Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince ***Spoilers***

Sorry I think I missed something. How was Kreacher's involvement in Harry rushing tot he ministry really that important?

If they understood clearly within the movie that Dumbledore was ignoring Harry, how is it relevant if they read the books? I thought the issue was that the movie didn't illustrate that Dumbledore was ignoring Harry. If they managed to figure that out I would think the film succeeded.

Wasn't she the one who explained to Harry who the Thestrals were and suggested they ride them to the ministry?

Honestly I didn't feel the changes were much a detriment, the factor that really hurt the film was time. They just didn't spend enough time on certain things and moved on too quickly. They set a quick pace and the film didn't feel like it lagged but there were moments when just a little bit more would have really helped, particularly in the third act.

And I still don't understand why they put in Grawp.

EDIT: Sorry, those questions weren't intended to be snide remarks but I was genuinely looking for clarification.

 

um yeah i agree with the last two posters about what they've said about OotP. pretty much word for word. i respect that dorkman has his own views and opinions so im gonna just agree to disagree. IMO goldenberg/yates did a better job with Ootp then klovis/newell did with Gof and i for one and glad that yates atleast is still on HbP. hopefully klovis wont screw up.
-doodie

 

Well, maybe it wasn't. To me, it was "evidence" that all Harry's worst fears had come to pass. There was no real reason for him to have to rush off as it was, it was only the confirmation that Sirius was, in fact, not at Grimmauld Place that really pushed him over the edge.

If they have read the books, then that could mean that it WASN'T, in fact, clearly illustrated within the movie, and the only reason they understood what was happening was because they understood what the situation was supposed to be, having read the books.

She did, but that wasn't wholly necessary. They could have stolen Quidditch brooms or something if they had to. I'm saying there was so much to her character -- and, come to that, to the Thestrals, who Neville could also see -- that was boiled down to "Hey, she's weird. Those horse things are weird too."

Speaking of Neville, that was a MAJOR loss, the clarification that Harry and Neville were, according to the prophecy, interchangable, and that the saga could have been about Neville. You barely get to see Neville stand up for himself, when in the book you really start to get the sense that, if he'd lived Harry's life, he could have become the same person Harry has become.

I can't remember, but was it made clear in the GOF film that Hagrid was half-Giant? If not, having his brother -- a full-giant -- show up would get the point across.

 

I certainly agree that there were a lot of things that were entirely unnecesary. I still hold that Grawp didn't really serve much of a purpose because I don't really see the point of clarifying that Hagrid is half giant. Its a character moment that, so far, hasn't done much to advance the plot, or at the very least in a way that makes that information vital.

The Neville thing was a bit troublesome for me. The treatment of the prophecy entirely was troubling for me, because there was so much that wasn't told. I can't really figure out why much of that was cut. Its not like the film was running too long. As Dorkman stated there was no mention of Neville being the other possibility, nor was it stated that there was another possible candidate and that it was Voldemort's haste that elected who his equal would be. To me that sort of gives their eventual duel to the death far more impact.

The film certainly could have done with a slightly longer cut where we were given a moment to dwell on some things, the Third act in particular.

I was also dissapointed that there wasn't more Order of the Phoenix...then again I have a particular bias towards Tonks.

 

I agree with the longer cut thing.

And now, back to the discussion of HBP. (Sorry, my fault we strayed this far.)

Then again, it's not like we've got a lot to discuss yet...

 

-I can see the point about Kreacher, but that's why I prefet the books to the movies anyways. It would have added to the desperate mood more, but wasn't completely necessary.

-I went with my 3 cousins, and sister. Two of the cousins (15 & 13) have read all the books, my sister (13) only watches the movies, and my youngest cousin (11) doesn't really follow them. My sister and my youngest cousins kept asking me through the whole movie why Dumbledore was ignoring Harry, if he was really a Death Eater in disguise (like Moody in the last one), because they think it's Dumbledore so he should be able to fix it all if Harry could just talk to him. I told them to just listen and shut up (I wanted to watch the movie! ), so my oldest cousin nicely explained it to them, which tye foudn out by the end of the movie anyways.

-And I thought Neville and Luna really shined, especially Neville. He was given a lot more depth in this movie, like it kinda started in the last one. Though I agree, they should have mentioned Voldemort could have chosen to identify it as Neville or Harry. But since Ms. Rowling didn't make them put it back in then I guess it won't be any major plot point in the last book. Ron and Hermione were good in this one too, not fighting each other (like the last 2 books/movies) but being there for Harry. And they should have mentioned that Umbridge had all brooms locked up, as a reason to use thestrals, but I didn't think of it while watching the movie as a plot hole, so I guess it works.

-And yeah, Grawp was as random in the movie as the book, but I'm sure it will pay off in Deathly Hallows. It screams setup, just like Kreacher!

 

Well, if Grawp wasn't in OOTP, then there wouldn't have been anything for Hagrid to do in the film. It'll be interesting to see how the film makers shoehorn him into HBP, because Hagrid's role there is even less than OOTP's. I have a feeling that Aragog's funeral will be cut from the film, and that was Hagrid's only real contribution to the HBP novel.

 

I think they'll use Hagrid in the final scenes, because he does have some nice action moments, and his emotional reaction is great. So I'd say he's in for the assault on Hogwarts and the end. Otherwise, probably not so much. Ditching Aragog's funeral is a good idea, and probably what they will do; while the Hagrid/Slughorn scenes are kind of fun, they really accomplish very little, and should really be gotten rid of.

-Paul

 

I think if they had have stuck to just simply him trying to recruit giants for dumbledore it would have been fine. Grawp's stuff could have been cut and that time been alloted to other scenes that really needed more room to breath, particularly stuff in the ministry and more with Harry and Dumbledore (prophecy/why are you ignoring me etc). I was a little disapointed that there wasn't the scene where he was getting canned I would have loved to have seen him and McGonagal take on several aurors.

 

I heard that Bill Nighy is being considered for Rufus Scrimegour, either that or Greyback.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/24/AR2007052400579.html

 

[voice=bender] I find that offensive! [/voice]

 

I could see Nighy as Scrimgeour, but Jeremy Irons has to be Greyback.

 

While I don't think the funeral itself is necessary in the film, the scene IS when when Harry uses the Felix Felicis and succeeds in obtaining Slughorn's memory.
No doubt if they show this, it will get cut down to just a clip.

I'm not worried about not seeing much of Hagrid in HBP, there are too many other important plot points I'd rather see.
I suspect we may see some lines re-assigned to him that other characters say in the book.
Oh, and we'll see him and Grawp at DD's funeral.

 

Yes, but especially after the heavyhanded alterations of Cho's role in OotP in order to remove her rather superfluous friend, I strongly imagine that they will write around it to remove the entirely unnecessary Aragog plot point while still accomplishing the same thing. I'm not sure what they will drop into that place, but I would be unsurprised to find that it's done without Hagrid. And I don't think that's a bad thing. While it fills out the richness of the book, it would be dragging and unneeded on screen.

-Paul

 

Does anybody else see Richard Giffiths as the perfect man for Slughorn? The only problem, of course, is that he's already playing Mr. Dursley...

 

If he hadn't lost all that weight I might like to see John Rhys Davies play Slughorn.

 

I want Wayne Knight personally.

 

Not an option...he's an American actor.
They only consider British actors for Harry Potter films.

What about Bob Hoskins?

 

Yep, completely British actors.

 

Both of those actors appear in only one scene. They're small exceptions to a rule which - in every other instance - is followed.

 

Zoë Wanamaker is American born but is considered a British actor, having lived there for over 50 years.
However, I'll concede Verne Troyer is an American Actor.

JKR has requested that British actors be used in the films, so I don't think there are many exceptions; certainly not for major roles.

 

Well, the other obvious overweight British actors are Ian McNeice, and Brian Cox.

 

I'm not suggesting Griffiths just because he's fat. With modern CGI, Slughorn's actor doesn't really even have to be fat. The main reason I suggested Griffiths is The History Boys, which I saw recently. Upon seeing it, it occurred to me that he would be absolutley perfect for Slughorn.

 

OK, now that we've all read DH, which plot points do you think is really necessary to leave in the HBP movie for the movie series to make sense? I really hope they bring Dobby back....

 

I'd note that, as I understand it, since this is not a DH-spoiler designated thread, all spoilers (or allusions to spoilers with any degree of heaviness) need to be HTR for a month. I just didn't come to the boards until I'd finished the book, but if anyone is still trying to read and coming to the boards, it would be a shame for something to be let slip accidentally.

-Paul