Jasonic's Favorites: Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
Hello, and good evening, Internet!
Another year at Hogwarts for America (and Britain) and I finally get to continue the Harry Potter saga beyond the third film!
Released in 2005 (20 years ago -- can you believe it?!), Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire was the continuation and middle of the Harry Potter film saga -- the first major turning point in both the books and the films. Being part of the mega franchise that Harry Potter had become, it was one of the biggest, if not THE biggest, opening weekends at the time, maintaining a successful run in theaters and grossing records beaten only by The Dark Knight as well as the subsequent Harry Potter films. The film has maintained cultural status along with the rest of the franchise, becoming home to one of my favorite memes known as "Dumbledore asked calmly" -- better known in a lot of cases as "Did you put your name in the Goblet of Fire?!" The movie has been a success among critics for being so good, but the fans especially have quite a few gripes with how things are portrayed differently, including, but not limited to, how Dumbledore famously/infamously delivered the aforementioned line. This was, after all, one of the longer Harry Potter books that majorly had to be condensed into a single film, so much so that it was nearly considered being a two-parter the way that Deathly Hallows, the finale, was ultimately released. Thankfully, the film has its fair share of fans and I'm one of them though it's understandable why many diehards consider this the dropoff point for the films especially considering how much had to be cut/altered for the sake of the film getting a decent runtime. I have enjoyed all the Harry Potter books and films regardless of their differences and given that I enjoy revisiting and quoting this movie along with the others, it's no surprise that I actually enjoy this movie regardless of what the fans think. For this review though, I will ask the question I always ask and say, "Does this movie really deserve any criticisms?" Given the many criticisms that the fans give it, it's worth revisiting the movie to find out. Without further adieu, let's pack up our Hogwarts school supplies, touch the Portkey, and Apparate our way into Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire!
*SPOILERS FOR THE SERIES* (unless, of course, you know it, be my guest)
The film picks up a few months after Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban; it opens with a Muggle caretaker named Frank Bryce (Eric Sykes) investigating a meeting at the Riddle House near the graveyard. Upon overhearing/overseeing the three men of Wormtail (Timothy Spall), Lord Voldemort (Ralph Fiennes), and someone we do not recognize yet, the caretaker is murdered by Avada Kedavra, Harry Potter (Daniel Radcliffe) witnessing this in his dream before waking up the next morning at the Weasley's Burrow. After having breakfast with the Weasleys, Harry, Ron (Rupert Grint), Hermione (Emma Watson), and the rest of them meet up with Amos Diggory (Jeff Rawle) and his son, Cedric (Robert Pattinson), to touch a Portkey that warps them to the campsite near the Quidditch World Cup. The cast initially have a blast at the campsite and watching the game where they witness Durmstrang Quidditch star, Viktor Krum (Stanislav Ianevski), play in the games, but are sorely interrupted by a Death Eater attack during which Harry gets separated from the cast, falls over, gets incidentally kicked in the face, and passes out. Harry later wakes up to Ron and Hermione having returned in the aftermath of the destruction only for Harry to witness the man from his nightmares conjure the Dark Mark in the sky. The head of the Department of International Magical Cooperation, Barty Crouch Sr. (Roger Lloyd-Pack), witnesses them at the scene and questions them though thankfully Arthur Weasley (Mark Williams), manages to speak for them. Upon them arriving to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Headmaster Albus Dumbledore (Michael Gambon) announces an exciting year for the school as it hosts the annual Triwizard Tournament in which two other schools -- Beauxbatons Acadamy and the aforementioned Durmstrang Institute -- are there to compete one contestant each with someone from Hogwarts. The means for entering the tournament is putting one's name into the titular Goblet of Fire; the Goblet soon chooses Viktor Krum to represent Durmstrang while Fleur Delacour (Clémence Poésy) is chosen to represent Beauxbatons and Cedric Diggory is chosen to represent Hogwarts. In a twist of fate, however, the Goblet ALSO chooses Harry to compete alongside Cedric leading to the Hogwarts staff and Crouch Sr. to investigate whether Harry did the deed of putting his name in himself. Though Harry is innocent, the binding magical contract of the Goblet forces Harry to compete even though Ron initially is uber jealous and holds it against him for entering without telling him. Despite Harry's initial backlash for incidentally being apart of the competition, he still does his best to compete and figure out strategies and clues with the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, Alastor "Mad-Eye" Moody (Brendan Gleeson) so that he can survive the trials of the games. In his darkest, most challenging year yet, Harry will soon witness the biggest turning point in his years at Hogwarts as he strives to hold up his reputation, his friends, and keep his life in the midst of these dangerous games.
As a condensed adaptation of the book, this one does a good job streamlining a lot and, while fans think that's bad to some degree, I personally don't think it is necessarily. This is notably the first film without the intro taking place at the Dursley's at Privet Drive so Richard Griffiths, Fiona Shaw, and Harry Melling do not reappear as Uncle Vernon, Aunt Petunia, and Dudley Dursley respectively. This was done most likely to keep the films from feeling as repetitive as the books so rather when we first see Harry, he is waking up in Ron's room at the Weasley's place to Hermione who's getting there just now. Several side scenes from the book at the Quidditch World Cup were omitted such as Harry reconnecting with his former Quidditch team lead, Oliver Wood, and the actual gameplay of the Quidditch game are not in it for the sake of brevity. An entire subplot from the book that was notably cut was Hermione's formation of S.P.E.W. (Society for the Promotion of Elfish Warfare), completely dropped for the sake of streamlining the whole thing to just the Triwizard Tournament. Though I am with the crowd that this whole subplot gives Hermione more agency and allows her to be more than simply "the girl to be won" at the end of the day, this would have bogged the movie a lot given that it feels extraneous compared to everything else. One downside to omitting it is that because of the presence of elves in the book that we actually get to see Dobby again in the novel and several of the others; having him only appear in the Chamber of Secrets movie as well as Deathly Hallows Part 1 doesn't give him much presence in the movies even with what eventually happens to him. Certainly though, that's something that the Harry Potter HBO show will fix given that it will most likely add a lot of subplots back in, if not create entirely new scenes/stories. Until then, the movie did a decent job of keeping things streamlined, going as far as giving Neville Longbottom (Matthew Lewis) a bigger role by having him give Harry the gillyweed for the second task as opposed to Dobby. Neville's importance to the overall plot isn't as emphasized in the movies as it was in the books though the scene where Moody's impersonator showing him what the Cruciatus curse does to people hints strongly at the backstory with his parents with the trial of Igor Karkaroff (Predrag Bjelac) straight up mentioning that Voldemort Cruciatus curse tortured Neville's parents into insanity. It was a plot detail I didn't pick up on as a young teenager not paying full attention to much outside the visuals though my mom and I later reading the books for ourselves allowed us to catch it better as well as discuss a lot of what was different/omitted from the movies. That said, while the plot details are certainly streamlined for the sake of a movie's runtime, I, personally, find it hilarious that the "Dumbledore asked calmly" moment is portrayed so brashly by comparison; it is my favorite difference from the book to pick on not for the sake of complaining, but rather to laugh at how outrageous it is when you consider how Dumbledore was portrayed in the books. That, among other reasons, are why I was most looking forward to getting to this particular movie in the franchise.
Once more, the actors are given lots of great material here, even adding a few new ones who contribute some, if not more to the overall series from here on. Daniel Radcliffe as Harry became something more of a teen heartthrob in this movie not just in looks, but the way he's grown up, delivering his lines more like a confused teen trying not only to figure out his current circumstances, but also navigate his way through teen romance as well. I would argue he even has some genuinely emotional moments of bravery and heroism -- especially standing up to Voldemort in the graveyard -- as well as heartache and sorrow when he starts crying over Cedric's body in the end; Daniel Radcliffe is always what I'd imagine as Harry Potter and this movie proves it. Rupert Grint certainly matures more as Ron, having way less comically wimpy moments from before and instead having genuine moments of angered jealousy toward Harry for being in the tourney as well as Hermione with him being so bitter about the way she "fraternizes with the enemy" in going to the Yule Ball with Viktor Krum -- Ron navigates puberty a lot more awkwardly too. Emma Watson isn't given as much to do here with her characeter's S.P.E.W. plotline being removed, but she still maintains the competent studiousness she's known for and even cleans up nicely for the Yule Ball in a way that would make any young teen watching potentially fall in love with her -- I know I did. Michael Gambon (RIP), as I mentioned already, brings his more brash and agitated side of Dumbledore to an all-time max with his famous "Did you put your name in the Goblet of Fire?!" moment, funny as it is; while many book fans disagree with his portrayal and especially that line delivery, I still find it enjoyably silly and think it's balanced out by the fact that he becomes softer and more straightforward in his and Harry's last scene together. Robert Pattinson was certainly a great one-time addition as Cedric Diggory as this was the movie that really got his start prior to stuff like Twilight and the recent The Batman; you'd expect him and Harry to be rivals given that they compete together under the same school, but they hold no ill will toward each other, Cedric even helping him out a few times for tips on how to win. Robert Pattinson being pretty genuine sells it well and it's no wonder he's been a big actor since. Actors like Maggie Smith (RIP), Robbie Coltrane (RIP), and Garry Oldman are still here and are great, but aren't given as much to do though gladly, Alan Rickman (RIP) still wins more prominently such as the comical moment in potions class where he physically torments Harry and Ron for whispering in class. A few of the new additions to the cast are just as great and help carry the franchise going forward; Brendan Gleeson as Alastor Moody -- though it's mostly actually Barty Crouch Jr. impersonating Moody -- does a great job of misdirecting the audience with appearing rather mad at first with his literal mad eye and his willingness to showcase the unforgiveable curses IN class. Over time, however, he seems to become Harry's mentor, slowly winning over Harry's loyalty until he reveals that "he" pulled the strings to get Harry to win the tournament in order to resurrect Lord Voldemort. You'd think he's the real villain this time, but then it's revealed he's actually David Tennant (the 10th Doctor) as Barty Crouch Jr.; in the scenes where David Tennant is himself, he plays a convincingly mad dude who's aggressive, impulsive, and proud of his evil acts, showing a more demented side of his acting. If there was any reason to believe this guy could play a villain vs. an iconic hero like Doctor Who, this role certainly sold me on it and I'm glad to know his acting range even if I haven't seen much Doctor Who. The best addition, however, is the introduction of Ralph Fiennes as the resurrected Lord Voldemort; having mostly been a handsome man throughout his life, this guy disappears well into a dementedly inhuman dark lord with his nose CG'd off. The way he asserts his dominance by welcoming his Death Eater friends before ripping off their masks rather painfully shows how erratic he can be especially after being neglected and without a body for all this time. His ecstatic attitude toward getting to remeet and torture Harry through simply touching him is a real win and shows how demeaning Voldemort can really be as a villain now that he's fully returned; he really left a lasting impression here and was a welcome addition to the cast for the rest of the franchise.
Once more, the CGI and other special effects are very well done; the opening shot of Nagini -- Voldemort's pet snake who speaks Parseltongue -- crawling out from the pillar of skulls is a combination of really convincing CGI and a gritty practical set that sets the tone for the darker things to come in this one. Although it's clearly an animated snake throughout all of the series, the CG has improved greatly since Sorcerer's Stone to a point where the snake and other CG creatures well with the live action backgrounds. Even the amblypygid -- the tailess wip scorpion in the fake Moody's class -- appears like it's actually there however freaky it is and the student actors' authentic reactions to "Moody" throwing it on their faces sell it pretty well (even then, you can almost feel bad about it the way that Barty as Moody demonstrates the Killing Curse on it at the end of the lesson). Perhaps the most impressive use of CG in the film and the franchise up to this point is the Hungarian Horntail dragon that Harry faces in his first task; we don't get full glimpses of the other contestants' dragons they face apart from the tiny live models they pull out of Barty Crouch Sr.'s bag prior to the competition, but when Hagrid shows Harry the dragons in their cages at night, we see the Horntail in full and even in the dark it looks menacing. By the time of the daytime competition, we get to see the dragon in full and the reptilian design and scaly details on it look absolutely impressive for 2005, blending just as well with the live action backgrounds. A nice touch they added to the following action scene was expanding it onto the Hogwarts grounds; in the book from what I recall, Harry simply took down the dragon and recovered the golden egg all within the specially made arena out near the school. In the movie, however, Harry lured it out onto the grounds so as to get it away from the arena, struggling to recover his Firebolt broomstick as he dangles off a window sill while the dragon nears. A nice touch they added to the dragon's mannerisms was that it can't glide consistently and needed to touch down on top of Griffyndor Tower in order to get its bearings before leaping across the castle to get to Harry; this shows that even in a magical world, a creature like a dragon doesn't quite have infinite flight capabilities to ground it somewhat in realism. I'd argue that with scenes like the underwater second task with the CG merpeople and the third task's maze and its live, tangling vines that these movies are playing more on people's phobias at this point because the scenes are so dark with muted colors that it almost looks like they could be real and frighten young children. As if that weren't scary enough, anyone without a backbone might even be terrified of Lord Voldemort himself not just in essence because of how feared he is, but because of how physically unnerving he looks; he never scared me, thankfully, but the way they updated his face with the CG on Ralph Fiennes' normally handsome face to give him his noseless look creates for a physically scary villain whose whole motif is snakes. The way he's described in the book is having the nostrils like that of a snake as well as red eyes and if the latter had been given to him in the movie, no doubt would a bust of movie Voldemort work well as a Halloween decoration. As it stands, while I think the Sorcerer's Stone look for Voldemort on the back of Quirrell's head looks slightly more unnerving and menacing, they did a great job of updating Voldemort's look for the remainder of the series to give him that ghastly look he's known for.
As with most Harry Potter movies, the soundtrack is still very much up there in terms of stuff I listen to on my film OST playlist. This is the first Harry Potter film not composed by John Williams and in his stead is someone named Patrick Doyle; he gets off to a good start with the opening track "The Story Continues", which is mostly just an opening featuring a more bombastic version of the Harry Potter theme ("Hedwig's Theme" for the diehards). This was most likely done to signify the fact that the story is not only continuing, but it is also getting more intense with every new installment -- something also signified by the fact that each movie gets progressively darker, the Warner Bros. and film logos reflecting that with this film's version of each being pure silver in color. The track "Foreign Visitors Arrive" corresponds with the scene in the year's opening feast where the Beauxbatons and Durmstrang enter the Great Hall, making shows of their entrances. The portion with the Beauxbatons' entrance consists of lighter string instruments to show case their more serene and lovely magical entrance as they pose and dance their way through. Meanwhile, Durmstrang's entrance consists of more heavy percussion and intense horns, signifying their more bombastic and commanding entrance. One particular track I have enjoyed in listening to my film OST playlist is "Harry in Winter"; a perfect track for winter, it goes without saying that this plays in the winter scene as Harry is preparing for the Yule Ball. The soft strings show that Harry is both longing and searching for a date to the ball and it even plays over the part where he attempts to ask Cho Chang (Katie Leung) only to be met with rejection. A song like that can't help, but make me feel for Harry as he navigates teen angst and romance now that he's into his fourth year. This is also the first Harry Potter film with more than one vocal song, all of which are played by the fictional band, The Weird Sisters, in the Yule Ball sequence; while I could talk about all of them, the one I like best that also plays during the credits is called "Magic Works". It is honestly the perfect slow dance song and gives the impression of being such a song that could exist in the Wizarding World or even the real world if people believe in literal or figurative magic existing. As much as it sounds like a real slow dance song of the more magical variety, if I didn't know it was from Harry Potter and you told me it was actually a David Bowie song, I could have believed you. As it stands, it works as a great ending song to both the Yule Ball sequence as well as the end credits and makes me think wholesomely of Neville dancing with Ginny (Bonnie Wright).
With all that said, I do believe that Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire is still a great Harry Potter movie and movie in general even if not quite the best of the bunch; it concisely follows what's important in the book to the benefit or detriment of the story depending who you ask, the actors maintain doing a great job, the CG and SFX are still top notch even to this day, and the music does a great job of highlighting the story moments whether the traditional orchestral bits or the vocal themes. As the middle chapter of the whole Harry Potter saga, it creates a dire turning point for both Harry and the Wizarding World because with Voldemort back, it can only get worse from here and that's part of why I believe that Harry Potter is an excellently plotted series. Whether the fans have their gripes with a lot of the decisions made in this movie and the following movies is another story, but I do believe that regardless of the medium it's being told in, the story serves its purpose and jumpstarts the momentum for the rest of the series. As a writer, I find that the books instill some inventive, even magical concepts for content ideas and written descriptions and the plotting inspires me to think up effective story structures for either a standalone story or a potential series idea. Regardless, I have ambition as a writer and I owe a bit of that to Harry Potter and other works that continue to inspire the world of literature. With Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire being what it is, I give it an overall grade of A- and recommend it to fans of the series as well as those who are invested in getting into the books and the movies.
Thank you all for reading and I will see you in the next review!
Another year at Hogwarts for America (and Britain) and I finally get to continue the Harry Potter saga beyond the third film!
Released in 2005 (20 years ago -- can you believe it?!), Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire was the continuation and middle of the Harry Potter film saga -- the first major turning point in both the books and the films. Being part of the mega franchise that Harry Potter had become, it was one of the biggest, if not THE biggest, opening weekends at the time, maintaining a successful run in theaters and grossing records beaten only by The Dark Knight as well as the subsequent Harry Potter films. The film has maintained cultural status along with the rest of the franchise, becoming home to one of my favorite memes known as "Dumbledore asked calmly" -- better known in a lot of cases as "Did you put your name in the Goblet of Fire?!" The movie has been a success among critics for being so good, but the fans especially have quite a few gripes with how things are portrayed differently, including, but not limited to, how Dumbledore famously/infamously delivered the aforementioned line. This was, after all, one of the longer Harry Potter books that majorly had to be condensed into a single film, so much so that it was nearly considered being a two-parter the way that Deathly Hallows, the finale, was ultimately released. Thankfully, the film has its fair share of fans and I'm one of them though it's understandable why many diehards consider this the dropoff point for the films especially considering how much had to be cut/altered for the sake of the film getting a decent runtime. I have enjoyed all the Harry Potter books and films regardless of their differences and given that I enjoy revisiting and quoting this movie along with the others, it's no surprise that I actually enjoy this movie regardless of what the fans think. For this review though, I will ask the question I always ask and say, "Does this movie really deserve any criticisms?" Given the many criticisms that the fans give it, it's worth revisiting the movie to find out. Without further adieu, let's pack up our Hogwarts school supplies, touch the Portkey, and Apparate our way into Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire!
*SPOILERS FOR THE SERIES* (unless, of course, you know it, be my guest)
The film picks up a few months after Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban; it opens with a Muggle caretaker named Frank Bryce (Eric Sykes) investigating a meeting at the Riddle House near the graveyard. Upon overhearing/overseeing the three men of Wormtail (Timothy Spall), Lord Voldemort (Ralph Fiennes), and someone we do not recognize yet, the caretaker is murdered by Avada Kedavra, Harry Potter (Daniel Radcliffe) witnessing this in his dream before waking up the next morning at the Weasley's Burrow. After having breakfast with the Weasleys, Harry, Ron (Rupert Grint), Hermione (Emma Watson), and the rest of them meet up with Amos Diggory (Jeff Rawle) and his son, Cedric (Robert Pattinson), to touch a Portkey that warps them to the campsite near the Quidditch World Cup. The cast initially have a blast at the campsite and watching the game where they witness Durmstrang Quidditch star, Viktor Krum (Stanislav Ianevski), play in the games, but are sorely interrupted by a Death Eater attack during which Harry gets separated from the cast, falls over, gets incidentally kicked in the face, and passes out. Harry later wakes up to Ron and Hermione having returned in the aftermath of the destruction only for Harry to witness the man from his nightmares conjure the Dark Mark in the sky. The head of the Department of International Magical Cooperation, Barty Crouch Sr. (Roger Lloyd-Pack), witnesses them at the scene and questions them though thankfully Arthur Weasley (Mark Williams), manages to speak for them. Upon them arriving to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Headmaster Albus Dumbledore (Michael Gambon) announces an exciting year for the school as it hosts the annual Triwizard Tournament in which two other schools -- Beauxbatons Acadamy and the aforementioned Durmstrang Institute -- are there to compete one contestant each with someone from Hogwarts. The means for entering the tournament is putting one's name into the titular Goblet of Fire; the Goblet soon chooses Viktor Krum to represent Durmstrang while Fleur Delacour (Clémence Poésy) is chosen to represent Beauxbatons and Cedric Diggory is chosen to represent Hogwarts. In a twist of fate, however, the Goblet ALSO chooses Harry to compete alongside Cedric leading to the Hogwarts staff and Crouch Sr. to investigate whether Harry did the deed of putting his name in himself. Though Harry is innocent, the binding magical contract of the Goblet forces Harry to compete even though Ron initially is uber jealous and holds it against him for entering without telling him. Despite Harry's initial backlash for incidentally being apart of the competition, he still does his best to compete and figure out strategies and clues with the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, Alastor "Mad-Eye" Moody (Brendan Gleeson) so that he can survive the trials of the games. In his darkest, most challenging year yet, Harry will soon witness the biggest turning point in his years at Hogwarts as he strives to hold up his reputation, his friends, and keep his life in the midst of these dangerous games.
As a condensed adaptation of the book, this one does a good job streamlining a lot and, while fans think that's bad to some degree, I personally don't think it is necessarily. This is notably the first film without the intro taking place at the Dursley's at Privet Drive so Richard Griffiths, Fiona Shaw, and Harry Melling do not reappear as Uncle Vernon, Aunt Petunia, and Dudley Dursley respectively. This was done most likely to keep the films from feeling as repetitive as the books so rather when we first see Harry, he is waking up in Ron's room at the Weasley's place to Hermione who's getting there just now. Several side scenes from the book at the Quidditch World Cup were omitted such as Harry reconnecting with his former Quidditch team lead, Oliver Wood, and the actual gameplay of the Quidditch game are not in it for the sake of brevity. An entire subplot from the book that was notably cut was Hermione's formation of S.P.E.W. (Society for the Promotion of Elfish Warfare), completely dropped for the sake of streamlining the whole thing to just the Triwizard Tournament. Though I am with the crowd that this whole subplot gives Hermione more agency and allows her to be more than simply "the girl to be won" at the end of the day, this would have bogged the movie a lot given that it feels extraneous compared to everything else. One downside to omitting it is that because of the presence of elves in the book that we actually get to see Dobby again in the novel and several of the others; having him only appear in the Chamber of Secrets movie as well as Deathly Hallows Part 1 doesn't give him much presence in the movies even with what eventually happens to him. Certainly though, that's something that the Harry Potter HBO show will fix given that it will most likely add a lot of subplots back in, if not create entirely new scenes/stories. Until then, the movie did a decent job of keeping things streamlined, going as far as giving Neville Longbottom (Matthew Lewis) a bigger role by having him give Harry the gillyweed for the second task as opposed to Dobby. Neville's importance to the overall plot isn't as emphasized in the movies as it was in the books though the scene where Moody's impersonator showing him what the Cruciatus curse does to people hints strongly at the backstory with his parents with the trial of Igor Karkaroff (Predrag Bjelac) straight up mentioning that Voldemort Cruciatus curse tortured Neville's parents into insanity. It was a plot detail I didn't pick up on as a young teenager not paying full attention to much outside the visuals though my mom and I later reading the books for ourselves allowed us to catch it better as well as discuss a lot of what was different/omitted from the movies. That said, while the plot details are certainly streamlined for the sake of a movie's runtime, I, personally, find it hilarious that the "Dumbledore asked calmly" moment is portrayed so brashly by comparison; it is my favorite difference from the book to pick on not for the sake of complaining, but rather to laugh at how outrageous it is when you consider how Dumbledore was portrayed in the books. That, among other reasons, are why I was most looking forward to getting to this particular movie in the franchise.
Once more, the actors are given lots of great material here, even adding a few new ones who contribute some, if not more to the overall series from here on. Daniel Radcliffe as Harry became something more of a teen heartthrob in this movie not just in looks, but the way he's grown up, delivering his lines more like a confused teen trying not only to figure out his current circumstances, but also navigate his way through teen romance as well. I would argue he even has some genuinely emotional moments of bravery and heroism -- especially standing up to Voldemort in the graveyard -- as well as heartache and sorrow when he starts crying over Cedric's body in the end; Daniel Radcliffe is always what I'd imagine as Harry Potter and this movie proves it. Rupert Grint certainly matures more as Ron, having way less comically wimpy moments from before and instead having genuine moments of angered jealousy toward Harry for being in the tourney as well as Hermione with him being so bitter about the way she "fraternizes with the enemy" in going to the Yule Ball with Viktor Krum -- Ron navigates puberty a lot more awkwardly too. Emma Watson isn't given as much to do here with her characeter's S.P.E.W. plotline being removed, but she still maintains the competent studiousness she's known for and even cleans up nicely for the Yule Ball in a way that would make any young teen watching potentially fall in love with her -- I know I did. Michael Gambon (RIP), as I mentioned already, brings his more brash and agitated side of Dumbledore to an all-time max with his famous "Did you put your name in the Goblet of Fire?!" moment, funny as it is; while many book fans disagree with his portrayal and especially that line delivery, I still find it enjoyably silly and think it's balanced out by the fact that he becomes softer and more straightforward in his and Harry's last scene together. Robert Pattinson was certainly a great one-time addition as Cedric Diggory as this was the movie that really got his start prior to stuff like Twilight and the recent The Batman; you'd expect him and Harry to be rivals given that they compete together under the same school, but they hold no ill will toward each other, Cedric even helping him out a few times for tips on how to win. Robert Pattinson being pretty genuine sells it well and it's no wonder he's been a big actor since. Actors like Maggie Smith (RIP), Robbie Coltrane (RIP), and Garry Oldman are still here and are great, but aren't given as much to do though gladly, Alan Rickman (RIP) still wins more prominently such as the comical moment in potions class where he physically torments Harry and Ron for whispering in class. A few of the new additions to the cast are just as great and help carry the franchise going forward; Brendan Gleeson as Alastor Moody -- though it's mostly actually Barty Crouch Jr. impersonating Moody -- does a great job of misdirecting the audience with appearing rather mad at first with his literal mad eye and his willingness to showcase the unforgiveable curses IN class. Over time, however, he seems to become Harry's mentor, slowly winning over Harry's loyalty until he reveals that "he" pulled the strings to get Harry to win the tournament in order to resurrect Lord Voldemort. You'd think he's the real villain this time, but then it's revealed he's actually David Tennant (the 10th Doctor) as Barty Crouch Jr.; in the scenes where David Tennant is himself, he plays a convincingly mad dude who's aggressive, impulsive, and proud of his evil acts, showing a more demented side of his acting. If there was any reason to believe this guy could play a villain vs. an iconic hero like Doctor Who, this role certainly sold me on it and I'm glad to know his acting range even if I haven't seen much Doctor Who. The best addition, however, is the introduction of Ralph Fiennes as the resurrected Lord Voldemort; having mostly been a handsome man throughout his life, this guy disappears well into a dementedly inhuman dark lord with his nose CG'd off. The way he asserts his dominance by welcoming his Death Eater friends before ripping off their masks rather painfully shows how erratic he can be especially after being neglected and without a body for all this time. His ecstatic attitude toward getting to remeet and torture Harry through simply touching him is a real win and shows how demeaning Voldemort can really be as a villain now that he's fully returned; he really left a lasting impression here and was a welcome addition to the cast for the rest of the franchise.
Once more, the CGI and other special effects are very well done; the opening shot of Nagini -- Voldemort's pet snake who speaks Parseltongue -- crawling out from the pillar of skulls is a combination of really convincing CGI and a gritty practical set that sets the tone for the darker things to come in this one. Although it's clearly an animated snake throughout all of the series, the CG has improved greatly since Sorcerer's Stone to a point where the snake and other CG creatures well with the live action backgrounds. Even the amblypygid -- the tailess wip scorpion in the fake Moody's class -- appears like it's actually there however freaky it is and the student actors' authentic reactions to "Moody" throwing it on their faces sell it pretty well (even then, you can almost feel bad about it the way that Barty as Moody demonstrates the Killing Curse on it at the end of the lesson). Perhaps the most impressive use of CG in the film and the franchise up to this point is the Hungarian Horntail dragon that Harry faces in his first task; we don't get full glimpses of the other contestants' dragons they face apart from the tiny live models they pull out of Barty Crouch Sr.'s bag prior to the competition, but when Hagrid shows Harry the dragons in their cages at night, we see the Horntail in full and even in the dark it looks menacing. By the time of the daytime competition, we get to see the dragon in full and the reptilian design and scaly details on it look absolutely impressive for 2005, blending just as well with the live action backgrounds. A nice touch they added to the following action scene was expanding it onto the Hogwarts grounds; in the book from what I recall, Harry simply took down the dragon and recovered the golden egg all within the specially made arena out near the school. In the movie, however, Harry lured it out onto the grounds so as to get it away from the arena, struggling to recover his Firebolt broomstick as he dangles off a window sill while the dragon nears. A nice touch they added to the dragon's mannerisms was that it can't glide consistently and needed to touch down on top of Griffyndor Tower in order to get its bearings before leaping across the castle to get to Harry; this shows that even in a magical world, a creature like a dragon doesn't quite have infinite flight capabilities to ground it somewhat in realism. I'd argue that with scenes like the underwater second task with the CG merpeople and the third task's maze and its live, tangling vines that these movies are playing more on people's phobias at this point because the scenes are so dark with muted colors that it almost looks like they could be real and frighten young children. As if that weren't scary enough, anyone without a backbone might even be terrified of Lord Voldemort himself not just in essence because of how feared he is, but because of how physically unnerving he looks; he never scared me, thankfully, but the way they updated his face with the CG on Ralph Fiennes' normally handsome face to give him his noseless look creates for a physically scary villain whose whole motif is snakes. The way he's described in the book is having the nostrils like that of a snake as well as red eyes and if the latter had been given to him in the movie, no doubt would a bust of movie Voldemort work well as a Halloween decoration. As it stands, while I think the Sorcerer's Stone look for Voldemort on the back of Quirrell's head looks slightly more unnerving and menacing, they did a great job of updating Voldemort's look for the remainder of the series to give him that ghastly look he's known for.
As with most Harry Potter movies, the soundtrack is still very much up there in terms of stuff I listen to on my film OST playlist. This is the first Harry Potter film not composed by John Williams and in his stead is someone named Patrick Doyle; he gets off to a good start with the opening track "The Story Continues", which is mostly just an opening featuring a more bombastic version of the Harry Potter theme ("Hedwig's Theme" for the diehards). This was most likely done to signify the fact that the story is not only continuing, but it is also getting more intense with every new installment -- something also signified by the fact that each movie gets progressively darker, the Warner Bros. and film logos reflecting that with this film's version of each being pure silver in color. The track "Foreign Visitors Arrive" corresponds with the scene in the year's opening feast where the Beauxbatons and Durmstrang enter the Great Hall, making shows of their entrances. The portion with the Beauxbatons' entrance consists of lighter string instruments to show case their more serene and lovely magical entrance as they pose and dance their way through. Meanwhile, Durmstrang's entrance consists of more heavy percussion and intense horns, signifying their more bombastic and commanding entrance. One particular track I have enjoyed in listening to my film OST playlist is "Harry in Winter"; a perfect track for winter, it goes without saying that this plays in the winter scene as Harry is preparing for the Yule Ball. The soft strings show that Harry is both longing and searching for a date to the ball and it even plays over the part where he attempts to ask Cho Chang (Katie Leung) only to be met with rejection. A song like that can't help, but make me feel for Harry as he navigates teen angst and romance now that he's into his fourth year. This is also the first Harry Potter film with more than one vocal song, all of which are played by the fictional band, The Weird Sisters, in the Yule Ball sequence; while I could talk about all of them, the one I like best that also plays during the credits is called "Magic Works". It is honestly the perfect slow dance song and gives the impression of being such a song that could exist in the Wizarding World or even the real world if people believe in literal or figurative magic existing. As much as it sounds like a real slow dance song of the more magical variety, if I didn't know it was from Harry Potter and you told me it was actually a David Bowie song, I could have believed you. As it stands, it works as a great ending song to both the Yule Ball sequence as well as the end credits and makes me think wholesomely of Neville dancing with Ginny (Bonnie Wright).
With all that said, I do believe that Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire is still a great Harry Potter movie and movie in general even if not quite the best of the bunch; it concisely follows what's important in the book to the benefit or detriment of the story depending who you ask, the actors maintain doing a great job, the CG and SFX are still top notch even to this day, and the music does a great job of highlighting the story moments whether the traditional orchestral bits or the vocal themes. As the middle chapter of the whole Harry Potter saga, it creates a dire turning point for both Harry and the Wizarding World because with Voldemort back, it can only get worse from here and that's part of why I believe that Harry Potter is an excellently plotted series. Whether the fans have their gripes with a lot of the decisions made in this movie and the following movies is another story, but I do believe that regardless of the medium it's being told in, the story serves its purpose and jumpstarts the momentum for the rest of the series. As a writer, I find that the books instill some inventive, even magical concepts for content ideas and written descriptions and the plotting inspires me to think up effective story structures for either a standalone story or a potential series idea. Regardless, I have ambition as a writer and I owe a bit of that to Harry Potter and other works that continue to inspire the world of literature. With Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire being what it is, I give it an overall grade of A- and recommend it to fans of the series as well as those who are invested in getting into the books and the movies.
Thank you all for reading and I will see you in the next review!
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