Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Baggage. Something we can’t help but bring with us to any kind of experience, but that plays an especially important role in a film sequel, or adaptation of which this is both. In fact such is the influence and impact of the Harry Potter series, it is nearly impossible to judge a film solely on its own merits, but then again is that necessarily the best way to go about it? I don’t know but a lot of reaction to the film has been due to people’s expectations and prior knowledge, and my viewing of the film initially was exactly the same. I wonder how they will do this scene? I hope that it is in it… that’s not how that happened! But then something happened, the film drew me in and made me forget all that. And once the weight of knowing the story and the wider context washed away I found myself engrossed in this tightly woven and moving story of growing pains and friendship through darkness. Yes there is a lot missed out, as in previous films, but unlike some of them here I agree with every decision. The hefty book has been streamlined wonderfully and focused (quite rightly) on Harry and his internal struggle to deal with the events of the past and turn towards the future he knows he must face.

Dan Radcliffe continues to improve in leaps and bounds and excels here has Harry, he has become so deeply imbedded in the character that I can now imagine no-one else in the role. Ron and Hermione have less to do this time round but the trios friendship and bond is spot on here, all remain engaging and the slight awkwardness has gone. Newcomer Evana Lynch is note perfect as Luna and makes a fantastic addition to the existing cast. Elsewhere it is the adults that impress with Gary Oldman giving Sirius a wonderful presence and heart and Imelda Staunton stealing the show as the insidious Delores Umbridge whose bureaucratic control over Hogwarts is perfectly realised.

The story moves at a brisk pace and while the darkness is more prominent than ever, the sequences at the school are as enjoyable and well realised as any in the series so far. The sense of rebellion and teenage angst are wonderfully mixed with the students development and seeing so many regular characters back, even if for a line or two helps the sense of familiarity and continuity. The film involved me more than any of the others have done so far and that is largely down to the fact that the feeling and heart of the books have been so faithfully translated. People may complain about the cuts, but truthfully the care and attention that go into each of these films is stunning and the respect for the books almost unparalleled within the Hollywood system. So many events and situations unfold just as I had imagined and there is a giddy thrill from seeing them on the big screen so well realised. The darkness that is imagined on the page is harsh to watch and all pretense about these films being ‘kiddie’ vanish when you realise that Harry Potter has grown up.

Like the books the chance to see these characters over 7 films helps build such a bond with them in the audience and I for one can’t wait to see the events of the last two books unfold. The films are never going to match the books simply due to the sheer amount of information and richness of Rowling’s universe, but more than any of the others this captures the essence of the book and sculpts it into not only a great adaptation, but a great film in its own right. I said at the start about the effect baggage can have on a film, and maybe my knowledge helped me appreciate the film more than some, in the same way it might hinder others. Regardless this is a film worth appreciating and one of the richest offerings in this summer of sequels.

Emboldened with a sense of urgency and danger and tackling the complexities of grief and isolation this is a masterful adaptation and the best Potter film so far. Some cuts do grate, but the emotional impact is genuine, leaving it to stand in its own right as simply a great film.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

So it all comes to an end. After 10 years, 7 books and thousands of words JK Rowling’s saga has been completed, and as my eyes took in those final pages the enormity of it sank in. Like millions of others I’ve lived with Harry for many years now and despite the popularity of the series it has still felt personal, a quality I believe that has greatly contributed to the aforementioned success. The Harry Potter books were not products of some great corporate machine, they were not money spinning sequels, nor have they been specifically crafted for an audience, they are one woman’s vision, her story shared with the world with themes, characters and ideals that have somehow woven themselves into the public consciousness, into modern society itself. Such a phenomenon does not occur often and it may well be only looking back that we realise what it was we were a part of, and what an unusual and magical situation to world found itself in on July 21st 2007, the day the world paused to read a book.

Now what I won’t do is detail the book with a critical in depth review, firstly plenty of people haven’t read it yet, and secondly it doesn’t need it. The book was a perfect end to the series, achieving the seemingly impossible task of providing a satisfactory conclusion, answering questions and defining the series as a whole It is epic, emotional, fast paced, inventive and full of heart, those qualities that have best suited Rowling’s writing so far. What I took away from it more than anything though was Harry as a character, and his journey and how, quite uniquely, we have been able to follow his growth from an 11 year old boy unaware of his place in the world to a fully fledged leader, who has overcome so much to face up to what he knows was his destiny. The qualities Harry possesses and the depth of courage he displays, along with the way that he shows it, affected me greatly, and more importantly inspired me greatly. You see that is what separates these books for me from other fiction, the inspiration I have found in the actions and deeds of these characters, the understanding and application of self, who we are and how the choices we make are what define us.

If the best fiction in any form is to work it must tell us something about ourselves as people, if it is to last then it must exemplify and inspire that behaviour in those who sample it. I know I can't wait to share these stories with my children in the future and they will remain for me something I will return to over and over again, as bizarre as it sounds the truth that is felt behind Harry gives him strength, and his true gift to the world will be to share with generations to come the value of bravery, courage, determination and friendship in even the most hopeless of situations.

Lifting the Veil

Junk Food Science has an excellent piece up today that counters the recent story (which I'm sure you may have seen) claiming that people with overweight friends are more likely to be overweight themselves, in essence stating that it is something that can be 'caught' and passed on. However despite the widespread reporting of the story when you look at how it was constructed and the rather radical assumptions made you may think again not only about this, but all the other so-called scientific studies that get released and reported on so often:

'ABC news told viewers this morning that having fat friends was bad for you and that fat friends could be spreading the attitude that being fat was okay and making it acceptable to have unhealthy behaviors. The groupthink instantly made it acceptable to publicly make fat people out to be pariahs and no one noticed the hurt it was causing. Let’s not beat around the bush. The key message of this study was to justify and promote the social shunning and discrimination of fat people. Not one health or medical writer, even at the most prestigious consumer or medical publications, has critically reported on this study or even appears to have read it. Not one has made a critical examination and pointed out its unorthodox methods, its findings that conflict with known science and known biological mechanisms, or the flawed and contradictory findings within the study itself.'

The rest of the article can be found here and its definitely worth your time to read, it's a bit complex and in depth but provides a fascinating look at the thinking behind what we see in the news.

Shrek the Third

The summer of ‘threequels’ rumbles on with the release of Shrek the Third, the imaginatively titled second sequel to the 2002 box office smash. Picking up soon after the events of the second film we find Fiona and Shrek standing in for the king of Far Far Away due to illness. When he dies leaving Shrek as his only heir, much to his dismay. However when Shrek finds out about the existence of another relative he sets off with Donkey and Puss in tow to relieve himself of his responsibility so he can retire peacefully to his beloved swamp.

As you would expect from the films this is a fun and fast paced adventure that manages to squeeze in familiar faces along side a couple of new ones. However while it still looks fantastic and does have some good jokes and one-liners, the cracks are definitely starting to show over what is now the serious expansion of a short story. The trouble is, and other have pointed this out as well, that Shrek was never meant to be quite as successful as it was. Sure it looked good and was funny and clever, but it was a self contained story that didn’t need any more telling. Shrek 2 did a good job of expanding the world, but to me it’s a shame that this film follows more in those shoes, than going back to what made the first film so entertaining which was seeing Shrek in his natural environment, and how he reacted to those around him.

However here we spend most of our time once again in Far Far Away at the castle and it feels like a lot of a re-tread, obviously the prospects of Shrek possibly becoming a father do add to the character, but the formula of Shrek et al. going on a quest while he deals with whatever issue he is dealing with, only to be re-united and save the day at the end is getting pretty tired. Not to say that this isn’t done well, just that it seems more derivative than before and with less emphasis and story points on Donkey and Puss, who are literally there simply on side kick duty, this feels like a rather churned out sequel which is a shame as the Shrek films have always stood out from the animated crowd with that extra layer of quality and attention. Having said that this is not a bad film by any means, there are a few funny scenes and the action is well executed, it just suffers from some rather uninteresting new characters, Justin Timberlake’s Artie springs to mine, and a conclusion that stretches believability a bit too far, not in terms of fantasy but peoples reactions.

However the main characters still amuse and being re-united with them for an hour and a half is hardly a bad thing, it just feels like the fresh spark has gone from the franchise and with a fourth and fifth films on the cards some major re-thinking may need to be done if the series isn’t going to fall into cookie cutter territory. One other problems the series has now is that it is stuck with characters and situations that have been introduced before, case in point Donkey and Dragon’s relationship, now this may have sort of worked in the first film as a slightly disturbing joke slash plot device, but now the sight of weird Dragon/Donkey babies is beyond creepy when you actually think about it, and you feel decisions like this that play as a joke, have just created baggage for the series that you feel weighs it down. With an entire fairy tale world to work with and the mischievous mixing of pop culture references to disrupt expectations the Shrek series has a world of possibilities at it’s feet, and maybe that’s why this very safe offering seems like a disappointment, as does the fact that it’s $300 million plus gross so far in the US pretty much guarantees more of the same in the years to come.

Familiar and rather tame this is still an enjoyable and, at times, clever extension of the series, but it also displays worrying signs of stretching an idea too far and the inclusion of bland characters and familiar situations does nothing to assuage this fear. This time Shrek may scrape by on sheer charm, but a franchise like this should not be caught coasting for long.

The Science of Sleep

Michel Gondry is an odd fellow, a true eccentric he first came to my attention through his bizarre but visually creative music videos for artists such as Bjork, you may remember the white stripes Lego advert, that was him. So far he has made two feature films, Human Nature and one of my favourite films of the past few years – Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. This though was his first film as writer and director and it manages to combine everything found in his work today with his odd creative sensitivities, focusing on dreams and reality in unusual and captivating ways. It is not a mainstream film by any stretch, but I welcomed the unique nature of the films ideas and visuals. The film concerns Stephane a Mexican who returns to Paris after his father’s death. A child-like figure Stephane is an artist who finds it hard to distinguish between his dreams and reality. Within his dreams he enters a television show where he watches and interprets his life, and these dream sequences are wonderfully constructed with liberal use of stop motion and practical effects rather than CG, making the films visuals seem at once more real and also more unique. Stephane’s world is changed though when his neighbour moves in, the charming but shy Stephanie who gradually starts to bond with Stephane, but can he escape his fantasy world to make a real life relationship work? What Gondry adds to the film is a similar mix of child-like wonder and adult cynicism about the world, the people in the film are real, flawed and troubled and he doesn’t shy away from some of the harder aspects of growing up and getting on in the world. However the real heart that made Eternal Sunshine so captivating remains and the tender relationship grown between the characters is charming and effortless. The actors have great chemistry and the structuring of the film often confuses you as to whether a sequence is a dream or not, furthering the overall dream-like nature of the film. There are so many small beautiful moments in the film that Gondry adds that make this one of the most memorable and individual films I have seen this year. What was surprising to me about the film was Gondry’s brave decision to make Stephane such a complex and at times unlikeable character,. He can be childish and self-destructive and the vague and slightly unsettled ending leaves the future ambiguous. However I think that this did temper my feelings towards the film as it does not have a typical romantic conclusion, something we start to desire as, despite his flaws, we can’t help but want the best for Stephane, largely in part to the magnificent and committed performance from Gael Garcia Bernal and the supporting cast who manage to make every character stand out and interesting. Overall this film may well be too strange and inconclusive for many people but if you can embrace Gondry’s unique sensibilities and engage with the world he creates there is a lot to enjoy and hold on to here, dig deep enough and you get one of the strangest but in many ways purest romantic movies of recent years. A strange and affecting tale of outsiders this is a real treat and a true original and memorable film, if you can get past the surreal imagery and sometimes surprisingly uncompromising depiction of the dangers of getting lost in your own mind, this can be a haunting film with a real heart and something new to say.

No thanks Nigel

Yesterday, whilst at the local cinema an advert was shown that linked in many ways with themes that I had been wanting to write about here on the site for a while. The advert in question was in fact a trailer for Pixar’s Ratatouille, well it seemed like a trailer, until the point where Remy (the hero of the film) started talking about movies, specifically how a good movie is like good food (tenuous link but I went with it) and how pirated DVDs lessen the quality and experience, like eating garbage. He then uttered the phrase ‘don’t be a knock off Nigel’, accompanied by the phrase on screen.

Now in case you are unaware (maybe blissfully so) the ‘knock-off Nigel’ campaign is the latest effort by the BBFC to try and discourage pirating, especially that if DVD’s, the current TV advert can be seen here and consists of someone singing about how a guy is basically cheap, mainly because he buys pirated DVDs. Now barring the quality of the advert itself, what gets to me about this is that, as a consumer, it seems to me that every campaign of this nature misses the point completely. Pirated DVDs are illegal, but contrary to dodgy film ads they are often of a much higher quality than they are seen, add to that the expansion of peer-to-peer downloading on programs such as BitTorrent and these adverts seem strangely out of date. You’re average pirater isn’t going to care about supposedly being seen as cheap, or scared of any legal repercussions because, and there’s the kicker, it all seems like scare tactics with very little to back it up.

The nature of digital media nowadays makes it more common than you might think, and therefore nearly impossible to police or monitor. So what can be done? Well personally I don’t have a concrete answer, but my initial thought comes down to improving the service of the actual product. Most people are happy to pay for films in all forms, very few I would say choose pirating because it saves money. In fact I’d wager more people choose pirating in any form because it is easier and saves time and sometimes is better than facing the hassles that come with wanting to watch a film these days. For example how annoying is it to legally buy a DVD only to try and play it and be faced with a 2 minute advert about how bad it is to pirate DVDs, surely the legal consumers should be spared this? And then there’s the key question, that of timing.

Now the advert that hangs all this together was for Ratatouille, as I have said, a film with a real stake in the heart of the matter. Ratatouille you see has been released in America for a good few weeks now to rave reviews and popularity. However the film is not released over here until September. In creating this advert, using the characters from the film, the makers are stating loud and clear that a big reason people pirate is to see something early. To get the jump on everyone else, and to get there first. Personally I am really looking forward to the film and a 3 month wait seems agonizing, if someone came up to me with a copy of the film on DVD it could be hard to say no. However were the film out already, there would be no temptation, and no reason to accept. With our globalised culture now it seems silly that Europe is continually left behind in terms of movies and games. In fact recently movies have made significant improvements in this area with more and more films launching simultaneously, gaming though lags behind. Frequently games are released months before release here, first in Japan then the US, decisions like this frustrate, especially now with the internet where for months we can read about our neighbours across the pond enjoying the games without us. Similarly with television, global blogging meant that with the final episode of the Soprano’s aired in the US last month everyone was talking about, I dread to think what it was like being a British Soprano’s fan desperately trying not to have everything spoiled before the last series shown later this year on Channel 4.

Pirated goods hold their worth primarily whilst there is no alternative, hence the films found on pirate DVD are those at the cinemas, as soon as a film is released officially there is little demand. The gap between formats and locations is what feeds the market, I believe to stop people using it as an option you need to convince them why they should wait. Why the product is worth their money. The adverts against piracy in the cinema’s proudly proclaim that ‘it’s the experience that counts’ but on my recent visits to the cinema, with rising prices to boot, I am yet to be convinced of that. Paying nearly £7 for half an hour of adverts mish-mashed with trailers before a film to overpriced food and quite often rude and noisy patrons is hardly a great experience, and yet is commonly one people find. Now this is not always the case, and the whole feel of going to the movies still excites me, but it seems that this is hardly a priority any more.

Even so for a family of 4 to go to a film and buy food will cost in excess of £30, now give the same family the option of a knock-off DVD of the same film to watch at home on their big-TV with home made popcorn for a couple of quid, and you have a decision that is a lot tougher than it should be. For as long as we see these faceless corporations as profit driven multinationals we will have no specific loyalty to their products, or therefore respecting their rules. The point of films, and games for that matter, is to entertain, to be an enjoyable experience, be it by yourself or as part of a group. However again audience perception of film companies, fuelled by an abundance of commercial tie-ins and sequels, can be rightly cynical at the moment, with the feeling that the executive board room’s collective eyes are on profit margins, as opposed to creative output or quality. Maybe this is why it is a canny move to have a Pixar film promote this cause as they are one of the few studios to prioritise quality and individuality within projects, and yet have created films that are both sequels and that have had creative tie-ins, without losing audience favour or box office receipts. There is something reassuring and pleasing about a company as passionate about films as their audience, and it is this goodwill that the public should feel if piracy really is to be dealt with.

But like I said before, the problem is not that the majority of people don’t want to pay for things, the problem is convincing them what they get is worth the price of admission and until the root of the problem is sorted and the companies listen to the consumers rather than trying to scare them, expect more of these adverts, unfortunately, directed at entirely the wrong crowd.

E3 2007 Round Up

So E3 is here again, and whilst the conference has been massively scaled down from previous years (and delayed by a couple of months) there is still plenty of activity with the big three companies still giving press conferences and loads of publishers on hand to show off their latest games. However this year has seen a lack of huge announcements with companies seeking to do such things on their own time and as such the week has fallen slightly from the centrepiece is used to be.

First up on Tuesday were Microsoft who chose to focus solely on their 2007 line up, while this showcased some impressive looking games including Mass Effect, Halo 3 and Bioshock it showed very little that people didn’t already know about and so any real big shock announcements were not to be found. Also unusually a lot of games shown were multiplatform, a fact that was emphasised when Sony went on to repeat many of the clips later in their own conference. The only real new announcement from Microsoft was a Halo themes Xbox 360 to a rather muted reception and one thinks this will appeal to hardcore users only. Even so it is the games that count and for the traditional gamer Microsoft have a very impressive line up for the second half of the year, but will it be enough to separate themselves from Sony or increase their market share siginifantly? 360 sales have been dropping throughout the year and with the recent news about Microsoft having to splash out nearly $1 billion on 3 year warranties for all machines due to high failure rates, it could be tough for Microsoft to significantly change the way things currently stand.

Nintendo were up next and with the runaway success of the Wii had a lot to prove to try and keep the momentum going. However like Microsoft there was not a lot on show that was new, despite a couple of key announcements. Videos of Metroid, Mario and Zelda DS were nice but familiar and it was only the revealing of Mario Kart that was new, but even that has long been speculated and was hardly a shock. The online announcements were welcome and it’s good to see the service picking up some speed, but it still pales compared to Xbox live and the absence of Smash Bros from the talk could imply that online functionality has been removed from the title.

They finished the show with a new game, but again one that had been known about in one form or another for a while, and one that technically may not count as a game. Wii Fit features a new control device, the balance board and sees you performing fitness routines and activities whilst tracking your progress over time in the form of BMI, height and weight. Whilst technically very impressive and something that seems perfectly pitched at the mainstream casual audience it was not the kind of ‘game’ that was best suited to E3 and may have left many gamers with the feeling they have been rather ignored in favour of Nintendo’s new much wide target market. However with solid release dates for Mario and Smash Brothers this year Nintendo have done enough for now, but how they treat the hardcore audience and find the right balance will really be seen next year, some new titles and 3rd party support will be vital if the Wii is to continue its success and not become something the traditional gaming audience start to turn their backs on.

Sony were up last and after last years rather famously disastrous E3 were eager to make amends, focusing on the games rather than the figures. They did show plenty of impressive looking games, and announced a few news ones but the lack of actual hands on demos (except Killzone) was a disappointment. Sony also announced the new upgraded PSP, nothing major is different except it is lighter and slimmer with a couple of new features, but it is a welcome change but it unlikely to turn things around in relation to the DS. In fact Sony’s show was solid and with some quality software coming up it could be starting to turn things around, however unlike the other conferences release dates were scarce and it could well be a long wait for games such as MGS4 and GTA 5. However again a lack of brand new announcements left this feeling less than it could have been and you get the feeling that Sony needs more than just a few showy games to turn the current market situation in it’s favour.

So that was the press conferences, the lack of new announcements may well be in keeping with the low-key nature of this years show with all parties having their own scheduled shows later this year (Nintendo will attend the Tokyo Game Show for the first time in years) meaning that big new game announcements and playable demos may well have to wait a few weeks. That said what was clear was the abundance of good looking games and a great all round line up for the rest of the year ion all platforms. That said watching the trailers they did start to blur together, how many grey and bleak futuristic first person shooters can one industry take? And while they all looked good I had trouble distinguishing them by the end. Nintendo continue to innovate but even they failed to show off any truly new game franchises instead sticking to the usual sequels. As one comment I read recently put it: out of all the forthcoming shooters only Halo 3 seems to have remembered the colour green. Let’s just hope some more alternative and unique software continues to be developed on all platforms before the next generation stops truly moving forward.