DARK MAGIC AT CHILDHOOD'S END: a review of "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince"

Originally written July 18, 2010

"HARRY POTTER AND THE HALF-BLOOD PRINCE" Directed by David Yates
**** (4 stars)

Near the climax of the stunningly sorrowful "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince," deeply conflicted sixteen year old Draco Malfoy skulks through the corridors of Hogwarts School Of Wizardry and Witchcraft, not with the standard schoolyard malevolence of old, but now armed with a life-altering purpose that is all but childish. He is facing down his inevitable date with destiny as if he is marching down the mythical "Green Mile" of Stephen King's novella as his classmates, shrouded in the shadows, writhe in teenage hormonal ecstasy. It is a brief image but one that perfectly hammers down the heavy steps to childhood's end in Director David Yates' beautifully rendered adaptation of J.K. Rowling's penultimate novel of the epic tale of Harry Potter.

As the new film opens, the war of the magical world has spilled over into the world of Muggles (i.e. the non-magical). London is under a series of devastating terrorist attacks orchestrated by Harry's arch-nemesis, Lord Voldemort and carried through by his increasing squadron of minions, the Death Eaters. With the fate of the world in peril, due to Voldemort's relentless pursuit of our hero, Hogwarts Headmaster Albus Dumbledore (Michael Gambon) has recruited Harry Potter (Daniel Radcliffe) for a special mission: to form a close relationship with returning Potions Professor Horace Slughorn (Jim Broadbent in a performance that segues effortlessly from inebriated befuddlement to plunging torment) and discover a crucial secret that just may stop Voldemort once and for all.

In addition, Harry is dealing with a budding attraction to Ginny Weasley (Bonnie Wright), younger sister of best friend Ron (Rupert Grint), who is himself dealing with the aggressively amorous Lavender Brown (a highly comic Jessie Cave) plus conflicted emotions for Hermione Granger (Emma Watson). There's also the obsessive matter of finding out if Malfoy (Tom Felton) has indeed been indoctrinated into the ranks of Death Eaters and finally, what is the identity of the Half-Blood Prince, whose margin drenched textbook of spells has made Harry a star pupil in his Potions class. Phew! Of course, this is a lot of ground to cover in a two and half hour film, an increasingly difficult task considering the growing lengths of the wonderful source material. To Yates and returning screenwriter Steve Kloves' joined credit, they have not dropped the ball in the least. They have truly discovered the way to make the material work best as a film on a variety of fronts, most notably by focusing on primary themes and relating all of the surrounding material that best fits the theme. It may mean some restructuring or jettisoning of some favorite moments from the novel but books are books and movies are movies. In the case of "Half-Blood Prince," they have created their finest adaptation to date, one that burrowed deeply under my skin and has haunted me days after seeing it.

In the previous installment, "Order Of The Phoenix," Sirius Black explains tenderly to Harry that the world is not simply made up of good people and Death Eaters. How that very duality of good and evil lies within us all and that our choices define us. With that speech, Black was giving Harry some important life lessons to assist him as he grows into his adulthood. If "Phoenix" was a film of anguished transition then "Half-Blood Prince" is less of an elegy and more of a benediction to childhood and all youthful frivolity--especially when living in a world at war. Yates handles this material with sensitivity, a mastery of tone and mood, deliberate pacing that never feels torpid and a stronger directorial hand that has allowed him to take a few risks with the overall presentation.

The visual palette of the film is striking. The cinematography and lighting has a slightly bleached out appearance to enhance the solemnity of the material. Places of security and sanctuary have grown increasingly sinister. Having just barely survived the Orwellian landscape of the previous installment, the magical, sun-soaked brightness of Hogwarts castle has been replaced with barren hallways, murky shadows and the feeling of lingering bad dreams of the greatest of wolves howling right outside the door. It often reminded me of the grim look and tonality of Director David Fincher's "Se7en" and this window dressing assists the story and characters greatly.

The pall of sadness I felt throughout the film stemmed from the overall spectre of death which hangs over the proceedings like a slowly descending net. But most importantly, I just felt for these kids as these characters are all trying to hold onto a time that cannot last and it gives the film a profound melancholy. Even Ron's newfound heroics on the Quidditch field (never more glowingly presented) carry a "too little too late" quality, for instance. Moreso, for this group of teenagers, and the story they are all involved with, moments of natural adolescent impulses and emotions are constantly being invaded and undercut by the outside forces of adulthood and the weight of responsibilities they must carry should they survive. A terrific sequence near the beginning of the film finds Harry in a diner flirting with a frisky waitress yet that is quickly interrupted by the appearance of Dumbledore. A hilarious love potion overdose sharply turns into a near fatal situation for one of our main characters. Another terrorist attack also nearly claims the life of another student, a situation that arrives immediately after a moment of romantic hilarity. The hearth and home of a Christmas dinner is given way to a frightening nighttime chase through a bog and concludes with the ultimate destruction of the home. Yates even takes the time to stage an elegant shot of Hogwarts at night. The camera begins with a heartbroken and tearful Hermione being comforted by Harry. The camera pans upwards to reveal Ron and Lavender in lustful "snogging." And then, the camera pans upwards even more to find Draco consumed with turmoil over his recent choices. The freedom necessary for the age is unable to remain for terribly long before they are reminded of the danger they are all in. The events of the film are the nails of childhood's coffin slowly being inserted.

Then, there is the climax of the film, the details of which I will not spoil here for the uninitiated. Yes, there have been deep changes from the novel and that may put some people off. For me, to make this work as a movie, I thought Yates' choices were brilliant. By not including certain epic sequences and ratcheting up the special effects and sound design, it provided a counterpoint to most summer movies and the cliche of the "slam-bang finish." As I keep saying, we're unfortunately living--cinematically-- in a Transformers" world where every single moment is a climax. Yates is seemingly not interested in bludgeoning the audience into submission. He wisely keeps the MAJOR EVENT of the film focused solely on character and their motivations, not effects and cataclysm. He drops the sound out, leaving great passages of silence, allowing the weight and intensity of the situation to fully take hold and be felt. It worked like a charm for me and before I knew it, I had shed my very first tears in a Harry Potter movie. Even the final scene is a small wonder as it foreshadows the relationship between Harry, Hermione and Ron in simple staging and small observations. Again this is a transitional film and Yates is deeply involved with filming the two part finale of "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows." Perhaps he is saving any operatic moments for the final act. Whatever the reasons, it made for a soulful and stirring experience.

But, it is not all doom and gloom. There is high comedy throughout and the teenage and boarding school hijinks, so well executed in "Goblet Of Fire," make a welcome return. Rupert Grint again shows his natural ease in front of the camera and the aforementioned Jessie Cave is a perfect romantic foil. The adorable Evanna Lynch returns as Luna Lovegood, raising the freak flag for all teenage outcasts everywhere. Danial Radcliffe, who shows more ease and strength with each film, has now brought a deft comic timing and a perfect sense of irony with some line readings. Just listen to how he delivers his newfound confidence at being the magical world's "chosen one" and try not to burst out laughing. All of this and more balances out the darkness that surrounds them and makes for a rich experience.

I could go on and on but I do feel I should give special mention to Tom Felton and Bonnie Wright, who have to now take on a more involved presence with the films and they both rise to the occasion. Endless credit must be given to Director Chris Columbus, who helmed the first two installments. He has since been given short shrift in preference for the "edgier" directors who have succeeded him in the series. But he had to build the film world of Rowling's stories from the ground up and that included his eye for casting many of the participants who have now embodied these roles. Can you honestly imagine anyone but Radcliffe, Grint and Watson in the roles of our heroic triumvirate? With the minor characters now taking on larger screen time, his original decisions have played out nicely as Felton performed a fine job of creating sympathy for a villainous character and Wright possesses a "still waters run deep" quality that makes us believe that she is indeed the right woman for Harry's heart.

And with the legendary British cast filling out the adult roles, I have to say the MVP of the series has been--and continues to be-- Alan Rickman, still one of movie's greatest villains with his "Die Hard" role. He brings the duplicitous Professor Severus Snape to life as no other even could attempt and even knowing the full outcome of this character, he still had me guessing the truth of his motivations.

As the film closes, Harry gazes at the forever changed landscape of Hogwarts and pronounces, "I never realized how beautiful this place is." What a fitting farewell to not simply a place but a time of life as he heads into his adulthood away from all he has previously known. For what began as a supremely mounted companion series to the books, has grown into a strongly film series of its own right. And to think, I once NEVER wanted these books to be turned into films for fear of the experience becoming painfully tainted and commercialized.

"Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" is one of my favorite films of 2009.