Harry Potter Spinoff Movie Series Announced.

A Harry Potter spinoff movie series is in the works based on the "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" book. The film is set to be written by the creator of the Harry Potter franchise herself, J.K. Rowling. The movie is said to be neither a prequel or sequel to the Harry Potter films, but rather a standalone story set within the Harry Potter universe before the events of the Harry Potter films. According to the description, the book "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" is a book within the Harry Potter book, as well as being a published book, so it is basically "Bookception!" The movie will star the character Newt Scamander. Although I have not read the Harry Potter books, I am a fan of the movies, therefore this news excites me to a degree. Hopefully, the film will continue the darker trend that the franchise took in the last four films and have director David Yates return because he did such an excellent job with the movies. My main concern is that the book has a somewhat childish name, however I am still hopeful that the movie will turn out well. Just a few weeks ago, Shena Tokala and I briefly discussed the unlikelihood of another film set in the Harry Potter franchise in my Podcast, which you can see here. Considering that Man of Steel was not the mega hit that Warner Brothers hoped for, it does make sense to revive the Harry Potter franchise, since it is the highest grossing franchise of all-time. What are your thoughts on this surprising news? Please comment below.

 

 

 

If you want to contact us or have any questions please send an e-mail to johnstarslayer@gmail.com.

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Movie Moms: Happy Mother's Day.

Since today is Mother's Day let's celebrate some of cinema's best moms. Unlike a few of my other similar posts, this is not a list and the characters are in no particular order, but it just features many of the best movie moms.

 

 

 Leia Organa Skywalker Solo

Although not featured in the Star Wars films yet, in the Star Wars Expanded Universe Leia and Han had several children. Considering that Leia is, by far, my favorite heroine in any form of fiction, there is no question that she should be included on this post. With upcoming Star Wars films we should get to see her children on the big screen, 2015 cannot come soon enough!

Aunt May

Again, not the biological mother of the character, but Aunt May a motherly figure to her nephew Peter. Her speak in Spider-Man 2 about the definition of a hero is amazing.

Sarah Conner (Terminator)

Sarah Conner has to be the most bada-- mothers in cinema history. After being the one that needed saving in the first Terminator, she turned into one tough mother defending her son from the Terminators.

Ellen Ripley (Alien Franchise)

While her real daughter was never featured in the film, Ellen Ripley from the Alien franchise, which I recently watched, did have a mother/daughter type relationship in the sequel Aliens with the little girl Newt. 

 

 

 

 Lorraine McFly (Back to the Future)

Back to the Future gave us an extremely awkward mother/son moment and possibly the most distributing scene in film history, but it did remind us that our parents were teenagers once too.

 

Mrs. Gump (Forrest Gump)

"My momma always said, "Life was like a box of chocolates. You never know what you're gonna get." Who could forget those iconic words from Forrest Gump.

 

 

 

Mrs. Bates (Psycho)

“A boy's best friend is his mother.” Norman Bates and his mother have a very strange relationship, however saying anything more would ruin one of the best thrillers ever made. Basically, watch Psycho!

Samara (Mass Effect)

Although she is not in a movie (yet), Samara from my favorite video game franchise, Mass Effect, has a unique relationship with her children. All of her daughters have a rare Asari condition that kills anyone they "bond" (mind meld) with and she has hunt her daughter before she murders even more people.

Molly Weasley (Harry Potter) 

Mrs. Weasley does not play a major role in the Harry Potter franchise, but she still had some memorable moments.

 

 

One honorable mention would be Elasticgirl/Helen Parr from Pixar's The Incredibles.

 

Who are your favorite movie moms? Are there some that I left off the post? Please comment below.

 

Also a big thanks to my mother for being the best mom in the world, I would not be here today without her.

 

 

Here is a hilarious "Yo Mama" song about compliments, opposed to insults. It is by one of my favorite YouTube channels, RhettandLink.

 

Please check back tomorrow for my review of Wreck-It Ralph, Tuesday for a review of Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan, and hopefully Wednesday for a Iron Man 3 review.

 

If you want to contact us or have any questions please send an e-mail to johnstarslayer@gmail.com.

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Best Halloween Movies

Happy Halloween everyone! Since today is Halloween here are some great movies to watch today. Earlier this week I posted some Halloween related movie reviews, which I will have links to below. This is not really a "Best Of" list, it is more just good movies to watch if you are like myself and just do not understand why so many people like supposed "Horror Classics". Also I have just read that there will be another Star Wars film made! And it is a official statement, and I still cannot believe that is happening. As Han Solo said "I'm out of it for a little while, everybody gets delusions of grandeur." Be sure to check back tomorrow for the Two Towers Book Vs. Movie post tomorrow. One more thing, sorry if I have not replied to comments recently, my flu has gotten worse and I have not been on the computer much. But thank you everyone for your comments and best wishes.





Psycho

Alfred Hitchcock's horror, suspense, mystery thriller, classic Psycho. Hitchcock virtually invented the "Slasher" genre with Psycho and I have yet to see a better "Horror" movie than Psycho. As I said in my review yesterday, it is suspenseful, and full of shocking plot twists. Definitely a must see if you are a classic film fan. I wonder what Hitchcock would think today of all the terrible rip-offs of his classic film. Also there is a movie coming out named "Hitchcock", which a bio-pic of him making the classic Psycho, however the trailer completely spoils the major plot twist of the movie, I would not recommend watching the trailer until after watching the movie.

Psycho (1960) Review.

Jaws

One of Steve Speilberg best, Jaws revolutionized the film making with the "Jaws Effect". Were the camera only shows some of the creature to create mystery and terror, which at the time it was considered a very scary movie. Although it loses suspense upon multiple viewings, and is much more of an adventure thriller than anything else, Jaws is still a fantastic movie that is another must see for film fans. If you have yet to see Jaws you are missing out on a classic. And how can we forget John Willaims' iconic soundtrack, which is what makes Jaws truly suspenseful.



Ghostbusters

While Ghostbusters is not in anyway a "Horror" movie, it is about capturing ghosts. Ghostbusters is just a really fun movie, easily one of the best comedies I have seen. It is packed with so many quotable lines and clever dialogue it is hard not to recommend.
Ghostbusters Review.

Invasion of the Body Snatchers

Invasion of the Body Snatchers, more specifically the 1978 version with Donald Sutherland. Although I have not the seen the original, this version is smart, thrilling and a little creepy. While Invasion of the Body Snatchers is not quite in the same caliber of film as the movies listed above, if you like sci-fi thrillers it is definitely recommended. Note: This is not for the younger audience, although at the time was rated "PG" it would definitely earn an "R" rating today.

Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978) Review.

Harry Potter Saga

While it is far from anything that resembles horror, there are some Halloween type elements in the series. As a whole the Harry Potter series is one of the best. Although I was not really fan until the last four, they were awesome. The final installment "The Deathly Hallows Part 2" is one of my all-time favorite movies. Definitely check out the series if you do not have any problem with the "magic".

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's (Philosopher's) Stone Review

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets Review.
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban Review.
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire Review.
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix Review.
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince Review.
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 Review
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 Review

Do you like any of these movies? What are your favorite Halloween films? Please comment below. 

If you want to contact us or have any question please send an e-mail to johnstarslayer@gmail.com.

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Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 Review

As usual there are no spoilers in this review even if you have not seen the previous movies in the franchise.
Thoughts: Wow! Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 was amazing! While I did really enjoy the previous entries in the series, they were very good yet not true classic movies but the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 on the other hand was an amazing conclusion that satisfied on every level. The action was amazing and the story concluded better than I thought it could. The big reveal was mostly unexpected, and made one of my favorite characters even better. This is easily the best Fantasy movie since The Lord of the Rings trilogy (does not include comic book movies). Also the pacing of the Deathly Hallows Part 2 was excellent, especially compared to the other Harry Potter movies. In the previous Part 1 of the Deathly Hallows, it ended were you expect the best part of the movie to begin and Part 2 opened directly were the previous movie ended. The first 30 minutes were good but not really spectacular. However, after the first 30 minutes and what happened in the previous movie setup for the end. Everything came to an end better than I could have imagined. The only flaw was that it might have tried to fit too much in the last 30 minutes of the movie and really did not explain everything as well as it could have. Also if you have not watched the previous movies and played close attention, you will probably be lost in the plot. The Deathly Hallows: Part 2 had had the best action in the franchise, by far. The action was edge of your seat suspenseful and stunning at the same time. During one sequence in particular you almost felt like you were in the fight with the characters. The tone of the film was different from the previous film; it was more epic and a sense of war to it. Although the previous Harry Potter movies ranged from good to great, they all pale in comparisons to this film. After the huge setup throughout the franchise this is the pay off that you deserve. I am glad that the Deathly Hallows book was split into two movies, because this really worked. The three main characters, Harry, Ron and Hermione are excellent well developed characters that you really cannot help but like them. I have literally watched them grow up through the eight movies. Basically at this point in the franchise you either like the franchise as a whole and enjoy watching your favorite characters in the movie or you really never understood the franchise. From a completely un-bias stand point of watching all of the movies over the course of 2 months, I can say that I am a casual fan of the movies, although, I have no plan to read the books.



Directed by: David Yates
Genre: Action Adventure, Fantasy,
Release Date: 15 July 2011 (2011-07-15)
Running Time: 130 minutes
MMPA rating: PG-13


The Good: Epic battle sequences, More than satisfying conclusion, Amazing cinematography, Excellent performances from the whole cast, Shocking plot twist, Great soundtrack, Suspenseful action,

The Bad:




Plot: Since Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 picks up directly were Part 1 left a plot summery is not really necessary and would only spoil the plot.



Plot: 9.6/10- The conclusion was everything that I wanted it to be and more. Pacing of the plot was great, with the right amount of story, plot progression and action.

Action: 9.3/10- The battle at the end was epic and one of the best battle sequences I have seen. Although the lighting in some scenes could have been a little better. As I stated above, during one sequence I almost felt I was right there in the action.

Acting: 9.5/10- Every actor in the movie was excellent, with Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson and Rupert Grint really stepping up their performances to another level. Also Alan Rickman gave an fantastic Oscar worthy performance.

Special effects: 9.3/10- The effect during the battle were stunning and CGI creatures looked really good. But a few of the scenes tried to do too much and really did not look great.

Soundtrack: 9.0/10- The Deathly Hallows: Part 2 has the best Harry Potter soundtrack since John Williams left the series but still used the classic theme at the right time.

Comedy: 7.0/10- Despite the dark tone and action, there was a surprising amount of well timed humor that did not distract from the movie.

Would I Watch This Again: I most definitely will watch it again, many times. I have already watched it twice and watched the battle scenes a few more times.

Overall: 9.5/10- Overall Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 is a truly fantastic movie that delivers on the story, action, and more. It is one of the best fantasy movies ever made.

Closing comments: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 is a more than satisfying conclusion to the a great series of movies.

Recommended for: Fantasy fans, Action Adventure fans, Action fans,

If you have not read my reviews for the other Harry Potter movies please click on the links below.
Harry Potter Series
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's (Philosopher's) Stone Review
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets Review.
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban Review.
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire Review.
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix Review.
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince Review.
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 Review
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 Review


Click here to check out more of our movie reviews.

If you want to contact us or have any question please send an e-mail to johnstarslayer@gmail.com.

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Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince Review.

Thoughts: Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince the 6th installment in the franchise and it ends up being one of the one of the best. Although the Half-Blood Prince is rated PG, it is the darkest and most mature in the franchise. There is a sense of foreboding that the end is near and the cinematography reflects the tone of the film well. While it was not quite as good as the Order of the Phoenix since it was a little slower in plot pacing, but the plot was a little more complex and there were very few cheesy or corny parts. The acting was again improved, with Tom Felton giving a much better performance than in previous movies. There are some mixed opinions about the Half-Blood Prince and some even consider it the weakest of the franchise, it is my second favorite in the series thus far. The main issue with the Half-Blood Prince is that it focuses a slightly too much on the romance but it was relatively well done compared to most movies and was too terribly annoying. Also there was some really funny humor in the movie. The character Draco Malfoy was much improved in this movie; he has finally been used effectively in a movie. In the first two movie Draco was the mean bully but in the the Prisoner of Azkaban he turned into a wimp after Hermione punched him in the nose. Now he was fully developed into an interesting character with a strong performance from Tom Felton. The movie use lighting to great effect, it was not just darkly lit for no reason. The lighting actually added to the overall film. At this point in the film series if you do not connect with the very likable and relatable characters you will not like the Half-Blood Prince. So if you did not like the previous films in the series the Half-Blood Prince is not going to change your mind about the series. There is something to note about the Half-Blood Prince, I watched it at night with all the lights turned off and I would recommend doing that if possible since there are some very dark lit scenes (not during action scenes fortunately), so keep that in mind if you watch the movie.


Also I would like to thank Shena Tokala at Pens, Thespians, and Words for answering a some questions about the Harry Potter movies and books and making this review better.

Directed by: David Yates
Genre: Fantasy, Adventure,
Release Date: 15 July 2009 (2009-07-15)
Running Time: 153 minutes
MMPA rating: PG


The Good: More complex plot, Good character development, Very humorous, Superb acting, Unexpected plot twist, Excellent cinematography,

The Bad: Plot progression is a little too slow,




Plot: The following plot summery is copied from Wikipedia.com.
Harry is shown bleeding in front of the Ministry of Magic, which took place after the second to last scene of the previous film, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. Lord Voldemort is tightening his grip on both the Wizarding and Muggle worlds and has chosen Draco Malfoy to carry out a secret mission. Severus Snape accepts Bellatrix Lestrange's challenge to make an Unbreakable Vow with Draco's mother, Narcissa, to protect Draco and fulfill the assignment if he fails.
Harry accompanies Albus Dumbledore to visit former potions professor Horace Slughorn, who has gone into hiding. Slughorn agrees to return to teach at Hogwarts as Dumbledore tells Harry that Slughorn's return to Hogwarts is crucial.
Leaving Fred and George's new shop, Harry, Ron and Hermione notice Draco and Narcissa associating with Death Eaters in Borgin and Burkes. Harry believes Voldemort has made Draco a Death Eater, but Ron and Hermione are sceptical. On the Hogwarts Express, Harry spies on Draco, who hints to his friends that he does not plan to return to Hogwarts next year. Draco discovers Harry's presence and immobilises him, but Harry is rescued by Luna with her Spectrespecs.
At Hogwarts, Harry and Ron are admitted to Slughorn's potions class at the last minute and borrow the needed textbooks. The previous owner of Harry's copy, the "Half-Blood Prince", has annotated the book with additional instructions that allow Harry to excel in class. Watch the movie to see what happens next.


Plot: 8.7/10- Except for the pacing, the plot was good. It was more complex with a very unexpected plot twist, although there was too much focus on the romance aspect of the story.

Action: 6.6/10- There not much action in the Half-Blood Prince, especially compared to the previous film. But the little that was there was good.

Acting: 8.8/10- All of the many actors really stepped up their performances greatly in the Half-Blood Prince, so many that I can not name all of them.

Special effects: 8.8/10- The cinematography, aided by the special effects, was phenomenal.

Soundtrack: 8.0/10- The soundtrack was very good overall.

Comedy: 8.7/10- Despite the Half-Blood Prince's darker tone it was the funniest of the Harry Potter franchise.


Would I Watch This Again: While there is not as much re-watch value as the Order of the Phoenix, I will probably watch it again some time.

Overall: 8.5/10- Although I would not say that the Half-Blood Prince is better than the Order of the Phoenix but it is still a very good movie.

Closing comments: David Yates makes another solid entry into the Harry Potter franchise with a darker more mature tone.

Recommended for: Fantasty fans, Adventure fans,

If you have not read my reviews for the other Harry Potter movies please click on the links below.
Harry Potter Series
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's (Philosopher's) Stone Review
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets Review.
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban Review.
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire Review.
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix Review.
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince Review.
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 Review
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 Review
Click here to check out more of our movie reviews.

If you want to contact us or have any question please send an e-mail to johnstarslayer@gmail.com.

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Epic Film Score and More Friday.

Now Epic Film Score and More Friday is finally back after having to be skip during Avengers week. The soundtrack of today is John Williams' Harry Potter soundtrack. Even if you have something against the Harry Potter movies, you still can like John Willimas' score.

The main theme for the Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. This theme is used throughout the movies and is a staple for the franchise.

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban is the third installment in the Harry Potter series and the last one that John Williams' composed the soundtrack for. Some of this track reminds me of one of the themes use in one of the Star Wars movie with a Harry Potter theme twist.

This theme was used during the closing credits of the movie. It contains multiple variants of previous tracks and a good compilation of the tracks.

This is one of my favorite tracks from the movie. If a theme is well composed and used in a film you should be able guess what the scene is about with just the track and this theme does give you sense of flying just like the scene in the movie.

OK, John Williams did not compose this track but I really like this one and I listened to it on a loop while writing the review for the Order of the Phoenix. I even liked this track before watching the movie.

If you want to contact us or have any question please send an e-mail to johnstarslayer@gmail.com.

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Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix Review.

Thoughts: This was the Harry Potter movie I was most looking forward to other than the last two and it did not disappoint. While it was nothing like I expected it to be but it was very good. This is what I wanted from the franchise since the beginning. It still had some slow parts but it was a lot more entertaining to watch. The acting, action, cinematography, plot, the character, everything was better. The only thing that The Order of the Phoenix did not have was the humor, which really was not a bad thing since the more serious tone really worked, and the mystery. Although I did like the mystery element from the other movies, but not having it was not a big deal. It was darker than the previous film but in a good way, in that it was more of an mature, adult movie in that it would appeal to more demographics (age groups) unlike the first, second and fourth films. There were very few cheesy scenes, except the character Dolores Umbridge, played by Imelda Staunton, was a little over the top but it did not detract from the movie that much. The Order of the Phoenix had the best opening of the Harry Potter series, while not great compared to other movies, it made the annoying Dursley family, watchable and short. It did not take away from the movie and it was not distracting. The movie did drag a little in some parts but was never really boring. While the Order of the Phoenix did not have a lot of action there was an amazing battle at the end of the movie that is one of the most unique and inventive battles I have ever seen. This is what I wanted to see: Wizards vs. Wizards in an all out battle, although it was not very long, it was spectacular. The romance was not near as poorly done in the Order of the Phoenix as the Goblet of Fire. There was not much of it and what was there was not really annoying.

Also I would like to thank Shena Tokala at Pens, Thespians, and Words for answering a some questions about the Harry Potter movies and books.


Directed by: David Yates
Genre: Fantasy, Action Adventure,
Release Date: 11 July 2007 (2007-07-11)
Running Time: 138 minutes
MMPA rating: PG-13


The Good: Amazing battle at the end, Great character development, Daniel Radcliffe was come into his own as an actor, Far better than any previous Harry Potter movie,

The Bad:




Plot: The following plot summery is copied from Wikipedia.com.
The Order of the Phoenix, a secret organisation founded by Albus Dumbledore, inform the 15-year-old Harry Potter that the Ministry of Magic is in denial of Lord Voldemort's return; under the Ministry's influence, The Daily Prophet has launched a smear campaign against Harry and Dumbledore due to Harry's supposed encounter with Voldemort at the end of the previous year. This encounter has had a huge psychological effect on Harry – he has nightmares not only about what happened in the graveyard but also about the Department of Mysteries at the Ministry of Magic. While at the Order's headquarters, 12 Grimmauld Place, Harry's godfather, Sirius Black, mentions that Voldemort is after an object which he didn't have last time.
Upon arrival at Hogwarts, Harry learns that Minister of Magic Cornelius Fudge has appointed a new Defence Against the Dark Arts professor: Dolores Umbridge, a senior Ministry official who refuses to teach practical magic due to her belief that Dumbledore is forming a rebellion against the Ministry. Umbridge and Harry immediately clash, as she refuses to believe that Voldemort has returned and forces Harry to carve 'I must not tell lies' into the skin on the back of his hand through a cursed pen. When Ron and Hermione notice these scars, they are outraged but Harry refuses to go to Dumbledore as he has distanced himself from him since the summer. As Umbridge's control over the school increases, Ron and Hermione aid Harry in forming a secret group to train students in defensive spells, calling themselves "Dumbledore's Army". The Slytherin students are recruited by Umbridge to uncover the group. Meanwhile, Harry and Cho Chang develop romantic feelings for each other and begin a relationship during Christmas. However, Harry discovers that his behaviour is becoming erratic and possibly more similar to Voldemort. Watch the movie to see what happens next.


Plot: 8.6/10- Although the pacing was still a little slow but much better than the previous Harry Potter movies. The plot its self was very good and worked really well.


Action: 8.0/10- It is getting an 8.0/10 for more for the quality than the amount of action. Since the battle was great.


Acting: 8.6/10- The acting by all of the returning actors was much improved. But Imelda Staunton over acted in her role.


Special effects: 8.3/10- One of the GCI characters were obviously fake but the Wizard battle was visually spectacular.


Soundtrack: 8.0/10- While the soundtrack was not as good as John Willaims' soundtrack in the first three Harry Potter movies it was very good.


Comedy: 6.4/10- Unlike the previous Harry Potter movies there was not much humor in the Order of the Phoenix but that was not really a big issue since the serious tone worked for the film better.


Would I Watch This Again: This is the first Harry Potter movie I will definitely be watching again.


Overall: 8.7/10- The Order of the Phoenix is almost everything that I would have wanted from a Harry Potter movie.


Closing comments: This is the first Harry Potter movie that I would consider a great movie that would easily make my Top 100 Movies.


Recommended for: Fantasy fans, Action Adventure fans,

If you have not read my reviews for the other Harry Potter movies please click on the links below.
Harry Potter Series
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's (Philosopher's) Stone Review
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets Review.
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban Review.
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire Review.
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix Review.
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince Review.
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 Review
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 Review

Click here to check out more of our movie reviews.

If you want to contact us or have any question please send an e-mail to johnstarslayer@gmail.com.

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Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire Review.

If you have not read my review for the movie I posted yesterday please click on this link and comment War Horse Review. Also I will hopefully post some of the answers to the questions in the recent "Interview Me" post tomorrow.
Note: I think that my e-mail might not be working correctly so sorry if I have not reply recently.


Warning Spoilers highlighted in Red.

Thoughts: Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire was a little disappointing. It is had some issues with the pacing and an unnecessary sub plot. It started good because it did not open with Harry's annoying adopted family since he does not live there any more. I expected it to be better since it was the first Harry Potter movie to be rated PG-13 but it was not as good as the Prisoner of Azkaban. While it was not as dark as the other one some of the characters acted out of character and the plot was not as interesting. It started decent but again a little slow. Basically the plot is about Harry compeating in the Triwizard Tournament so I expected there a lot of focus on the Tournament. It was going good after the first competing in the Tournament but about an hour into the movie it added a boring School dance. I was thinking "How did a dumb High School drama get put in an fantasy adventure!?" I know that they are now teenagers but it was really unnecessary. It was very awkward and did not fit the other parts of the movie. It was almost like a romantic comedy at some parts. I know it was in the book  Also the character but could have been cut to a 10 or 15 minute part and not wast 30 minutes. Ron Weasley really acted out of character. Although there really some really good parts to the movie that showed the potential of the franchise. The last 30 minutes of the movie was much better than the other parts. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire felt like a filler movie Warning Spoiler: to resurrect Lord Voldemort for the sequels but that was by far the part of the movie. The maze near end and duel between Harry and Voldemort were the best parts. Also some scenes had a little dialogue corny. Despite these issues there were some good things in the movie. The special effects were great especially for a movie made in 2005. The effects were better than some I have seen in an 2008 movie. It also had more action than the previous movies but that really is not saying since the other three are not action movies. There was again a decent mystery component but it was not really difficult to figure out compared to the Prisoner of Azkaban. While the Prisoner of Azkaban was a movie that could appeal to most demographics (age group) yet the Goblet of Fire was aimed more at the young teen demographic than a movie that is appealing to any demographic.



Directed by: Mike Newell
Genre: Fantasy, Adventure,
Release Date: November 18, 2005 (2005-11-18)
Running Time: 157 minutes
MMPA rating: PG-13


The Good: Some parts of the movie were very good , Good ending,

The Bad: Unbalanced, Unnecessary subplot,




Plot: The following plot summery is copied from Wikipedia.com.
Harry Potter dreams of an elderly man, Frank Bryce, who overhears Lord Voldemort discussing plans with Peter Pettigrew and Barty Crouch Jr. Bryce is then killed by Voldemort. The Quidditch World Cup allows Harry to take his mind off his nightmares until followers of Voldemort known as Death Eaters terrorise the spectators' campsites after the match.
At Hogwarts, headmaster Albus Dumbledore introduces Alastor "Mad-Eye" Moody as the new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher, unaware that Crouch Jr has subdued Moody and is using Polyjuice Potion to impersonate him. In their first Defence Against the Dark Arts lesson, the students learn of the three Unforgivable Curses. The Imperius Curse causes absence of free will, the Cruciatus Curse causes unbearable pain, and the final curse, Avada Kedavra, causes death. Dumbledore announces that the school will host the Triwizard Tournament, in which one wizard from each of the three magical schools competes in three challenges. The champions are selected by the Goblet of Fire, a magical cup into which the candidates' names are placed. Cedric Diggory, a student from the House of Hufflepuff, is chosen to represent Hogwarts, Viktor Krum is chosen to represent Durmstrang Institute, and Fleur Delacour is selected to represent Beauxbatons Academy of Magic. The Goblet unexpectedly chooses a fourth champion: Harry. As Harry is underage and should have been ineligible to compete, Hogwarts teachers and students grow suspicious, and the feat drives Ron and Harry apart. The teachers want Dumbledore to pull Harry out of the tournament, but the four champions are bound by a magical contract and therefore Dumbledore has no choice and Harry must compete. Watch the movie to see what happens next.


Plot: 7.1/10- The plot was mixed with some unnecessary plot threads and not enough focus on the Triwizard Tournament. But the end was really the only important part of the movie.


Action: 6.9/10- This is the first Harry Potter movie to have a prolonged action scene and it showed the potential of the action the Harry Potter franchise can deliver. But I wished it show the other competiors in the Triwizard Tournament in the first test, which would have made great scenes.


Acting: 7.5/10- While I do not think it is the falt of the actors but more of the director and writers the acting was not as good the Prisoner of Azkaban mostly because the dialouge was not as well written yet the acting was still very good.


Special effects: 8.4/10- The special effects were really good and hold up very today.

Soundtrack: 8.0/10- The soundtrack was very good and used many of the same notes that John Williams used in the previous movies but the lack of Williams is definitely noticable.


Comedy: 7.8/10- The Goblet of Fire did have a lot of humor yet some of the humor fell flat into bad romantic comedy.

Would I Watch This Again: I might at some point but not really any time soon.

Overall: 7.0/10- Overall Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire is a good movie but was not takken seriously enough with some odd character changes and odd moments. Although it was still a funny movie.

Closing comments: While the Harry Potter franchise took two steps forward with Prisoner of Azkaban it took one step back with the Goblet of Fire.


Recommended for: Fantasy fans, Adventure fans,

If you have not read my reviews for the other Harry Potter movies please click on the links below.
Harry Potter Series
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's (Philosopher's) Stone Review
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets Review.
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban Review.
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire Review.
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix Review.
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince Review.
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 Review
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 Review

Click here to check out more of our movie reviews.

If you want to contact us or have any question please send an e-mail to johnstarslayer@gmail.com.

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Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban Review.

Thoughts: Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban is considered by many to one of, if not the best of the Harry Potter series. While the Prisoner of Azkaban is a far better movie in quality compared to the previous movies and it was a much more mature movie. It was a little too dark for my tastes and the plot progression was a little slow. Also as a Christian there was one thing that I did not like. The performances in the Prisoner of Azkaban were really good and made the characters seem more believable. One thing I found very odd was that Hogwarts looked very different than previous movies and the placement of building and other things have changed drastically but there really was not much of a problem since it did look much better. The cinematography in the Prisoner of Azkaban is very good and the landscapes looked great. The special effects finally looked believable with some very well made effect shots. One of the main problems with the previous Harry Potter movies was his very annoying adopted family, which I mentioned in my other reviews, but their part was about 8 minutes in the movie, therefore that part was much better. There also a few unexpected plot twists and a slight mystery component, both of which worked well in the movie. The last 20 minutes of the movie were by far its best part but I will not spoil anything about that part of the plot. For some reason directly after watching the movie I did not like it a lot but after thinking about it I actually really enjoyed the movie. One of the most things about the Harry Potter movies thus far is the characters. Since many movie series stop at three movies their full character arc is shorten to fit into that time span. Yet, there are eight Harry Potter movies to build the characters and they are very likeable characters. 


Directed by: Alfonso Cuarón
Genre: Fantasy, Adventure, Mystery,
Release Date: 4 June 2004 (2004-06-04)
Running Time: 142 minutes
MMPA rating: PG


The Good: Unexpected plot twists, Last 20 minutes were great, Much better acting than the previous movies, Great John Willaim soundtrack,

The Bad: A little too dark for my taste,




Plot: The following plot summery is copied from Wikipedia.com.

Harry Potter is at the Dursleys' for the summer, spending his time studying new spells undercover. When Uncle Vernon's sister, Marge, comes for a visit and infuriates Harry by insulting his parents, he accidentally causes her to inflate and fly away. Harry loses his temper and threatens to curse Vernon but flees, fed up with his life at Privet Drive. The Knight Bus appears and delivers Harry to the Leaky Cauldron, where Minister of Magic Cornelius Fudge tells him he will not be arrested. During the summer, his friends Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger go to the Leaky Cauldron too. Harry also learns that Sirius Black, a convicted supporter of Lord Voldemort, has escaped Azkaban prison and is likely intending to kill Harry.

Harry, Ron, and Hermione head back to school on the Hogwarts Express. They unknowingly share a compartment with the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, Remus Lupin, who is sleeping. When the train abruptly stops, Dementors (the guards of Azkaban) board, searching for Black. Harry faints when one Dementor enters their compartment, but Lupin repels it with a charm, but before Harry faints, he hears a woman screaming. He asks who screamed, but they say no one screamed.

At Hogwarts, Albus Dumbledore informs students that the Dementors will be guarding the school while Black is at large. Professor Lupin is introduced, and Hagrid is announced as the new Care of Magical Creatures teacher. Lupin's lessons prove enjoyable; he focuses on practice, not just theory, and encourages less confident students such as Neville. However, Hagrid's first class goes awry when Draco Malfoy deliberately provokes the Hippogriff, Buckbeak, who then attacks him. Draco's father Lucius Malfoy has Buckbeak sentenced to death on court. Watch the movie to what happens next.

Plot: 8.2/10- The main idea for the plot was very good and the mystery part worked well, if the pacing was better it would have been a much better movie.

Action: 6.8/10- There actually a few action scenes in the Prisoner of Azkaban.

Acting: 8.4/10- The entire cast was much improved with Emma Watson, Daniel Radcliffe and Gary Oldman giving the best performances.

Special effects: 7.5/10- Although the movie was made in 2004 the effects are still decent today.

Soundtrack: 9.4/10- John Williams' soundtrack was even better than the previous movies.

Comedy: 7.0/10- There were a few humorous parts but some of the comedy fell flat.

Would I Watch This Again: If I become a fan of the other movies I would probably watch this again.

Overall: 8.1/10- Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban is large improvement over the previous installments and is a very good movie.


Closing comments: The Prisoner of Azkaban

Recommended for: Fantasy fans,

If you have not read my reviews for the other Harry Potter movies please click on the links below.
Harry Potter Series
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's (Philosopher's) Stone Review
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets Review.
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban Review.
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire Review.
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix Review.
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince Review.
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 Review
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 Review

Click here to check out more of our movie reviews.

If you want to contact us or have any question please send an e-mail to johnstarslayer@gmail.com.

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Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets Review.

Starting Wedsday I will be posting some Lord of the Rings posts.

Thoughts: This is the sequel to the first Harry Potter and I was expecting it to be better than the first and it was a lot better than the first one. The acting was better, better plot, faster pace, and more action. Although a few of the same flaws that hindered the first movie is still present here. The opening of the movie with his adopted family, again do not make sense why they would care that he goes to the Hogwarts School since he would not have to live with them except in the summer. It was still cheesy and actually really dumb. But that part only last around ten minutes were as it lasted about 20-30 minutes in the first movie, therefore it was much more tolerable. The movie it's self was very good and solidly entertaining. It was also a little darker, which I thought was a good thing since the first movie was much more like a kid's movie than this one. It was basically better than the first movie in just about every way but it is not a real major improvement to say that it is a great movie but it is a good movie.

Directed by: Chris Columbus
Genre: Fantasy, Adventure
Release Date: 15 November 2002 (2002-11-15)
Running Time: 161 minutes
MMPA rating: PG

The Good: Better than the first Harry Potter movie,

The Bad: Still had a few of the same flaws as the first movie,

Plot: The following plot summery is copied from Wikipedia.com.
Preparing for a visit from a potential client of Uncle Vernon Dursley's, the Dursleys send Harry to his room. Harry finds Dobby the house elf, who warns against returning to Hogwarts. When Harry refuses, Dobby causes havoc in the house and frames Harry for ruining Vernon's meeting. Vernon locks Harry in his room to prevent his return to Hogwarts. Ron, Fred, and George Weasley arrive in their flying car to rescue Harry and take him to The Burrow, their home. Harry meets Ron's younger sister, Ginny, who is about to begin at Hogwarts and has a crush on Harry. Harry also meets Ron's father, Arthur Weasley; he had met Mrs. Weasley the previous year. Harry and the Weasleys travel to Diagon Alley by Floo Powder. While shopping, Harry meets Gilderoy Lockhart, a famous wizard and author, and later Draco Malfoy and his father, Lucius, who praise Voldemort and deride Harry, Hermione and the Weasleys.
At King's Cross Station, though the rest of the Weasleys reach Platform 9 3/4 without trouble, Harry and Ron find the magical barrier blocked; as a result, they miss the Hogwarts Express. Harry and Ron take the flying car and reach Hogwarts, but accidentally land in the school's Whomping Willow. Ron's wand is broken and the car behaves erratically, ejecting the boys and driving itself into the Forbidden Forest. When Harry and Ron enter Hogwarts they are seen by Snape, who scolds them for flying the car to Hogwarts and nearly expels them. Professor McGonagall and Professor Dumbledore arrive and McGonagall defends the boys and tells them they will receive detention only. Watch the movie to what happens next.

Plot: 7.1/10- The plot had a mystery component and the pace was much better than the first movie.
  Action: 6.0/10- Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets actually had a few action scenes.

Acting: 6.0/10- The acting is much improved from the previous movie especially the three main characters Harry, Ron, and Hermione.

Special effects: 6.0/10- The effects are still a little dated but effective enough. Also the CGI character Dobby looked about the quality of Jar Jar from The Phantom Mencius.


Soundtrack: 9.0/10- The soundtrack was basically the same great John Williams soundtrack was in the first movie. I also noticed during one scene of the movie that soundtrack sounded just like a soundtrack from Star Wars.

Comedy: 7.5/10- There was a good deal of humor in the movie.

Overall: 6.8/10- Overall is Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets is a good movie that is better than the previous Harry Potter movie.

Closing comments: I plan to continue watching the Harry Potter movies since the first two movies in the series are considered to be the worst in the series.

Recommended for: Fantasy fans, Adventure fans.

If you have not read my reviews for the other Harry Potter movies please click on the links below.
Harry Potter Series
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's (Philosopher's) Stone Review
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets Review.
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban Review.
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire Review.
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix Review.
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince Review.
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 Review
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 Review

Click here to check out more of our movie reviews.

If you want to contact us or have any question please send an e-mail to johnstarslayer@gmail.com.

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Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's (Philosopher's) Stone Review

Note: Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone is known by two different names. In the U.S. it is named Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone and in the U.K. it is known as Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone.

Sorry for the delay, I had to clarify some things about the movie with Shena Tokala at Pens, Thespians, and Words ,who is a fan of the books and movies.

Thoughts: I actually watched a Harry Potter movie. I am a very Conservative Christian and as a kid I never watched them because of the "witchcraft". But my friend, who had watched the movies, said there wasn't that much in them, so I watched the movie. It wasn't much bad stuff in there. There were a few spells and some general magic used. So if you are greatly offended by it, do not watch it. There are a lot of great movies out there you should see like The Lord of the Rings and Star Wars. So if don't like the idea don't watch the movie, simple as that. Now on to my thoughts about the movie.


Thoughts About the Movie: I wasn't expecting much from this movie since it is often considered one of lesser Harry Potter movies and it is a movie aimed at families and kids, so I did not think it was going to be that great. But it was actually an OK movie, especially for a family movie. The first 15-20 minutes of Harry Potter were really stupid, ridiculous, weird and just plain awful. I was wondering if this was going to be a watchable movie or not. It is possible the worst opening to an overall decent movie. But after the first 15-20 minutes it got better but still a little slow. Even though the beginning was awful but if you can survive the first 15-20 minutes it is a decent movie until the second half then it is a good movie. Most the characters were interesting, especially the young girl Hermione Granger. It also had some good humor and had an Indiana Jones feel to it at the very end of the movie. After watching this I think I want to watch the rest of the movies in the series. I will try to write the review for each movie before seeing the next one in the series so I will have an un-bias opinion of the movies and after watching all of the movies I will review the series as a whole.


Note: It might take a while to watch the whole series since the delivery of the Blu-Rays is so slow, I can only rent one movie a week in the mail.


Directed by: Chris Columbus
Genre: Fantasy, Adventure,
Release Date: 16 November 2001
Running Time: 152 minutes
MMPA rating: PG


The Good: Great John Williams soundtrack, Well placed humor, Second half was good,

The Bad: Awful first 15-20 minutes, First half was slow to start with,




Plot: The following plot summery is copied from Wikipedia.com.
Harry Potter is a seemingly ordinary boy, living with his hostile relatives, the Dursleys in Surrey. On his eleventh birthday, Harry learns from a mysterious stranger, Rubeus Hagrid, that he is actually a wizard, famous in the Wizarding World for surviving an attack by the evil Lord Voldemort when Harry was only a baby. Voldemort killed Harry's parents, but his attack on Harry rebounded, leaving only a lightning-bolt scar on Harry's forehead and rendering Voldemort powerless. Hagrid reveals to Harry that he has been invited to attend Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. After buying his school supplies from the hidden wizarding street, Diagon Alley, Harry boards the train to Hogwarts via the concealed Platform 9¾ in King's Cross Station.
On the train, Harry meets Ron Weasley, a boy from a large, but poor, pure-blood wizarding family, and Hermione Granger, a witch born to non-magical parents. Once they arrive at the school, Harry and all of the other first-year students are sorted into four different houses: Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin. As Slytherin is noted for being the house of darker wizards and witches, Harry successfully begs the magical Sorting Hat not to put him in Slytherin. He winds up in Gryffindor, along with Ron and Hermione.
At Hogwarts, Harry begins learning wizardry and also discovers more about his past and his parents. Harry inadvertently makes Gryffindor's Quidditch team (a sport in the wizarding world where people fly on broomsticks) as a Seeker, learning that his father was also a member of the team. Watch the movie to see what happens next.


Plot: 6.5/10- The first 20 minutes were just awful, however the last parts of the movie was OK.


Action: 5.4/10- This isn't really an action movie but there is good adventure.


Acting: 6.9/10- This had some of the better kid acting I have seen in a movie. The other actors in the movie were also solid. Except in the beginning of the movie were the acting is terrible.


Special effects: 6.0/10- Since the movie is almost eleven years old you really can't expect much from the special effects. But they were not any were in the same realm of quality as Star Wars: Episode I or The Lord of the Rings.


Soundtrack: 9.0/10- Another great John Williams soundtrack. You can hear a few slight hints of other famous John Williams soundtracks like Star Wars and Indiana Jones in some parts of it.


Comedy: 7.9/10- It had some very surprisingly funny jokes and humor in some parts.


Would I Watch This Again: If I like the other Harry Potter movies, I might watch this at some point to complete the  series.

Overall: 6.5/10- Despite the slow and ridiculous start Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone manages to be a good movie in the second half.

Closing comments: This a good start to the movie franchise and I hope the others movies are much better.

Recommended for: Fantasy fans, Adventure fans,

If you have not read my reviews for the other Harry Potter movies please click on the links below.
Harry Potter Series
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's (Philosopher's) Stone Review
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets Review.
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban Review.
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire Review.
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix Review.
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince Review.
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 Review
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 Review

Click here to check out more of our movie reviews.

If you want to contact us or have any please sent an e-mail to johnstarslayer@gmail.com.

Read More