Review of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005) by Elizabeth W — 13 Apr 2013

A great addition to the Potter films, 'Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire' is darker and yet, still fanciful. Harry returns to Hogwarts yet again, this time to compete in the Triwizard Tournament, a cometition where battling Dragons, defeating mermaids, and maneuvering through a giant evil, and bewitched maze are just as gamely as anything else.

Something different and well done about this chapter is the way the growing pains and awkardness of the kids comes out. Of course, Voldemort returns here, and he is played menacingly and intriguingly by Ray Fiennes.

Other great performances include Maggie Smith's McGonnagall, Alan Rickman's Snape, Michael Gambon's Dumbledore, and Brendon Gleeson's Mad Eye Moody, the new and strange Defense Against the Dark Arts theacher.

However, it's the kids once again who steal the show. Daniel Radcliffe is really coming into his own as an actor, as is Rupert Grint, but I wished Steve Kloves would've written in the resourcefullness and cleverness of Hermione Granger as he did in the previous films as that made her my favorite character.

As much fun as 'Goblet of Fire' is, there are a few problems: 1 - The music, written by Patrick Doyle, is rusty and tired, sticking to unexciting adventure cliches and not adding a single touch of inventiveness or originality.

2 - The screenplay by Steve Kloves is at times witty, and at other times flat and almost demeaning to the audience. There is a scene where Harry is trying to pluck up the courage to ask a girl on a date and he says, "Right now, I think I'd rather take on a Dragon.

" That line almost destroys the beauty of these scenes of growing hormones and awkard feelings. The fact that Harry is more frightened by asking a girl to the ball than battling a dragon provides the biggest piece of poignancy to the film and to have it force fed to us is most insulting to the intelligence of the audience.

These are just minor quibbles however, for 'Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire' remains a worthy and strong chapter in the series. However, after four films, 'Goblet' would have to rank in at the bottom.