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It’s amazing that Warner Bros keeps getting this franchise right. The fanbase is buzzing about this newly released trailer for Harry Potter And The Half-Blood Prince. But it’s not for kids anymore, that’s for sure.
Editor-in-Chief Nikki Finke - tip her here.
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They should call it HARRY POTTER & THE LICENSE TO PRINT MONEY
I’m sure the books are wonderful, but every frickin’ movie is the SAME. I’ve seen them all and I can barely distinguish one from the other (apart from the first).
Great money makers, but very forgettable.
Of course, those kids and teens that watched the first movie are now themselves, teens and adults, respectively.
They may keep getting the trailer right, but it remains to be seen how well the story is translated to the screen. The last movie had an empty shell of the the books story, with absolutely no depth.
WOW!!! That looks GREAT !!!!!
I would like to know what the sex-ed curriculum is at Hogwarts. All we ever see is some chaste kissing but this is a school where teenage hormones aren’t just flowing they are flying with magical powers. Surely there should be an NC-17 rated DVD version of the movie when will we get to see that? I enjoy reading slash/fiction about the characters having sex easy to find with Google but if I’m going to spend money I want to see these kids behaving like normal teenagers and that means they’re sexually active. Hermione would surely be the most advanced right? Where the heck is the Hermione/Harry sex scene? I want to see it in a theater near me! This summer damn it!
Despite the horrible job WB has done translating these books to screen so far, this is in my opinion the best book in the series so it’s no wonder that it has people buzzing.
Despite the dark nature, it is only rated PG so I’m not sure that I buy the claim that it’s not for kids anymore.
Harry Squatter–you’re an absolute idiot.
I don’t understand these people. Obviously they’ve never read the book. “They’re all the same.”? My ass they’re all the same. Each one has a very different story. This book, Half-Blood Prince, lays everything down for the 7th one.
And if you want to see porn, then go rent a porno. Harry and Hermione don’t even get together, why would there be a sex scene. People make me sick. This series has been voted top since the first book came out. I do get semi-angry about the movie, but that’s just because they leave some stuff out, that some of us think are major points in the book. OotP made me mad all together. But seeing about 4 different trailers I think this one has got it down pact. And the choice of making the 7th into 2 movies, I think is a great idea. There is no way they’d be able to cram that whole book into 1 2and 1/2 hour movie.
So for all you people who don’t like, then don’t see it. But you don’t have to ruin it for the rest of us, who believe, along with millions of other people, that this is an amazing story, and will be for years to come.
*whew* that felt good. Thx.
RIP Dumbledore.
Anyone who has read the books and also seen the movies knows that the books, much like Stephen King’s, keep getting longer, darker and more complex. Thus making it more difficult to put it all on the screen. The first book was almost completely up there. But how do you put 700 pages of material into a script without losing some of it? Unless you make two or three movies out of it like the Rings. Anyhow, the books keep getting progressively darker because in the end it is about power, murder and the fight between good and evil, and it is often murkey in know what is what and who is who. If you think the Prince is dark, just wait till you get to the last one.
A blogger (can’t remember her name) posted a couple years ago that JK Rowling is merely a front woman for the real authors of the books. The theory is that Rowling came up with the basic idea of a school for wizards she might have even written the first book and does outlines for the other books but teams of editors and staff writers actually write the books. Can you imagine if this were proven true? The problems it would create?
Obviously the “actual writers” are extremely well paid and bound by the strictest of confidentiality agreements but I think there’s credence to this theory. I don’t believe Rowling is the sole writer of this series. I believe the mythology is so intricate and expansive that it’s too much for just one person to have done all by herself.
Since there’s probably no way to prove this it remains conjecture but don’t be surprised if another seven books are published without Rowling’s name on them. Whoever writes the follow-up series is a good guess at being one of the actual writers of the current series.
It’s definitely for kids. It’s rated PG. The last 2 films were PG-13.
The last one sucked. I couldn’t believe they brought back the same director after that. At least Steve Kloves is back. Maybe that was the problem with the last one.
If they were getting the movies right, these last three at least would garner more than a lame PG or even PG13 rating, and not to appease the hormonal fanbase. The seventh book in the series (and some parts of this sixth) are scary, bloody and vastly adult. We’ve got people being sliced open, dozens of major players young readers have become very attached to dying/being murdered in various ugly ways, scary things coming out of dead bodies and attacking people, etc. Forget a couple of pathetic kissing scenes. To do these last few movies justice, they need to drop the desparate notion that this franchise is still “family fare”. It’s not. I for one would like to see the film series grow up the way the author intended, and not be dumbed down so moronic parents can take their five year old to see it. Leave the kid at home with the babysitter and the first couple of DVDs if you must.
And if they’re afraid of losing money, give me a break. It’s still Harry Potter we’re talking about, only the most financially successful name in recent history. If WB wasn’t a bunch of idiots, they could have split the last three books in two like they’re doing with the last insteading of editing and truncating them to death, and made literally billions more than they already have. Anyone who’se even a weekend fan of the series will pay the ticket price.
The movies are pale imitations of the books. The films have been getting more and more shallow with each successive one. They have left out so much crucial information and changed so much that there are now gaping plot holes in the story. While I think the films have been looking flashier, the hollowness of the plots is making me very disappointed. Books are brilliant. Movies are average at best. (Though, the 3D section of Oder of the Phoenix was fabulous.)
Enough with these book-lovers already! It’s an ADAPTATION! If you want the original story (no alterations made) then read the book. WB did a great job in adapting these gigantic books into film & I am excited to see the new HP. I am also happy to see John Williams out of the picture. Nicholas Hoopler is incredibly talented, has a fresher take & seems to have exceeded himself in the latest Harry Potter. The trailer is top-notch.
If I HAVE to criticize, I’ll only say this: I’ve never understood why they hired Yates. It’s not like he made anything major prior to Harry Potter. Then again, I think it’s a good thing that they (WB) give lesser known directors the chance to prove themselves. And prove Yates did: 938million dollars worldwide gross.
I love the Harry Potter books but I CAN SEE WHY PEOPLE WOULD SAY THE MOVIES ALL SEEM THE SAME. But that could be a good thing !
Will you guys get over the fact that your favourite bits weren’t included? It’s an adaptation for God’s sake. Of course you’ll have to leave out some of the stuff. I think WB did a good job adapting these gigantic books into successful films. I’m also glad they got rid of John Williams and replaced him with Nicholas Hooper who is incredibly talented (as is Mr Williams, no denying that) and also has a much fresher take.
GeorgeSimian: Harry Potter made more money under David Yates than any other previous director. That is a good enough reason. Although I did wonder why they got him onboard in the first place (I suppose he came pretty cheap) but at the same time I think it’s a good thing that major studios like WB give lesser known directors a chance to prove themselves on high-profile & exciting projects.
Have read all the books and I agree, got longer, more complex…#7, Deathly Hallows, is just beautiful and a fitting end to the series. As I see it, the FX hijack the emotion that’s present in the books…the kids are good, but there is something curiously flat about all of their performances…again, probably because, in the live action plate, they are emoting with green screen or a stand-in stick. Watched Order of the Phoenix last night on HBO…looked great, but key climactic moments were short-shrifted. Does anyone know who is directing #7…they BETTER not screw that one up!
ReelBusy – you’ve got it right! I laughed out loud when I read that!
It looks pretty good – considering of the books (which I loved overall) I didn’t like this one or 5 that much at all. The effects look nifty enough though that I’ll probably go and see it when it comes out. But prolly not the first weekend.
Voldemort Jones – WTF?! Were they written by the same people who faked the moon landings? Or was it Elvis and Hoffa in their sekrit bunker doing the research for her all along. Or maybe it’s the same aliens who built the pyramids because obviously those Egyptians weren’t smart enough or industrious enough to make them themselves.
It really bugs me when people assume that just because an accomplishment is difficult and would take serious dedication and extremely hard work – that it’s impossible and so must be fake or really done by others.
Sorry – end rant. But this is why we fail – because we believe that if something is really difficult that it’s impossible. And to make ourselves feel better for not pushing ourselves to make the hard effort, we try to diminish the accomplishments of those who do. I know you’re quoting some mystery blogger. But grrr. That just frosts my socks!
Voldemort Jones – Do you also believe that Tolkien used a staff and others to write The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, etc. and that he merely came up with the idea? Afterall, those fantasy books are incredibly intricate as well. What about the Chronicles of Narnia? Do you believe that CS Lewis had a staff of writers and only came up with the idea? Let the conspiracy theory go and stop being cynical. Or maybe this is about the fact that JK Rowling is a woman and you don’t think that a woman is capable of writing fully-evolved fantasy fiction, in which case, you’re wrong.