Review of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005) by Drew O — 28 Mar 2013

By the time the Goblet of Fire came around, the Harry Potter films were on a roll. Three straight great films have already anchored the franchise in excellence, and that wasn't going to change. The Goblet of Fire continues Harry's streak with the help of some truly thrilling action sequences. It's probably one of the most thoroughly entertaining films you can find in this series.

The story of a "Tri-wizard" tournament is pretty interesting, and the challenges they are forced to face are extremely exciting. It might drag on a bit long, but there's plenty of entertainment in here to keep you interested for the duration. After all, by the time Harry gets to the graveyard near the end you are already out of breath from the excitement, yet there's still more fun to be had.

Voldemort finally makes his first appearance of the series in the flesh, and he immediately becomes one of the most memorable villains of all time. Ralph Fiennes is an overwhelmingly underrated actor and doesn't waste a single second of his limited screen time delivering a truly scary and intimidating presence as the Dark Lord. Shamefully, Voldy never really gets enough time on screen in this or any other of the following films (except maybe the last one) to truly leave his mark in movie history.

All in all, the Goblet of Fire is a fully engaging and wildly thrilling ride through Harry's fourth year of Hogwarts. The series really doesn't match the entertainment of this very often, and it certainly ranks highly at the top of the franchise.