Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
Directed by David Yates
Written by Michael Goldenberg
Starring Daniel Radcliffe, Ralph Fiennes, Rupert Grint, Emma Watson, Helena Bonham Carter, Robbie Coltrane
Release Date July 11th, 2007
Published July 10th, 2007
With any series of movies fatigue is inevitable. That is one of the things that has made the four previous Harry Potter films so impressive, each was seemingly better than the last. Well, the law of averages has finally caught up to J.K Rowling's creation. The fifth Potter film, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, is a step down in quality from the first four.
Don't get me wrong, by the standard of your average Hollywood production, Order of the Phoenix is very good. However, by the high standards of its franchise predecessors, it's a slight disappointment. Confusing plot holes, skips in the timeline, and lapses in logic give Order of the Phoenix the messy feel of an aging franchise.
Another summer has come to an end and young wizard Harry Potter (Daniel Radcliffe) is ready for his return to Hogwarts School of Magic. However, his arrival is not without trouble, terrifying dreams of his encounter with the evil Lord Voldemort (Ralph Fiennes) are plaguing him. Worse yet, few if anyone in the magical realm believe him when he says he faced off with the dark lord
The Ministry of Magic, led by Lord Fudge (Robert Hardy), for one is highly skeptical and even suspicious that Harry's story is a scare tactic being used by Professor Dumbledore (Michael Gambon) to take over the ministry. Fudge's staunchest ally, Dolores Umbridge (Imelda Staunton) is even more paranoid and suspicious of Dumbledore and Harry. When she becomes Hogwarts new Defense of the Dark Arts teacher, at the behest of the Ministry, she begins making life difficult for Harry and getting under Dumbledore's skin.
All of these strands of plot coalesce naturally toward a head to head fight with the dark lord that is one of the film's more impressive visual moments, but something of a let down in terms of grandiosity and emotional impact. First time director David Yates renders the action of Harry Potter exceptionally well. The encounter with Voldemort and the battle that precedes are terrifically compelling set pieces, visually dazzling and edge of your seat exciting.
Sadly, where director Yates and first time Potter scribe Michael Goldenberg is in giving the action an emotional impact. Plot holes doom these major action scenes to simply looking impressive while logically faltering. In the case of a dramatic death at the height of the action, the moment is so chaotically rushed that the impact is blunted.
As for the logic problems, a description would require heavy spoilers. Let's just say that there are mindless moments in Order of the Phoenix that are quite surprising for this series which has rarely been simplistic or predictable. The hand of god seems to reach in more than ever before in the Potter series offering rescues and trapdoors when the plot requires them.
The Harry Potter franchise features a who's who of the best British actors in the business and this time around Oscar nominee Imelda Staunton is the scene stealer as the prim and proper villainess Dolores Umbridge. Hers is a performance of marvelous malevolence. From the moment her lacquered hair-do and horrifying pink ensemble appear on the screen, with her shrill drill sergeant's tone of voice, Staunton steals the show as the villain you love to hate.
Staunton isn't the only new scene stealer in the Potter universe, Irish youngster Ivanna Lynch is a real treat as the odd duck Luna Lovegood. Revelling in J.K Rowling's wondrously detailed character, Lynch brings loony life to this oddball while also managing to make her sympathetic and a favored ally of Harry and company. Lynch performs this role with her whole being, a lilting yet determined voice, a relaxed funky manner and a style all her own, her Luna Lovegood is a welcome addition to the sprawling Potter ensemble.
As for our returning stars; Daniel Radcliffe continues to be the perfect embodiment of Harry Potter's angst ridden youth. Though never the picture of an action hero, it is Radcliffe's average qualities that make him so perfectly suited to the role and able to consistently surprise us with his strength and vulnerability. In Order of the Phoenix we begin to get inklings of what a Harry Potter might be should he survive his ever imminent encounter with Lord Voldemort and Radcliffe imbues these scenes with hope and optimism even as Harry evinces fear and uncertainty.
His young co-stars are having a harder time finding the right balance in their performances. Rupert Grint's Ron Weasley continues to be Harry's loyal sidekick but sadly he recedes deep into the background of Order of the Phoenix rarely offering even his usual comic relief. As for Emma Watson her struggles are the most obvious in Order of the Phoenix. Her Hermione Granger is becoming somewhat shrill with her emotions running to extremes at all times. Watson needs to find some balance between constant fright and tight lipped ascension before she burns out from bounding from one extreme to the other.
For J.K Rowling loyalists, the scene many will be waiting for with bated breath is Harry's first kiss with the comely Cho Chang played by Katie Leung. Indeed the scene is in the movie but sadly it falls flat compared to Harry and Cho's chaste tower encounter in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. Unfortunately, Director David Yates blunts the emotional impact of the scene by rushing it along.
Book fans however can take heart in Yates' wonderful foreshadowing of another character who is set to become Harry's love interest in future sequels.
Yes, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix is a lesser effort compared to the previous Potter films but considering that this is a truly transitory entry in the series; that is to be expected. Keep in mind that David Yates is a first time director taking the helm of one of the greatest franchises in film history and working with a screenwriter who delivered his first Potter script after Steve Kloves adapted each of the first four films and you have to marvel at the fact that the film wasn't a complete disaster.
If Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix demonstrates anything it is that the main creative force here remains Potter creator J.K Rowling. Directors come and go and even screenwriters come and go but the vision for these characters and this story remains with Rowling's stunning creativity. Whether you come to love Order of the Phoenix as much as the previous films, or not you will still walk out with the same anticipation for the next chapter that you had waiting for this one.
