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Books & Cleverness
The Moment: As Harry questions whether he’s up to the task ahead, Hermione shakes him from his torpor with the following rousing exchange: “ ‘Harry – you’re a great wizard you know’ ‘I’m not as good as you,’ said Harry, very embarrassed, as she let go of him. ‘Me!’ said Hermione. ‘Books! And cleverness! There are more important things – friendship and bravery.’” And so, Harry’s strong points are gradually coaxed to the fore. He might not be the most powerful wizard in the world, but he may well be the bravest.
Better On Film? With the best will in the world, Emma Watson wasn’t the greatest actress as this early stage. At least the words are in there though.
Revving Up
The Moment: The opening sequence in which the Order attempt to smuggle Harry back to the burrow in safety is an exercise in kicking things off with a bang. As Harry and the Aurors battle off a marauding posse of Death Eaters one barely has time to draw breath before realising that neither Mad-Eye Moody nor Hedwig (sob!) have survived the journey…
Better On Film? Every bit as good, from the comical Potter disguises donned by the Order, to the rollicking chase itself, right through to the devastation revealed after its conclusion.
You Say: “When the bloody owl dies.” – Sean Cameron Wilton (@seancam1985)
The Kiss
The Moment: It’s the bit we’ve all been waiting for. Seven books worth of slow-burning romance finally comes to a head when, amid the mayhem of the Battle of Hogwarts, Rona and Hermione finally share a kiss. In fact, it takes a few well-chosen words from Harry to remind them there’s even a battle going on around them!
Better On Film? We’ll have to wait and see, but we’d imagine it will raise cheers in multiplexes up and down the country when it eventually happens.
Expecto Patronum
The Moment: Just as the Dementors are swarming in on Harry, a mysterious figure appears across the lake and sends forth a powerful Patronus, scattering the hooded ghouls left and right. It is later revealed that Harry himself was the one who cast the Patronus, thanks to Hermione and her time turner.
Better On Film? Cuaron manages to hold the time turning storyline together nicely, with Harry’s dawning realisation providing a satisfying reveal to round off the film.
You Say: “Harry shouting EXPECTO PATRONUM at the end of the third movie and the amazing light that follows. I bet us muggles would get all sorts of cancer from the amount of radiation there.” – Jaakko Huovinen
Tom Riddle's Diary
The Moment: The idea of a teenage Voldemort living on in a dusty old diary is pretty damned creepy, and only becomes more so when we learn that he has been manipulating poor, trusting Ginny Weasley. The diary’s destruction is similarly unsettling, as the black ink pours out of it like blood from a wound. Also, we love that Rowling begins to establish the Horcruxes some four books before the word is even mentioned…
Better On Film? It’s very impressive actually, with the spurting book-gore looking as though it could have come from a Sam Raimi film. It’s HP’s equivalent to the Book of the Dead…
Pettigrew The Rat
The Moment: Lupin, Sirius, Ron, Harry and Hermione convene in the Shrieking Shack, as Lupin divulges the nature of his condition, and recounts his friendship with Sirius and James Potter. The fourth member of their little band, the treacherous Peter Pettigrew remains cloaked in secrecy until attention turns to Ron’s pet rat Scabbers…
Better On Film? Timothy Spall is superbly shifty as the newly revealed Pettigrew, his pleas for mercy simultaneously cunning and pathetic.
You Say: “The scene in the Shrieking Shack in film three. Four amazing actors (Oldman, Rickman, Thewlis, Spall) in one room. ‘Nuff said.” – Brittany Rivera (@kindamoviesnob)
Harry Is A Gryffindor
The Moment: One of Rowling’s key strengths has always been her ability to capture the ups and downs of ordinary school life, and the first day nerves are magnificently represented by Harry’s encounter with the Sorting Hat. However, there are significant plot points to be enjoyed as well, with the hat’s proclamation that Harry would make a good Slytherin one that will continue to haunt him throughout his journey…
Better On Film? In the film, the hat reveals its Slytherin suspicions to the whole hall, whereas in the book it takes place as an internal dialogue that only Harry can hear. An odd thing to change in our opinion.
Explaining The Hallows
The Moment: The history of the deathly hallows is revealed by Xenophilius Lovegood, who tells the tale of the three brothers of the Peverell family, and the three magical objects given them by Death.
Better On Film? One of the rare sequences that beats the book hands down, the legend of the hallows is told via a beautifully drawn animation, that brings the story to life with verve and no little style. A triumph.
You Say: “Definitely the retelling of the Tale of the Three Brothers from Deathly Hallows - a stunning bit of artistry that turned what could have been a dull conveying of the story into one of the film's, and for me one of the series', highlights!” – Timothy Alexander MacFarlane
Snape's True Colours
The Moment: And so, after seven books worth of muddying the waters, Severus Snape’s true colours finally come to the fore, and they are revealed (thankfully) to be heroic. Harry’s glimpse into the pensieve reveals all of Snape’s memories, proving once and for all, that he was in league with Dumbledore all along. Happy to play the bad guy throughout, Severus is eventually proved the true hero of the saga.
Better On Film? Having taken a back seat in part one, this will surely be Alan Rickman’s time to shine. His portrayal of arguably the story’s most complex character has been a tour de force from start to finish.
Dumbledore vs. Voldemort
The Moment: The climactic battle within the Ministry of Magic contains a number of showstopping moments, but grandest of all is the long-awaited head-to-head between the two greatest wizards in history, Voldemort and Dumbledore. With both at the height of their powers, it’s a showdown that doesn’t disappoint.
Better On Film? The Ministry of Magic sequence is one of the better action sequences in the film series, and Gambon and Fiennes throw themselves into proceedings with a pleasing amount of gusto.
