A heartfelt thanks... and a semi-HP POA review...

[fenderlove]

A special thanks to those who have offered me such comforting words in my time of need.

Also:

I loved this movie. The sets, the music, the acting! I love it all! I loved it so much that when the movie ended last night at 9:45 PM that I went straight to the Wal-Mart SuperStore and bought the POA soundtrack.

Favorite things:
* The whine-y, babyish, and simpering Draco. I heart wussy boys. His little lip-quiver as Hermione brandashes her wand at him was adorable. His screaming as he runs from the Shrieking Shack was reminiscent of his scream from Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone when the troll attacks. "He's killed me!" Heh. Tom Felton works well with what little he is given. He's grown from an adorable little boy into a very attractive young man.
* Alan Rickman's performance as Severus Snape. Just wonderful, and always a pleasure.
* The Phelps Twins deliver a stellar performance. Although James Phelps as Fred really stands out in my mind as the more noticable.
* The Whomping Willow should have had a spot in the credits.
* As an animator and Draco fangirl, it warmed my heart to see Draco's little Harry animation. Hehe. Plus, that paper crane FX was just awesome.
* All the Slytherins have silver rings. Also, we get to see Pansy in this film. They found a little Gothic girl to play her with a bowl cut (very Bohemian and Beatnikish) black hair and a puggish nose. She was quite cute. Her black hair and dark lined eyes highly contrasted Draco's bleach job and sparkling baby blues. They look like a good match!
* "Double Trouble" is a beautiful song. I love it.
* Buckbeak reminds me of my cat.
* They are really playing up the Ron/Hermione relationship. They're gonna do it before the seventh book is over mark my words.
* Man, I want a cat like Crookshanks. Silly kneazle in kitty clothes.

Nonfavorite things:
* The fact that Mssrs Moony, Padfoot, Wormtail, and Prongs are actually Lupin, Sirius, Peter, and James wasn't really addressed... I think it's supposed to be infered, but I don't think kids who haven't read the books will be able to understand the subtle nature of that fact.
* Harry's crying at Hogsmeade. It seemed disingenuous. It's a marr on the wonderful performance that Daniel Radcliffe gave in this film.
* Peter Pettigrew just didn't fit what I picture at all and was way more annoying than he was in the book.
* Prof. Trelawney got on my frickin' nerves... even more so than in the books.
* The last line Sirius gives is to Hermione; it would have been more poignant to have that line to go Harry.

Over all, I really enjoyed the movie and was quite impressed. Even though it wasn't as literal as the others, it seemed more like the book than the others did. I think it was because the spirit of the book was really captured. I reccommend it to everyone.