Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004)

"Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban"

Harry (Daniel Radcliffe), Ron (Rupert Grint) and

Hermione (Emma Watson) are heading back for their

third year at the now-famous school of magic and

wizardry. But, as the magical train takes them back to

Hogwarts it is abruptly stopped and Harry is

confronted by a soul sucking Dementor searching for a

dangerous escaped wizard in "Harry Potter and the

Prisoner of Azkaban."

I've read the first four of the Potter books, liked

the newness of the first, was bored by the sameness of

the second and developed a grudging acceptance of the

third and forth. As to the first two "Potter" movies

by director Chris Columbus, I felt pretty much the

same. The first did a good job of adapting J.K

Rowling's book to the big screen and it was a

well-crafted F/X extravaganza. The kids established

themselves pretty well, too. The second installment

was more of the same – bigger, better and more

bombastic special effects – including yet another

Quiddich match. (I had had enough the first time

around.)

For "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban,"

now-producer Columbus and company have hired on

Mexican helmer Alphonso Cuaron ("Y Tu Mama Tambien")

to direct the third installment of the lucrative

franchise, as the child wizard-in-training becomes a

teenager. The choice, to me, is a major improvement

over the previous installments for a number of

reasons. First and foremost is how the magical aspects

of Hogwarts – the living paintings, ghosts wandering

the rooms, candles floating in midair and scary

Dementors – are given matter of fact treatment. Cuaron

and his obviously talented crew, utilizing Steve

Kloves's solid screenplay (his third "Potter" script)

make this magical world, filled with illusion, feel

normal. This allows the second thing I found

thoroughly enjoyable in part three of the series.

One of the things that have always been consistent in

the "Potter" films is the fine job done in casting all

the incredible characters that populate this magical

universe. Richard Harris gave a fragile strength to

his headmaster Dumbledore and his passing could have

dealt a blow to "Prisoner" (but does not). Maggie

Smith, Alan Rickman, Julie Walters, Fiona Shaw,

Richard Griffiths, Robbie Coltraine and others appear

in the first and/or the second and reprise their roles

again here. But, there is a new who's who of British

actors that attached themselves to this project in a

big way.

Of course, the kids do a fine job as Radcliffe, Grint

and Watson show real maturity in their perfs and are

quite comfortable with their characters. The newcomers

joining them in this latest adventure are some of

England's finest actors: Michael Gambon, filling the

shoes of Hogwarts Headmaster Albus Dumbledore; Gary

Oldman as the sinister title prisoner, Sirius Black;

David Thewlis appears as Professor of Defense Against

the Dark Arts, Remus Lupin; Emma Thompson (who steals

the show during her brief on-screen time) is Professor

Trelawney, in charge of Divination; Timothy Spall is

the rat-like pivotal character, Peter Pettigrew in

Harry's on-going quest to unravel the mystery of his

parent's death.

The third thing I really like about "Harry Potter and

the Prisoner of Azkaban has nothing to do with story

or actors. It has to do with the one effect that

knocked my socks off – the Hippogriff. Fans of the

book will remember this amazing creature but the F/X

team has created something that even the great Ray

Harryhausen would be pleased with. Buckbeak (that's

his name) is the magical combination of an eagle and a

horse that is the subject of Rubeus Hagrid

(Coltraine), the new Care of Magical Creatures

teacher. It might be a bit hokey as Harry bonds with

Buckbeak then take off astride the flying creature but

it sure made me want to have one of my own.

Harry's story continues as he enters his third year at

Hogwarts and learns that Sirius Black, the wizard who

is professed to be after young Potter, has escaped his

Dementor torturers at the notorious Azkaban Prison for

malefactors of magic. Black is heading straight to

Hogwarts and Dumbledore is forced to enlist the deadly

Dementors to guard the gates of Hogwarts. Meanwhile,

Professor Lupin has taken Harry under his wing and

teaches the lad, scared to almost paralysis by the

evil guardians, how to use his magic to control these

unrelenting demons. But things are not what they seem

and Harry learns some life affirming lessons as the

lines of good and evil are redrawn by the end of

"Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban."

Director Cuaron shows his skill with actors as he

elicits sound, even endearing performances form his

fine cast. The new additions make the biggest splash

with Thewlis giving dimension to his aptly named Remus

Lupin. Gary Oldman, always a treat to see, first

appears as the raving moving image in a wanted poster

for Sirius Black. He maintains his sinister, menacing

air and his transformation of character, by the end,

is quite well done. Michael Gambon does not disappoint

as the new Dumbledore and adds some wry humor to his

character. Emma Thompson is really quite marvelous as

the near sighted, theatrical Professor Trelawney, who,

when reading Harry's tea leaves, sees an omen of

death, the Grim. Timothy Spall has some fun as the

rodent like Pettigrew. Robbie Coltraine continues his

portrayal of Hagrid to good effect. Alan Rickman,

always a pleasure to watch, continues his nuance

performance as the distrustful and arrogant Professor

Snape. Maggie Smith, as Professor McGonagall, has

little screen time as the aging wizardess.

I was hopeful, going in to "Harry Potter and the

Prisoner of Azkaban" due to the involvement of

Alphonso Cuaron, a director I have respected since I

saw his enchanting "A Little Princess" (another film

that I highly recommend). He lends a dark edginess to

his interpretation of J.K. Rowling's tale and makes it

better. It is the best entry, yet, in the series and I

give it a B+.

For more Reeling reviews visit www.reelingreviews.com

robin@reelingreviews.com

laura@reelingreviews.com

==========
X-RAMR-ID: 37945
X-Language: en
X-RT-ReviewID: 1286126
X-RT-TitleID: 1132921
X-RT-SourceID: 386
X-RT-AuthorID: 1488
X-RT-RatingText: B+