There was no way I wasn’t going to see Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince last night; absolutely no way. I’m not sure what we would have done if Sonya couldn’t baby-sit, but we would have had to do something short of bringing Emma with us; the domain of the Half-Blood Prince is no place for a three-year-old child. The world of this movie is dark, tense and close, it has to be .
The movie begins with panic, with bridges collapsing and dementors descending into the Muggles’ world. It also begins with a sixteen-year-old boy in a cafe reading the newspaper while an alluring waitress flirts with him. No sooner does she tell him she’d love to see him after work than Albus Dumbledore appears, extends a withered hand, and pulls Harry Potter back into the Wizarding world.
This movie is filled with teenagers yearning for all the snogging they never get. The book is loaded with with the romantic / sexual tension that has been building since the early books, and the tension finally busts open just the way we always would. In the book, Ron and Hermione finally admit that all their fighting may have been supressed attraction, and love and Harry and Ginny give into some pretty intense feelings. And everybody gets to have have a hormonally-fueled good old time.
As a recovering teenage girl, I will also note that it is the girls who are making the first moves. It's Hermione who says she wanted to ask Ron to the party, and would have if another girl had not welded herself to his arm. It's Romalda Vane who gives Harry love-potion-laced chocs. And, who is it finally iniciates the kiss in the room of hidden objects?; it's Ginny, of course. Girls are taking the risks.
The only one who gets a little action is Ron, and all that amounts to is comic relief. Maybe the director leaves Hermione dropping heavy hints and Harry and Ginny barely avoiding contact because he doesn’t want to alienate a large part of his audience. Maybe he doesn’t want the nine-year-olds recoiling shouting, “ew, Ew. EWWW!!!”
I don’t know how uncomfortable some kissing would make the younger kids in the audience, but I know my son missed the fighting. In this movie, there is no battle, no big, bloody clash between Good and Evil. I saw Death Eaters hit Hogwarts, and I know that Hogwarts drives them away. I can’t remember how that last part happened. No sex, no violence, and lots of tension and energy that don’t go where they need to go.
As the movie ends, Harry is set to go off into the dark. dangerous world. Ron and Hermione are united, ( but how, when?), and determined to join him. He giving up on a carefree life, and hoping to someday return to the girl who loves him. I know this because I’ve read the book.
Actually, I did like the movie because I like the characters and the cast. They deserve more!
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