Review: Harry Potter & Order of the Phoenix

Some magic at last!

There's magic, and then there's magic.

The real charm of the Harry Potter books, as any Pottermaniac will vouch for, is not so much in the fantastic spells the boy wizard and his friends learn at the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, but the magic of human emotions.

You don't have to be a fantasy fan to like Harry Potter; the core of the books is closer to P G Wodehouse school stories than Tolkien. That's what the four films before Order Of The Phoenix failed to grasp.

There were special effects galore, but you didn't feel Harry's emptiness every time a school year ended. You didn't feel his goodness, and you didn't grow with him.

As an unashamed Pottermaniac, I am glad to report that the fifth film changes that with a reasonable degree of success.

The film opens with a very well-shot episode of two dementors attacking Harry (Daniel Radcliffe) -- now a strapping young lad -- and Dudley Dursley (Harry Melling, not as portly as the books say, but doing pretty good).

And for the first time on film, you feel Harry's dread as he appears for the Ministry of Magic trial for just saving himself.

As all of you familiar with the book know, Order Of The Phoenix's story is about the magical word being split into two -- one half believes Harry and Dumbledore and the other believes the Ministry and its spin doctor, the Daily Prophet, who are out to make it look like Harry is a delusional fool and the Hogwarts headmaster a conniving, power-hungry wizard.

So an utterly horrible witch, Dolores Umbridge (played superbly by Imelda Staunton), is appointed as the new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher by the Ministry. She wants 'order and discipline' in the school -- like 'boys are not to come within eight inches of a girl' -- and she wants the Hogwarts students not to learn any real magic, but mug up books.

With her cruel laugh and mannerisms, Staunton makes Umbridge almost as evil as the matron in that brilliant movie adaptation of that brilliant book, One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest.

There is more such excellent character acting, like Evanna Lynch as the eccentric Luna Lovegood. You feel sorry for her, just like you do in the books. Everyone thinks she's nuts, and no one wants to let go of a chance to play a prank on her -- like hiding her belongings.

Gary Oldman as Sirius Black shines too, and the bond between him and his godson Harry comes across subtly but clearly, thanks to some great work by Oldman.

Bellatrix Lestrange (Helena Bonham Carter) too is a welcome cameo.

Natalia Tena as Nymphadora Tonks is another example. She infuses magic into her character with about two minutes of screen space.

In contrast, the main gang -- Harry, Hermione (Emma Watson) and Ron and Neville Longbottom (Matthew Lewis) -- are not so consistently good, though they all have grown into better actors. Correction: Apart from Rupert Grint. He is the goofy, awkward, gangly and lovable Ron Weasley to the hilt.

Order Of The Phoenix is visually a treat too, with Hogwarts looking bigger and better -- as it should have all along. Yes, this is what the films should have been like, right from Philospher's Stone.

There are some superb moments like Harry and the members of the Order flying in formation over the Thames, and of course, the climactic showdown between Lord Voldemort -- Ralph Fiennes is evil embodied with just the way he holds his wand -- and the only wizard he was ever afraid of.

And there are a few moments when you feel the emotional quotient of the books -- like when Ron tells Harry, 'You don't have to do this alone, you know.'

On the downside, there is some bad acting too -- by Uncle Vernon (Richard Griffiths) and Aunt Petunia (Fiona Shaw), most notably. We all know how they fuss over their pig of a son in the books, but when he comes home nearly deranged after the dementor attack, their reaction is far from appropriate. Mrs Figg (Kathryn Hunter) too is a letdown.

There is no chemistry between Cho Chang (Katie Lieung) and Harry, and their much-hyped kiss is definitely not the highlight it was being touted to be.

And my personal grouse is that Fred and George Weasley, two of the finest characters Rowling has created, remain underused, despite their spectacular exit from Hogwarts.

Instead, it's director David Yates who shines with little touches that make a big difference. Like Ginny Weasley looking on wistfully as Harry focuses his attention on Cho.

Order Of The Pheonix is darker than all the previous films (thank god for that!) and moves out from the 'strictly for children' realm. This is adult territory, and delightfully real. The background score also moves up a notch, as do the photography and the locales. The editing, however, is a little jumpy in parts.

But like its predecessors, Order Of The Phoenix forgets completely to dangle unanswered questions in front of the audience, which the books do so tantalisingly.

The magic is also diluted by dialgue at times. You cannot feel the same empathy for Neville as you do in the books when you learn that his parents were driven mad by Lestrange with Neville himself revealing that (one of the many deviations from the book).

Ditto for the battle between Harry and Voldemort where Harry triumphs because he knows the value of love and friendship.

All in all, the fussiest of Potter fans will like this film, because it is a very good movie, and the best Harry Potter movie so far -- by miles.

But it could have been a great one. Sigh.

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