That is to say, this film is merely okay. The first time i saw it i wasn’t sure if i liked it or not but still thought it was worth consuming. i still think that Bonnie Wright, Matthew Lewis, Evanna Lynch, and Natalia Tena were awesome, but this film cut way too much out, changed too much, and as a result really wasn’t very good at all. OotP is my favorite book of the series, and though the Dumbledore’s Army scenes actually summarize the feeling pretty well most of the important stuff is left out. Most importantly Sirius’ death was destroyed, Phineas Nigellus became an afterthought of a scorch mark, and the fight between Dumbledore and Voldemort just stunk and made Dumbledore look weak. All of the fighting in this film was not grounded in the books as well in the other films (and even they have taken liberties), therefore nothing made sense. They changed stuff in an attempt to look cool/good and as a result lost the heart of the story. Also, the music was subpar compared to the other films, Remus and Hagrid got too little screen time (as did others such as Moody and Tonks), and Mrs. Black doesn’t even whimper. Cho’s character was totally destroyed, the O.W.L.s were all wrong, McGonagall didn’t get to tell off Umbridge at Harry’s career planning session…. What the heck are they making these movies for if they’re going to alienate the fans, ruin the plotlines, and mutilate the story beyond comprehension? i hope that Michael Gambon kicks butt in film 6, but my hopes aren’t too high. i think the films have finally been killed, and i am so sad because i really loved them, even with their weaknesses. Plus i still miss Richard Harris and don’t see how he can have the slightest hope of finally figuring out what Dumbledore is about and finally doing the man justice.

Thankfully my ability to objectively look at cinema for what it truly is and how it appeals to my senses and intelligence or even appreciation of entertainment on the screen has not been diminished by my love for Harry Potter.

I looked forward to this movie because it was going to be interesting as to how they were going to adapt the long, slow and probably my least favourite of all the books in the series so far.

I was extremely disappointed. I found the movie to be a shoddy work where people who have read the books will gasp at the poor editing job and people who haven’t read the books will have no clue as to what the hell is happening. I found the casting of new the characters really good – Luna, Bellatrix and Umbridge but I wish the movie hadn’t dragged on and on forever. The greatest flaw lay in the fact that the movie ignores the prime foundation of book 5 – Harry’s isolation from everyone else that only seems to deepen as the novel progresses.

For the first time in weeks, my wife an I got out. Just the two of us. Baby at my parents. We’d been planning this since the beginning of the week.

I was thrilled to find out when we got to the theater that the movie was in the Imax. When we got to the counter to pay they handed us 3D glasses and told us that the last half-hour or so was in 3D. So far, so good.

Well the first part of the movie was fun. The story moved along and the magic seemed real. I was delighted. Then the 3D came on. I felt like I was going to throw up. Imminently. Sadly we had to leave before the end. I hope that the 3D feature is not on the DVD or I’ll never see how the movie ends.

A bit of a late review, but here goes. I thought this movie was quite good! But quite too short! Every scene felt like 2-minutes whooshing hurriedly into the next two minutes. But, that might just be because I wanted it never to end – I’ll be more objective the next time, probably. I thought that the characters in this one were much more like their books selves – especially my dear, dear beloved Ron, standing up for Harry exactly as he should <3 (Why is Kloves coming back, exactly? Anyway...) The minor quirk I have though is that Lupin non-existence, he has like, one line? And the final words of character-who-dies were a bit... well, weird.

But all in all! A very fun movie! More fun than the book which is my least favorite. I can’t wait to see it again!

Add me to those who found the book slow going and thought the movie did a good job of telling the story quickly. There was one plot change I didn’t like, but it was rather minor.

I was a little leery about paying theater prices for this, given that I found the fifth book a bit of a slog, but was pleasantly surprised. Good storytelling and solid acting made this a good HP debut for director Yates. Longer review

Really enjoyed this as a bit of fun – although it’s certainly the darkest film of the set so far. The Dementor attack at the start is surely quite scary for the younger elements of the audience? As for us older children (ahem!), it’s slightly disturbing seeing how quickly the cast are growing up – Neville Longbottom has started shaving, for goodness sake!

I haven’t read the book, and while I’m told the film is very different anyway, I think it’s still noticeable from a position of ignorance that there’s a lot of material cut out – some things are introduced and swept away (the girlie with the hair that changes colour looks quite cool, but she disappears with barely an introduction, for instance).

I’m also impressed at the cast: so many big names of British acting, popping up to reprise roles so briefly. Speaks highly of the series.

In hindsight, the plot is perhaps a little thin: Hogwarts is under threat, taken over by a minion of the Ministry; Harry is being accused of lying about Voldemort’s return; and… that’s more or less it. The look/feel swept me along with the whole thing anyway, but as enjoyable as it was, it does rather feel like a place-holder while we await the eventual finale.

It was fun to watch, you should like it at least a little if you like the books. Better not to think of this movie as a visual version of the book. Rather, it’s more of a visual companion to the book. Order of the Phoenix was the longest book of the series, so far, and yet this is one of the shorter movies. Much was left out. Maybe a director’s cut will be forthcoming?

Anyone else at the premiere in Grand Rapids on July 10th? Ahhhhhhhh that was so great.