Film: Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince is the sixth installment in the harry potter franchise which is now beginning to wind down. This is to be the third last movie in the series(the seventh book being split into two movies) and though it is definitely a great movie it does not stand on it's own nearly as well as i would like, that said if you've read the books or have seen previous films this one flows rather nicely.
One of the primary complaints i do have about this film is the plot. Now in the books the main plot is dumbledore and Harry discovering the mystery of voldemort while there is also a subplot of harry hooking up with ginny and other teen romances which take place. however in the film these two plots are probably neck and neck in terms of screen time. This is not necessarily a a negative thing and for some people it could be a positive; i was rather looking forward to a few more memory sequences but it's not a terrible loss that ruins the film.
As with all harry potter films and books they become increasingly darker as the series progresses, same with this film. This is definitely the darkest so far setting up the following films to delve further into mature areas. That being said there is a surprising amount of comedy which seems to almost counter balance much of the disasters which occur and at points was unnecessary(though this can be forgiven as most of the comic relief is both funny and well placed.
This movie is certainly one of the better harry potter films with acting, cinematography, directing and basically every aspect of this movie performed with delicate precision. And i'm sure there are going to be many complaining about the amount they left out from the book, looking back this has been one of the more faithful adaptions to JK Rowling's work and even covers a few plot points which the previous film forgot to mention.
This is essentially a very solid summer film which covers all the points and then some, making this a extremely satisfying film, though it may confuse or frustrate those extremely faithful to the book as well as those who have not yet become acquainted with the previous harry potter works.
( 8/10 )