movie! thankfully, all the kiddies in the cinema must have been overwhelmed too cos they were very good audience and all shushed up when movie started.