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Rating:  - Nothing Amazing, But Still Great
Now let me be honest from the start and say that I've only read the first 4 Harry Potter books and have never really been interested in the rest. I must also be honest and say I've only ever really been a casual fan of the films, not getting overly excited about the upcoming release, nor being somewhat ashamed of even saying "oh that looks good." I simply ended up watching Order of the Phoenix on a whim and I must say I found it very enjoyable. The combination of the hidden magic world and believable characters, really allow the film to blend into one hell of a two hour ride.
Harry's fifth year as a wizard doesn't start too well, he and Dudley are attacked by dementors which leads to Harry being expelled from Hogwarts. Through a series of random, craziness Harry discovers that Dumbledore is putting together an army to help fight Voldemorts army. The Order of the Phoenix involve the likes of Azkaban runaway Sirius Black, Godfather of Harry Potter and Sirius Black. The Ministry of Magic are the biggest problem facing the order at the moment as Dumbledore and Harry are constantly attacked in the daily prophet for spreading lies. The Ministry are in denial that the Dark Lord Voldemort is back and in order to stop the rumours, they must take Dumbledores power and remove him as Hogwarts headmaster. In his place is the old fashioned and quite evil Professor Delores Umbridge. She, like the ministry seems in complete denial about the dark lords return and seeks to bring order to Hogwarts. Harry on the other hand decides he must take teaching into his own hands and puts together his own army of students and prepares them for the impending war.
I have to be honest and say Radcliffe has once again really pulled it off as a genuine actor. Although the Harry Potter label will stick with him forever, he continues to display genuine acting talent within the role. The supporting best friends of Emma Watson (Hermione) & Rupert Grint (Ron) provide the general emotional guidance that helps keep Harry going. Personally I found the Delores Umbridge character to be the more intimidating of characters from this year, she has the ability of being a bit too sweet giving the image that you know there's something more going on. She demands order, she wants peace without possibility of injury so she bans all magic in the classroom and insists all theory work is the correct way to teach wizardry. Well played part by Imelda Staunton.
The special effects are as usual astonishing, they allow the truly magical Potter world to come alive. The Centaurs, Giants and general magical fights can only be done through the magic of computer animation and are simply flawless. There wasn't a single moment where I spotted a faulty special effect with which I could say "that's done by computers." If it did have that effect on someone then there's no denying it would have ruined the entire effect of the film.
I do want to point something out and it's something that has been talked about time and time again. It's the darkness of the film, for a book aimed at kids the stories tend to get more and more adult as time progresses. This is a good thing for the older fan of the books, but isn't something I would really say should be seen by kids as they would possibly find it a bit terrifying. It's an amazing, honest and enjoyable picture that although there will be the complaints of cutting down too much from the book, I have no doubt that it's still a film the loyal book fans will thoroughly enjoy.
Rating:  - reasonable
Product arrived in the order it was expected and in the condition promised. Shipping and handling fees were high.
Rating:  - Harry Potter continues
This movie had some surprises along the way. It kept you waiting on the edge of your seat, knowing that something was happening to Harry and the truth would become more clear on many things. It left you with wanting more and anxiously waiting for the next movie. Although the young actors are doing a superb job, are they going to be young enough looking to pass for the age they need to appear to be by the time the next movie comes out?
Rating: - Order of the Phoenix is Great!
Having read all the books in the series I was interested in seeing "The Order." I was and remain happy that so much concern is given to adhering to the essence of the book. Naturally, it is impossible to include in a 2 0r 3 hour movie every detail as laid out by J.K. Rowling but the screenwriter(s) do a masterful job of delivering the true feeling of the book(s).
Rating: - A Crucial Make Or Break For The Harry Potter Film Series
When I first put down the fifth Harry Potter book I had told my friends that when the movie was made it was going to be amazing. 'Order of The Phoenix' was a real step up in the Harry Potter saga. A story that originated around magic spells and fairytales became a real world of war and politics. Harry Potter knew that this year at Hogwarts was going to be no different than the previous. Witnessing a fellow student die at the hands of his enemies the previous year things have gone from bad to worse. The Wizadering World has been torn between believers of the dark lords' return and those who just want to live in denial. Unfortunatly the second side is the side with all the power as the Ministry is trying to keep everyone in line including the children at Hogwarts. With a new teaching on the grounds insituting new rules to keep Harry's mouth shut, Harry and his friends are not going to take it lightly.
This film was going to be a challenge for whomever took the directors chair. Small time director David Yates created a great film rich in the detail of the story. Eventhough a great amount of the books material was cut it was just like 'Goblet of Fire' There is a lot of pointless side story which really has no reference to the meat of the story and that is why you do not see those in the film. The characters have really come a long way acting wise. The children have really evolved since the begining and new commer Imelda Staunton nailed Umbridge. What David Yates did that was very different from the previous directors was that he made these characters real. With all the wizardry and magic there was a real sense of realisim through the diologue and the emotions expressed by the characters. Now with Yates signed on for the final 2 installments (3 technically due to the divison of Deathly Hallows) I am even more excited to see how the rest of this story emerges on to the big screen.
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