So far, the Harry Potter series has done a fine job of bringing J.K. Rowling's books to the screen. And yet, it must be said -- Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince is, hands down, the very best film in the series to date.
As adaptations, every Potter movie has been a success, not just financially, but in the choices made by the various directors as to what makes it onto the screen and what parts of the (very long) books get left behind. But this time, director David Yates (who also directed Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix) has taken a far less workman-like approach, and created an artistic, suspenseful, funny, sometimes downright scary picture that goes beyond just getting the story onto film. It's fantastic entertainment in its own right.
In many ways, this installment is merely a series of events that are put into play to set up the two-movie finale that's to come, but it never feels that way. Half-Blood Prince finds Harry, now a slightly older, considerably less whiny teen, working secretly for Dumbledore (Michael Gambon) to get a key bit information about the evil Voldemort from the school's new teacher (the marvelous Jim Broadbent). Meanwhile, romantic crushes and misunderstandings take up more of the story than ever before -- Harry and Ginny, Hermione and Ron -- but are treated with far more sophisticated humor and genuine heart than in the previous movies. And an old, worn Advanced Potions textbook, once the property of someone called "The Half-Blood Prince," gives Harry an unfair advantage in class, and offers a surprising revelation about one of the primary characters.
It's hard to tell how many people in the audience will already know the story, having read the book. A lot of them, one assumes. So good execution is vital, and Yates, along with screenwriter Steve Kloves, handles it with a mastery beyond what's come before, even in his own Order of the Phoenix. The computer-enhanced environment is stunning, from the frenetic novelty shop newly opened by the Weasley brothers to the most well-crafted Quidditch matches yet. It's all beautifully realized, and wickedly entertaining to watch. Yates' direction of his young actors is equally impressive -- watching the cast grow up and all, every one, develop into a solid actor has been a joy, and Yates' rewards their long investment here with a rich tapstry of emotion in which to play.
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince goes far beyond the usual family fare, where the best a grown-up can hope for is to not be bored or intellectually insulted when they accompany their child to the movies. No, Half-Blood Prince is a truly excellent film on its own merits-- exciting, sometimes melancholy, always compelling. Simply enchanting, in every way.