Review: Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2009)

[Homer Yen]

"The Half-Blood Prince" Has Half-Hearted Conviction
by Homer Yen
(c) 2009

I like the tagline that you see on the movie posters advertising the
sixth Harry Potter movie.  "Once again, I must ask too much of you,"
says the wizened Dumbledore (Michael Gambon) to his star pupil, Harry
Potter (Daniel Radcliffe).  However, after watching this film, I think
that he was warning the audience as much as he was speaking to the boy
wizard.  At 153 minutes in running time, it is a long movie.
Unfortunately, it felt even longer.  And, what's worse, after the film
ended, it really didn't seem like any significant advancements were
made.

If nothing else, the trio of best friends (Potter, Hermoine played by
Emma Watson, and Ron played by Rupert Gint) is growing up before our
very eyes. They are much more proficient at casting spells, much more
proficient at exploring the nooks and crannies of the immense
Hogwart's compound, and are much more proficient at the Quidditch
competition (one of the visual highlights of the film).

And as they grow, darker times lie ahead.  The confrontation between
Potter and Lord Voldemort will inevitably come.  The stakes have
risen; everyone's lives exist within a far more dangerous landscape;
and there's heartbreak as affection portents their adolescence.

With every installment, a new teacher comes to Hogwart's to grace us
with their eccentricities.  And, I was delighted to see the quirky Jim
Broadbent on staff as the Potions Master Slughorn.  Especially
interesting was the Potion of Luck that Harry eventually uses at an
opportune time (and that I wished that I could have quaffed prior to
entering the theatre).

This sixth chapter is more ominous than the preceding ones.  They seem
to get darker as the series goes on.  This is not just reflected in
the story's theme but also in its overall look.  Less plentiful are
the colorful palettes that define the Quidditch games and the mystical
beasts of the land.  There were fewer scenes that featured the
imaginative inner workings of the school such as the Escher-like
staircases that move about from one level to another.  Even the grand
dining hall has lost some of its luster.  Gone are the more innocent
and wondrous times as reflected in "The Goblet Fire" (my personal
favorite).

The film doesn't really feel like a next-chapter in the Potter series.
 It's almost the same feeling that I got when I saw the 2nd chapter of
the Lord of the Rings trilogy, "The Two Towers".  It was nestled
between the far superior "The Fellowship of the Rings" and "The Return
of the King."  I'm glad that we had another opportunity to see Aragon
and the gang.  But, "The Two Towers" felt unnecessary.  So too did
this one, even though it was comforting to see all of the Harry Potter
castmates again.

The dangerous mission that Dumbledore and Harry finally do go on
seemed like a waste of time when the answers that they seek won't
really mean anything until we get to the last installments of the
franchise.  Having said that, I'll be there in line eager to buy my
ticket.  I won't be tattooing a lighting bolt to my forehead, but as
I've watched every installment thus far, I'm not going to give up now,
even though the "Half-Blood Prince" disappointed.  I think someone
waved their magic wand prior to writing this story and incanted the
words: "maximous superfluous"!

Grade: C+

S:  1 out of 3
L:  0 out of 3
V:  2 out of 3