Review of Winged Migration (2001) by Stephen M — 21 Sep 2005

So I knew nothing about the Harry Potter universe before last week, until I got the first movie from Netflix. I had no expectations at all, and suprisingly...I really liked all three movies.

[b]Sorcerer's Stone [/b]and[b] Chamber of Secrets [/b]I'll group as one movie because I'm lazy don't want to write two reviews. Now these have got mixed reviews, and I guess I can sort of see why. Columbus' direction isn't the most innovative, the visual effects aren't perfect, and both movies move along at a free pace. But darnit, I just loved all the ideas, the fantasy, everything that in all likelyhood is directly from the book. Having no expectations can be a great thing, because as I had no idea what anything was about I found the idea of a High School for wizards to be a ton of fun. I also thought each actor fit their character well, and there seems to be a wealth of directions each of them could go.

[b]Azkaban [/b]on the other hand is just a finely crafted film all the way around. Cuaron's direction is vibrant, the special effects are marvellous, and generally the wonderful cinematography evokes a better atmosphere than the first two films. The story is much more tight, and the actors are given more emotional depth, especially Harry. I really liked the way he goes from a good, if troublesome kid, to someone who could very well go down the wrong path if he doesn't keep his act together.

Really the old big disappointment for me from these movies is William's scores. He has an excellent main theme, but compared to his amazing body of work, I expected way more memorable music.

Oh, and Snape rules.

[u].

[b]Aguirre, the Wrath of God.

[/b][/u]This was my first Herzog film, and while I think his direction is superb, evoking with some fantastic images the mad and hopeless journey through the jungle, the rest of it just let me cold. I understand the slow pace, the descent into madness. I understand, at least at a basic level, what Herzog is trying to say about Aguirre's futile quest for power. But still....that doesn't make for an interesting or entertaining film to me. I don't know, it seems these plotless (For the most part), character studies don't do it for me.

[u][b]Winged Migration.

[/b][/u]This is a gorgeous film, with some truly brilliant shots of these migrating birds. But that's all it is basically, and while I highly enjoyed it, I don't think I'd watch it again. But the movie doesn't set out to give you a wealth of information about these birds, it's purely about the camera, the sights, and the movement of these birds. And in that respect, it succeeds.