Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince: User Reviews

What a waste of time!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
By Eloin from Edgewater, August 10, 2009

Overall rating:

One word describes this Film “borrowing"! I have enjoyed the previous Harry Potter films; however, paying extra to view this film at the IMAX Theatre at Navy Prier was a huge disappointment. The 3D effects only appeared for about the first 15 minutes of the movie and the remainder of the film was in normal viewing mode. The film quality was poor at best with a haze over shadowing the movie. The spectacular magic sequences that one has come to expect from this genre were absent.

Harry Potter Grows Up
By DerekBorcherding from Clifton, August 8, 2009

Overall rating:

With each subsequent movie, Harry Potter and his friends have grown up just a little bit more. With this growth comes the usual teenage travails involving new love, unrequited crushes and changing friendships. While there is still a bit of action, and a tragic ending, the real focus of this movie is the evolution of the young characters into mature young adults. This movie will appeal to a broad audience, from children fascinated with Harry Potter, to women who love a great drama, to men that just want to see some action.
Derek Borcherding, Clifton.

Coming of Age
By kyoung from Landover Hills, July 19, 2009

Overall rating:

Harry Potter and his posse come of age. Finding one's true love rises to the surface. Great action sequences keep you wanting more. Well directed, must see film.

Half-Blood Bewitches
By putnamken from Putnam, July 14, 2009

Overall rating:

When last we saw Harry he had just lost his dear Uncle Sirius and "Half-Blood" begins almost immediately after this tragic event with poor Harry once again at the center of the entire wizard community - for both good and bad. Unfortunately, as the Potter books grow lengthier the subsequent movies have more difficulty condensing the plot line and some character development suffers in the name of the constraints of the genre. No matter, the important themes survive but purists are bound to be somewhat disappointed. The central trio of Harry, Ron and Hermoine are growing up with all the stresses associated with common muggle puberty. One must wonder why the potion geniuses have not yet concocted an antidote - but where would the fun be in that? The result is a juxtaposition of the travails of finding a date for the Christmas formal and the continued struggle against "He-who-must-not-be-named" and his growing - and increasingly aggressive - cadre of Death Eaters. The kids may be stressed but the adults are apoplectic. The movie gets the pace just right and eases off of the gas just enough for you to catch your breath prior to the next roller-coaster of special effects (and that's the best analogy I can come up with). One can only imagine how disorienting the film will be in an IMAX theater. The bottom line though is this is the book that ties a lot of loose ends together in preparation for the resolution of "Deathly Hallows." The movie has more than enough going for it to hold the interest of even those who may not have the slightest clue as to what all the fuss is about but is significantly more intense than even "Phoenix" so it might be a little bit over-the-top for the under-10 set. Magic is no longer akin to cute party tricks and deaths abound while the blood flows as a result. All in all, a deserving addition to the "Potter" series (but start counting the days until the release of "Hallows").