(Evidently, it was not enough for my Significant Other to watch the movies in order before the most recent theatrical release, but now, she is watching them again apparently to revel in the afterglow. Except, when I ask her if that is indeed the case, she quickly hushes me and turns up the volume.)
- A not-insignificant number of things seem very similar between "Harry Potter" and the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy: Dobby is Gollum-Lite - down to referring to himself in the third-person, the Dementor is an exact carbon-copy of the Wraith, and more than a few comparisons can be drawn between Dumbledore and Gandalf (watch the trailer for the most recent movie and you will see what I mean).
I have never read any interviews with the author, but I would be very interested to see if she mentions the influence of Tolkein's works. I'll bet on 'not so much'.
- Jake Lloyd (Anakin Skywalker in "The Phantom Menace") and the kid who played "Half Pint" in the second "Indiana Jones"movie are now out of the running for the title of Worst Child Actor Ever.
As far as I can tell, any improvement in Daniel Radcliffe's acting ability appears to be how much higher his eye-brows can arch to simulate being surprised (or happy, or scared - I really cannot tell the difference). I had better acting chops in my fifth-grade production of "The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe" - and, I even sang.
Take that, Radcliffe.
- Oh, wait...time for another Quidditch match...
- Lest kids accidentally think they wandered in to "Transformers" or "Pride and Prejudice", the script calls for some cast member to call out "Harry" or "Harry Potter" on an average of every 30 seconds or so. It may be a somewhat trivial point, but just do the math.
- What appears to be a blatant cash-grab by any actor or actress with an English accent to get in on the "Potter" bandwagon ruins a lot of the characterization for me. The feat accomplished by the "Lord of the Rings" franchise was to get, by and large, unknown actors and actresses to play the leads. That some of them became stars in the process was due to how well they fleshed out their characters' motivations and idiosyncracies. In the snippets of the "Potter" movies I saw, when Alan Rickman appears and basically acts as Alan Rickman - I think "Wow, that is Alan Rickman". Same for Gary Oldman, Kenneth Branagh, etc. - their star power overwhelms their roles.
- One oft-cited reason for the success of the "Potter" franchise is it gives kids who themselves have been locked up under staircases and had wizards for parents someone they can relate to.
Um, that sort of mass therapy had been around for decades - and for free - it was called "ABC Afterschool Specials". (Where do you think I gained my set of impeachable morals and ethics?)
Well, once this movie marathon is over, I think the only logical conclusion is to send her to the "Harry Potter" exhibit at the Museum of Science and Industry for the day so I can catch up on the latest "Ghost Whisperer" re-runs.
(Not quite sure the link between the "Potter" movies and the concepts of 'science' and 'industry', but I admit I got choked up at the museum's 'Titanic' exhibit - thinking this part of the deck is where Jack and Rose pledged their undying love to each other...)
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