About this time of year, most Tufts students are starting to freak out about finals, having only just gotten over the stress of midterms. Next week, as they tote home loads of books to pore over during the tease of a break that is Thanksgiving, almost all of these students will be cursing their rotten luck. But it could be worse. Although lab reports and research papers are no fun, they sure beat having to outsmart a dragon or rescue a friend chained to the bottom of the lake.
Even unluckier than a beleaguered Tufts student, Triwizard Tournament Champion Harry Potter must complete these two seemingly insurmountable challenges, along with the navigation of a hedge maze, at the end of his fourth year at Hogwarts. These tasks-and not much else-provide the basis for the plot of the latest film installment of the Harry Potter saga: "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire."
The film's action centers mostly on the events of the Triwizard Tournament. The Tournament is a prized tradition of the wizarding world in which one contestant (called a "Champion") from each of the participating schools - Hogwarts, the French Beauxbatons Academy of Magic and the vaguely Eastern European Durmstrang Institute for Magical Study - competes to win the Triwizard Cup. Since there would be no story without a little plot twist, someone enters Harry's name too, and he is forced by the binding magical contract of the Tournament to compete for his chance at the Triwizard Cup.
The two-and-a-half hour long movie is at once overly complex and significantly distilled; an interesting paradox. Producers had to condense J.K. Rowling's 734-page tome into a palatable one-sitting film without removing too much of the series' complicated Dickensian charm.
Since the book, with its grandiose scenes of Quidditch matches and dragon fights, lends itself especially well to cinematic interpretation, it is easy to see how the filmmakers were tempted into sacrificing some of the novelistic subtleties in favor of breathtaking action sequences. And the animation certainly holds up. We've come a long way from the blatantly computerized movements of Spidey and Neo. The envoys from the two visiting schools have particularly memorable entrances: the filles from Beauxbatons arrive in a winged horse-drawn carriage that swoops down through the sky and the Durmstrang boys' ship forbiddingly rises out of the depths of Hogwarts' dark lake.
There is painstaking attention paid to detail throughout the film, even in the moments which employ no special effects. In one scene, rain on a stained glass window makes it appear as though the Technicolor glass saint is crying; in another, a long shot of the sumptuous tables of Hogwarts' dining hall reveal sugar mice weaving in and out of elaborate trays of cakes and other baked goods.
The prioritizing of aesthetics creates a dazzling picture but leaves viewers feeling as though the entire cast (particularly Alan Rickman as the smarmy Professor Snape) is underused. This is a pity, since almost every actor turns in a solid performance.
Most impressive are the three lead actors, who are admirably growing into their roles (although they are physically out-aging their characters at an alarming rate-14-year-old Harry shouldn't be showing signs of chest hair just yet). Daniel Radcliffe nails Harry's hormonally-driven internal conflicts and turns in an especially impressive performance as he incoherently sobs over fellow Triwizard Tournament Champion Cedric's corpse. Rupert Grint, as Ron Weasley, still primarily fills the "Harry's wacky sidekick" role but also shows occasional flashes of dramatic maturity; when Harry is announced as a Triwizard Champion, the jealous glare Ron shoots him is almost palpable.
Unfortunately for actress Emma Watson, the most talented thespian of the adolescent bunch, the film makes Hermione into a one-dimensional character. It feels as though the screenwriters are taking a page from "Boy Meets World"'s treatment of Topanga: realizing that Watson is the most attractive of the three leads, they're downplaying Hermione's intelligence and positioning her as Ron's romantic foil. Although Watson does well with what she's given (her breakdown on the steps of the Yule Ball is a particularly heart-wrenching moment), one wishes she would cry less and punch Draco more.
Despite its relative lack of acting, the film remains intelligent and just as engaging for its adult audience as for the children. "Goblet of Fire" continues the movies' progression toward sophisticated, dark filmmaking. Instead of slapstick humor, we get clever one-liners; instead of Harry flying over sunny fields, we have him running in terror through a dark, foggy maze.
The sexual and swearing content has also been upped this time around - to a somewhat disturbing level. Although phrases like "bloody hell" and "piss off" accurately represent the rebellious tendencies of 14-year-old boys, the ghost of Moaning Myrtle trying to check Harry out in the bathtub is a little disquieting.
At the end of the film, Dumbledore tells Harry, "Dark and difficult times lie ahead... Soon we must all face the choice between what is right and what is easy." The Harry Potter filmmakers should take this advice to heart: they have quite the chore ahead of them in adapting the 870 pages of "Order of the Phoenix" (Book 5). If "Goblet of Fire" is any indication, though, they'll rise to the challenge. The film can feel incredibly dense and complicated at times, but its two and a half hours fly by faster than a Firebolt.
