Another Teen Movie

[The following has been written with a viewpoint of someone who has read the book -- For the rest, its a college adventure movie :D]
While making a movie out of a massively successful storyline & compressing the largest Harry Potter novel so far, into 2 Hours and 17 minutes, is no mean task but (inspite of knowing all this,) I am more than mildly disappointed.
In case, you wondered, I watched Harry Potter and the Order of Phoenix, 1^stDay Last Show in Paris. A big Yeah to that!
To those, who think HP is abra-ca-dabra go take a hike!
To those, I promised to see the movie with, apologies, but will see it again with you anyway.
Also, incidentally, after giving Goblet a skip in the theaters, I have watched each of the others in different city - Pune, Bangalore, Bombay & now, Paris :D
I can't stop gloating :)
So basically, in an effort of squishing 800 pages of the book - the director ends up practically nowhere. One thing that the movie stands out for, is the measure of growth that the Daniel Radcliffe, as Harry & Emma Watson, as you-know-who ;) , have shown. Unlike, Goblet, where Miss Watson, had everyone from Krum to Me to many others floored, she is much more subdued. Except for a scene, where she applies a bit too much of lipstick, she's back into the mould of a best friend, who looks averagely good & not the school beauty, who sits besides you in class, but is being asked out by International Quidditch Heroes. I miss her bushy hair, though (No Pun intended - its how JKR describes her).
Among the other cast, Uncle Vernon looks hugely comical, Gwarp is fitting, Bellatrix is unnaturally loud ...
... & is part of a bigger problem, that I think the movie suffers from. All characters in the movie, have gone overboard to fit exactly into the mould JKR designed. Dumbledore, as I saw him in the movie, wasn't the same as I had mentally pictured him to be while reading, but that was OK!
This movie, has Umbridge having all the associated imagery to recreate the toad visualisation that JKR creates in the book. In a movie hard pressed for time, panning her obscenely pink office a couple of times, is a huge waste. While she might have exactly imitated the book, the added visualisations with her toadiness overdoes it. While her characteristic, 'Hem, hem' is perfectly timed and astutely executed, its an irritant as the movie progresses. Among the most frequent complaints about HP5, has been her time-consuming character. The movie doesn't help itself, by coping this part.
Similarly, with Bellatrix! It is necessary to speak of her evil laughter a few times over to get the message across, it is sufficient to display her laugh just once or twice.
While, the reason Order, as a book is vastly different from its predecessors (also, among the reasons it is complicated), is that it speaks of the Gray areas between the Dark and the Light. It shows James, in a nasty light. It speaks of Umbridge as a misguided but loyal follower. It speaks of Aunt Petunia, doing more than just feeding Harry on leftovers.
The movie blunders each time.
We are never given a chance to like Umbridge. James' arrogance as a 15 yr. old is portrayed as Harry's strength in repelling Snape. The Howler sent to Petunia is still an unexplained element. In case, JKR resolves it in Hallows, the movie HP7 will have a null pointer.
In the concluding minutes, Harry's anguish at learning the prophecy was done with, in a snap. It speaks, of Dark Lord marking him as an equal & neither surviving while the other lives. While, picturising it would no way have been an easy task, Harry's contemplations by the Great Lake, bring out the man in the boy.
What the movie succeeds in doing, however is capture the difficult scenes, well. Fudge's tinkering with the Daily Prophet uses nice techniques. The Department of Mysteries creates an aura of the unknown. Characters of Lupin, Sirius, Tonks, McGonnagal, Ron and Hagrid are self-assured. Voldemort is unnecessarily disfigured. We hear that Tom was a pretty handsome boy. Luna Lovegood, is a revelation as McDreamy. Ginny isn't positioned to be Harry's love interest in the next. Quidditch is sorely missed. But the lack of too many outdoor scenes, create a nice Dark tinge to the whole movie.
What we are left with, is our jock, with a couple of great pals, in a school with an evil teacher imposed on them. They decide, that something secret is cool and rebellious, since they have a point to prove to the world. He manages to snog a girl, in the meantime. They goof up and land in a soup. But our friendly neighbourhood jock, has to star in subsequent movies & with a little help, saves the world alrite. The evil teacher was wrong, all throughout & is duly punished. Another Teen Movie - a few JKR details, don't hurt!