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Summer Movie Mania: Week 3

This past weekend, I was enchanted by the next installment of J.K. Rowling's saga onscreen: Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. I've seen that plenty of people are actually quite upset by how much the movie diverges from the book, but I for one found it to be a refreshing take on the franchise. Chris Columbus was so devoted to bringing Rowling's' vision to the screen that he forgot books and movies are different media. What works in a book won't necessarily translate well to screen, and what are occasionally amusing anecdotes on the page, turn to diversions onscreen. The pacing brought forth by the new director Alfonso Cuaron was more in tune with what I envisioned. Much of what they cut will no likely make it into the next film, much like the Lord of the Rings movies, plot aspects were excised to add drama in future installments. This was all for the better, at least in my opinion, as instead of meandering around for a good extra forty-five minutes, the movie had a more cohesive central story.

Another aspect of the film I liked, was how nonchalant the use of magic was. Often, spells and enchantments were used for everyday activities in such a way that the viewer was caught up in the difference of this onscreen world. This is how the books were, and this is why the film worked so well. Four and a half out of five stars.