Film and TV

DVD: Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (12)

By Anna Roberts
December 09, 2009

The problem with Harry Potter films is they all blur into one. There have been so many now – never as good as the books – so one becomes two, or is that three? And so on.

The most recent installment, released on Monday, is Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.

It’s the sixth year at Hogwarts and Lord Voldemort is growing more powerful all the time.

At Hogwarts, Harry (Daniel Radcliffe) finds a mysterious book, The Property of the Half-Blood Prince.

But the book has a sinister element to it with some seriously scary magic. It ties in nicely with what Harry is doing in his spare time – learning about Voldemort’s history so he can understand how to defeat him and overcome his evil.

Harry Potter fans – and there are billions – will, of course, want to watch the latest installment which is the most reflective and sophisticated yet.

However, if you are not a lover of the books – one of the 12 people left who have not read them – then it might just wash over you.

See more film trailers on getreading.co.uk

The films are never as good as the books. They drag, the plot suits literature and the actors – or at least the ‘child’ actors – are not that great.

Radcliffe might have been a sweet choice when he was 10, but now he is a fully-fledged man he is a questionable choice. Like Emma Watson (Hermione) – less so the more talented Rupert Grinch who plays Ron Weasley – he is not a brilliant actor. He also does not seem to have improved.

Wooden, boring and weak are all words which could be used to describe Radcliffe. It is lucky the Harry Potter films benefit from a motley crew of brilliant adult actors.

Once again stars Alan Rickman (Professor Snape), Robbie Coltrane (Hagrid), Maggie Smith (Professor McGonagall) and Julie Walters (Molly Weasley) steal the show.

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince also introduces Jim Broadbent as Professor Horace Slughorn to the franchise.

Broadbent is a wonderful British actor and he shines as the lazy, self-obsessed but very intelligent Slughorn in Harry Potter.

Harry Potter films are not as good as the books. The best film so far is without question The Prisoner of Azkaban, the third in the series.

However, the Half-Blood Prince might sneak in second or third. It is certainly better than one and two when the children were truly atrocious.

Harry Potter fans will want to watch the Half-Blood Prince and should – if only to compare to the books. Other people might be a bit lost or miss the magic of the stories – more evident in literary form.

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