steebo777

Like I said, give her 5 years

David Thewlis does a great job as Lupin. Especially when we first meet him
Plus, he had me cracking up when every 5 minutes he would give Harry something and say 'here, eat this, it will make you feel better.'

PixyJunket

Lupin is one of my favorite characters!

Alvis

Okay. It's probably just me, but the picture looks kind of strange...

DrMcKittrick

It's a shamw that Quittich is taken out of this movie. This is the year Gryffendor wins the cup. What a great moment in the books. Tis a shame.

doc

silentbob007

There has to be a little bit of quidditch considering

Jepthah

All the early word on this is that it's the best film of the series by far--which is exactly what I expected to hear.

AgtFox

Nah, it's more like there has to be at least one Quidditch game because that's when

Lastblade

I have always thought Emma Watson was cute (from the first movie).... I am not a perv or anything, nothing sexual, just that she has a cute face and her performance was the strongest of the 3. I do think that the other 2 boys were much more comfortable with the roles in Chambers and it looks like they are even better in Prisoner.

steebo777

Exactly what I said in my post on page 1

msdmoney

Didn't really like the first two movies, they just didn't seem very "magical" to me. Hopefully with the new direction I will enjoy them more.

scott shelton

Speaking as a non-reader of the books, the ENTIRE FILM is exposition, and it will make you Muggles like me dizzy as you leave the theater.

Cuaron is great with the sinister details, but the film never really breathes. I know Columbus is probably hated around here (I've dug most - not all - of his films), but at least he took his time to enjoy the Potter world, and the running times reflected that.

AZKABAN is the shortest of the three films, but it needed to be the longest.

I enjoyed it, but the first two films were a smidge better IMO. Fans of the book will no doubt go nuts over it, and deservedly so. It was made explicitly for them.

Patman

saw the first 2 Harry Potter films, and they never really grabbed my attention as memorable films, but knowing that Alfonso Cuaron is at the directing helm, I have high hopes, especially after enjoying "Y Tu Mama Tambien" so much last year. Plus the look of the film just puts the viewer in a slightly altered universe where the presence of magic doesn't seem out of place.

I fear I won't be able to get Lindsay Lohan's take on Hermione from her "Saturday Night Live" Harry Potter skit out of my head...

cactusoly

I didn't care for the 1st Harry Potter, I found it long and boring. I waited to watch the 2nd on cable and I liked it a little more but it didn't facinate me. I'll wait to watch this one on cable too.

paradicelost

This is why i thank God i'm a manager at movie theater, i can screen it a few days before it comes out in an empty theater.

QuikSilver

I can't wait to see this one. Looks much daker and bolder. Ive read the book and everything I've seen from the trailer looks spectacular.

hgar78

wow, wow, wow!!!! i just got back from a press screening and all i can say is WOW!

this is by far the best film from the series. it's also my fav book so far.

cuaron (?) did an amazing job....the sets, the cinematography and the acting was so beautiful. the kids seem to really be getting a hold on their talent now.

everything is so moody and dark, just as book 3 was. lupin and trelawny were fantastic, as was gary oldman (barely recognizable). *

all in all, i hate to see cuaron leave so soon...he would do great with book 5 with all the drama and anger!

will be seeing this again very soon.

*oh yeah, my only grip...gambon made dumbledore seem too playful, he doesn't continue the mysterious and wise charaterization.

beefjerky

It's been a while since I read the books, but isn't Dumbledore portrayed as a playful old hippie rather than an old fart? Harris did the whole wise old wizard image very well, but that was never really the image of Dumbledore.

Birrman54

Just got back from seeing the 12am showing. Overall it was a pretty good movie, I'm not sure how I'd rate it compared to the others, but it certainly isn't the 'worst'.

For some reason I came out of the theatres thinking that this was the least 'faithful' to the novel of the 3, but that might have been because I had just reread the book a few days before.

I thought the visuals were great and superb acting performances, but I thought that some aspects of the story were sort of brushed over, and I would've preferred a bit more depth.

I was not a fan of the new Dumbledore, the appearance was great, but the voice IMO was horrible. To me, Richard Harris WAS Dumbledore, and I don't think Gambon truly captured the role.

Overall it's a solid addition to the series.

birrman54

NitroJMS

I also just caught the midnight showing, but I thought it was horrible.

I was disturbed throughout the film by the sudden change in appearance of all the sets and style. I expected the film to take on a darker feeling, but I didn't know Cuaron would strike all the sets that Columbus had used. It felt like a totally different universe to me. Very disappointing after seeing the continuity in style that was kept amongst the LOTR films, and the hearing Columbus and the crew spouting about how much attention to detail they took when making the first two.

The story also felt too light in comparison to the books. It seemed like most of the backstory for Sirus Black was deleted in favor of the quicker pace. Another twenty minutes would have been nice to have let the movie actually catch up to itself.

I also had a problem with the constant one-liners. Right when the mood would actually get tense, they'd throw in a gag. It seems like they were scared of getting too close to a more PG-13 oriented film.

mverleg1

If ever they let Chris Columbus back behind the camera something is seriously wrong. Alfonso Cuaron did an AMAZING job. It was amazing to see how a director with an amazing visual style can do with the material. Admittedly, Columbus did a decent job, but Cuaron absolutely bowled me over. 4 STARS!!!

silentbob007

Just got back from a midnight show ... loved it.

While it is the least faithful book-to-movie adaptation of the series so far, it is by far the best film. The special effects and art direction were simply outstanding, and the very active camera really immersed me in the world. The pacing was very quick ... and I think the reason is that most of the irrelevant sublplots were cut, whereas in the earlier movies, is was obvious that some scenes not relevant to the plot were included because they were in the book. I thought that the humor was well played thoughout ... at least we didn't have Ron being hit in the head with a broom stick.

The only quibble I have is that some of the Hogwarts grounds have been reimagined, such as the location of the Whomping Willow and Hagrid's shack. While it would have been nice to have Hogwarts exist perfectly in continuity, the changes open up the grounds and really allow enough space for the events at the end of this movie to take place.

I was happy with Columbus's pictures after the first two, but I would be very upset if he were placed back at the helm for any of the future novels. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban is a wonderful example of what a truly visonary filmmaker can do with the awesome creative tools and leeway available with this series.

Highly recommended.

beefjerky

I love the books, but was incredibly disappointed with the first two movies. This film was incredible though.

Cuarón did an amazing job with direction, and not only did he get great performances out of the actors, he took the look and atmosphere of the movie to a whole new level. The movie was exciting, suspenseful, and most of all, fun. Three things that the first two movies didn't have enough of. The little visual flairs that Cuarón added to the movie also created a closeness to the world. I loved the transitions and the camera angles and pans used, and how Cuarón characterized the Whomping Willow and brought the Hogwarts paintings forward The special effects were great this time around, and I'm glad that Cuarón chose to go with compositing the actors during the flying elements instead of all CG humans (which looked horrible in the first two movies).

Gambon was excellent as the new Dumbledore, and was closer to the books, in that he was like an old, mysterious hippie instead of an ailing grandfather. Lupin was great also, and Thewlis really conveyed the weariness of the character. I wish there was more of Sirius, but Oldman was excellent.

There were so many moments in the film where I thought, "wow, that was great." I don't want Columbus directing another Potter film again. Cuarón better come back for the later installments.

The anti-piracy dots were extremely annoying in this movie. They were so bright and appeared in so many spots on the screen.

CreatureX

I also just got back from the midnight showing....amazing movie! Alfonso Cuarón must return for "OotP"! Visually this movie was so beautiful. I had so much fun just soaking in every shot. I loved how Cuarón re-imagined Hogwarts. It feels more like the book IMO. As for continuity with the first two movies, well since Howgwarts is a magical place, things do move around.

I also felt the special effects were outstanding. Buckbeak, the Dementors, the grim etc., were all very well done. I loved the acting and pacing as well. One slight disappointment however was something left out from the book....



I highly recommend this movie! Azkaban is on a whole other level compared to the first two movies (which I liked as well). Here's to hoping Alfonso Cuarón returns for another HP film!

gregx55

I demand a do over with a competant director and screen writer.

After all the waiting a build up for the third movie I left the theater 141 minutes later in shock at how bad this movie was. I understand that in order for movie based on a book to flow on screen you may need to deviate a little from the book itself, but this was just unacceptable. There were too many things that were needlessly changed when Steven Kloves wrote this screen play. I will say that the acting has improved considerably from the first two movies, but the idea of completly changing the castle setting around was troubling.

I have read all 5 books several times and find that the the third book is where the story of Harry Potter really gets interesting. But I found the third movie to be choppy at best. Too me it was a dissapointing effort in film making.

Scot1458

Having read all the books, they in no way compare to the movies. The movies have about 2/10 of the information and charm the books do. Now in a 3 hour time frame I couldn't do any better, but every movie so far has seemed like a cliff notes version of the book.

Azakban is the worst of the books IMO. It's boring, anti-climatic and no sense of evil really is ever battled against besides misunderstandings.

Having said that, I hope this movie version pleases me more.