Directed by:
Alfonso CuarónScreenplay:
Steve KlovesCinematography:
Michael SeresinComposer:
John WilliamsCast:
Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, Emma Watson, Pam Ferris, Emma Thompson, Tom Felton, Geraldine Somerville, Lenny Henry, Matthew Lewis, James Phelps (more)VOD (5)
Plots(1)
In Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Harry, Ron and Hermione, now teenagers, return for their third year at Hogwarts, where they are forced to face escaped prisoner, Sirius Black, who poses a great threat to Harry. Harry and his friends spend their third year learning how to handle a half-horse half-eagle Hippogriff, repel shape-shifting Boggarts and master the art of Divination. They also visit the wizarding village of Hogsmeade and the Shrieking Shack, which is considered the most haunted building in Britain. In addition to these new experiences, Harry must overcome the threats of the soul-sucking Dementors, outsmart a dangerous werewolf and finally deal with the truth about Sirius Black and his relationship to Harry and his parents. With his best friends, Harry masters advanced magic, crosses the barriers of time and changes the course of more than one life. (official distributor synopsis)
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Reviews (11)
Brilliant form with beautiful production design (the school setting, mountains in the background), much more detailed, elaborate music by John Williams, and individual pearls in the form of specific scenes in general. Harry’s flight on Buckbeak, for example, reaches the emotional heights of the best moments from of The Lord of the Rings. However, as the minutes passed, the story itself somehow lost its appeal for me. If it wasn’t for the delightful last half-hour, the film would have slipped into being slightly boring. But that’s not a criticism of Alfonso Cuarón, since he literally performed a miracle with a questionable screenplay.
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Harry Potter has always been a bit of a light rip-off of Peter Jackson's opus. It cleverly borrows various details, not very conspicuously, but I’ve found several very similar scenes or specific things in all three parts. In the third part, it is clearly the Dementors, who annoyingly resemble the breathtakingly executed Nazgûl. However, the truth is that this part is the darkest and least childish in the whole series. For the first time, there are horror elements, which will probably escalate further in later parts. It's not significantly better than the previous two parts, maybe just a little bit.
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That is how things end up when fantasy material gets into the hands of a playful director with fantasy and his own vision. A crying shame that these movies weren’t like this from the very beginning. The change of environment and costumes improved the result. In the same way that part three was a turning point on its journey away from kids’ books to “more", this picture was crucial for the movie adaptations. It is a blessing that Chris Columbus’ boring and uninventive directing is a thing of the past. The only two downsides are the rendition of the werewolf and a certain absence of any link with past episodes. If somebody really liked the first ones, they might not get over the fundamental change in style and rendition. Even though it was a change for the better from all points of view. Thank god. P.S.: Every time we watched this again (lots), we were convinced again and again that SUCH GOOD, inventive and unique family movies come into being once in a blue moon. Proof of this is that now, more than a decade after the premiere I have still not come across any competition in the field of family movies. And by the way, this is the movie with the best and most tightly knotted time travel I have ever seen.
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I won't damn Chris Columbus or make a god out of Alfonso Cuarón here anymore because the first half seems like a thematically precise continuation of the poetry of the first two installments, and a few camera tricks or zooms on a freezing flower (though formally perfect) don't change the atmosphere much. They may be beneficial for an unbiased viewer, but for me, as a staunch fan of the book, they are just minimal decoration. The turning point comes when Harry and Hermione reach the Whomping Willow and an incredible massacre ensues, where the fascinating acting etude of the trio of David Thewlis-Gary Oldman-Alan Rickman is the least of it. And of course, the climax is in a long-lasting finale incorporating time-play and all the creatures that can only scare the viewer. My only criticism is aimed at a a significant gap in the screenplay: an explanation of who Scabbers was would probably have helped. Nevertheless, I've seen the third installment probably the most out of all of them and perhaps I understand its position as the favorite. Still, I prefer the ones by David Yates by a hair.
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"Is that really what my hair looks like from the back?" –– Even though I am watching the third installment in the Potter franchise for at least the twentieth time, I still cannot get over the Cuaron exaltation. Rather, I would say he was just lucky to have one of the best books in the franchise, which had the potential to appeal to the widest possible audience. I am not entirely satisfied with the result, though. For one thing, the credit goes to Mr. Dumbass Kloves, whose typical screenwriting trademarks – his classic "catchphrases", weird sense of humor (the cleaning lady scene - I still have not figured out what the hell that was supposed to be about!) and the insensitive reduction of the book, have of course taken their toll (The absolute bare minimum of information about Harry's parents' past is given, and nowhere is it explained that it was actually Lupin, Harry's father and co. who were the people who created the Marauder’s Map!). Plus, then the other thing I am not entirely happy with is the director himself. What disappointed me was the occasional absence of emotion. Some of the scenes that should have been really atmospheric in some way – Harry’s flight on Buckbeak, the meeting in the Shrieking Shack, or Lupin's transformation left me cold as ice, they felt devoid of emotion, and often even laughable. I do not know how much of this is the fault of the director, the cast, or possibly the special effects people, but I did not expect to be so bored in some places. However, now for the good points: there is a great soundtrack by John Williams, Radcliffe finally got a little better at acting (although the "I'll kill him!" scene still looks ridiculous), there are nice exteriors and, except for Buckbeak and the who looked very digital, very nice special effects. The Dementors are okay, the atmosphere is passable, too, and while it seems like I was really critical previously and did not like the movie, I was not - I actually did like it. I just do not get the general hype around this installment. I could understand it with the fifth installment, but definitely not with this one.
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