Coffee Break: My Half-Blood Prince

After my rather tragic experience with Brüno, I was happy to correct my loss of hope in the movie industry (it clearly doesn’t take much to disappoint me) with none other than Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. With the final public acceptance of Voldemort’s return and Lucius Malfoy’s imprisonment, the movie takes a much darker and ominous turn. Without spoiling the movie (seriously, I can’t believe there are some of you out there who haven’t read the books), I can say this—be grateful of Draco Malfoy’s increased role in the story as Tom Felton turns out to be a talented actor, not to mention his cute looks. Alan Rickman is perfect as Severus Snape, as usual, and Michael Gambon’s portrayal of Dumbledore has become less angry and more like the Dumbledore we loved from the first movie (“No, I was merely reading the Muggle magazines," said Dumbledore. "I do love knitting patterns.”). Daniel Radcliffe and Rupert Grint has grown well into their characters—perhaps thanks to the practice they get from their acting careers outside of Harry Potter. Emma Watson, on the other hand, who has not acted nor wants to act beyond the Harry Potter movies was disappointingly lackluster, but she has definitely blossomed into the best-looking actor on set. This is also the movie where romance begins to unfurl between the young actors but unfortunately the romantic scenes are rather tepid and forced. My only wish was that the movie was longer (it’s already 2 hours 33 minutes). I can’t wait for Deathly Hallows Part 1, the first half of the final chapter of the Harry Potter saga. 4 stars/ 5 stars

Movie reviews will continue with I Love You, Beth Cooper.