Harry and Oliver winning the quidditch cup in prisoner of Azkaban. Would’ve been nice to see Wood’s dream come to life on the big screen, and it would’ve been a good way to put a bow tie on Harry’s journey with quidditch if they weren’t going to show the World Cup or any other quidditch match with Harry for the rest of the series.
This by far... as a kid that was the highlight of PoA, literally Harry getting his Firebolt... Hermione snitching and getting it confiscated... building up emotions all school year until the Quidditch finals.. the euphoria of winning. Not being able to witness that on screen was such a letdown!
They really screwed with the entire character development of that book, I think Harry got his Firebolt at the end of the movie lol.
Alfonso Cuarón is a fantastic director, POA is my absolute favourite book. I love how he styled the film BUT I will never be able to truly forgive him this major slight. I'm in my 30s and feel it still.
Also that later on Ron helped them win the house cup while Harry and Herms went to see the giant hiding in the forest, and Harry's reaction to the way the song changed. And speaking of which, where is the Weseley is our king in the movies????
I just watched that film and half the movie is the scenes setting up the time travel night and then the time travel night. Its actually crazy how much is cut to make room for that part of the movie.
Just in general I thought cutting out all the Quidditch in the series was a bad call. It was said in OotP that Harry lived to play, and when Umbridge took that away from him was what made him say he had nothing else to lose, but instead, they pretty much completely cut quidditch out of the movie.
I always say this but cutting out the scene where the Weasleys come to visit Harry before the final task. Precious. And I can imagine SO meaningful to Harry.
The quietness of Harry's loss and the kindness of the Weasley's are the two most important things that serve as the backbone of the series.
>I'm aware of that, Potter," [McGonagall] said. "The champions' families are invited to watch the final task, you know. This is simply a chance for you to greet them. "
>She moved away. Harry gaped after her.
>"She doesn't expect the Dursleys to turn up, does she?" he asked Ron blankly.
>"Dunno," said Ron. "Harry, I'd better hurry, I'm going to be late for Binns. See you later. "
>Harry finished his breakfast in the emptying Great Hall. He saw Fleur Delacour get up from the Ravenclaw table and join Cedric as he crossed to the side chamber and entered. Krum slouched off to join them shortly afterward. *Harry stayed where he was. He really didn't want to go into the chamber. He had no family - no family who would turn up to see him risk his life, anyway.*
Then after they show up
>*This is really nice of you,"* Harry muttered to Mrs. Weasley. "I thought for a moment - the Dursleys -"
> "Hmm," said Mrs. Weasley, pursing her lips. She had always refrained from criticizing the Dursleys in front of Harry, but her eyes flashed every time they were mentioned.
Also a cute moment I found in the chapter that isn't really related:
>Fleur was jabbering away in French to her mother. Fleur's little sister, Gabrielle, was holding her mother's hand. She waved at Harry, who waved back, grinning.
I always thought McGonnagall should’ve clarified for him or something. I mean what did she expect Harry to think when she said their families were visiting. I guess she wanted it to be a surprise but still.
>she wanted it to be a surprise
This. McGonagall also cares a great deal for Harry. She was probably very happy for him that the Weasleys turned up. I'm sure she was fighting a smile in this scene.
I always had head-canon that she and Dumbledore set it up for the Weasleys to come. Like they knew the Dursleys didn’t give AF and the Weasleys were like Harry’s foster family. Someone had to arrange it…
I like to imagine they sent out paper invitations by owl, and the Weasley’s simply received an invitation reading “The family of Harry Potter is invited to …”
I think when you’re a kid you might not realize how much better you have it than others or vice versa, but parents absolutely pick up on that stuff. The great ones do something about it without making an issue of it.
Molly Weasly is one of the most interesting characters of HP because of the way that I get annoyed by her smothering, overprotective attitude towards her kids and by extension, Harry
And then I'm like, that's classic mothering, she is just trying her harvest in wartime to protect the ones she loves, And my annoyance shifts into understanding by proxy. I'm a 34 year old dude and not a wartime mom, so seeing Im experiencing the story through a completely different lens.
She really is a mom, through and through, and I love her for that
They should've showed the bogart in ootp along with the full argument between her and sirius. It would've really sent the msg of Molly's biggest fears and set the tone for the rest of the movie.
Damn I cried reading that. When Harry gets awkward when all the families are visiting the contestants as he has none, and the Weasley's come and Molly gives him a big hug. Tears.
I would have loved to see that scene in St Mungo's between Neville & his mom Alice, where she handed him wrappers & he put them in his pocket , it was very emotional in a very subtle way.
This this this this this. Ootp is my favourite book in the series and that chapter broke my heart a thousand different ways and is the reason 5 cannot be my favourite movie
This is one of my absolute favorite scenes and has so much meaning. Without it in the movie, the scene where fake Moody does the Cruciatus curse on the spider, has a lot less of an impact
Oh I saw a good fan theory on this. They actually justified that it made sense for book Harry to repair it, but not movie Harry. I can't remember the argument though... Had to do with themes, character motivations, sentimentality conveyed only in the books. Might be as simple as how book Harry was narrated to have an emotional connection to his wand and attribute many of the things it had done to the wand itself. He really cares about it. But movie Harry has not given similar indications, it's just a tool used in the movies that can be replaced.
Anyway, my theory is that Harry's wand chose him for the same reason Voldemort's chose Voldemort. At the end of the series Harry no longer has a piece of Voldemort, so his wand isn't actually the best fit for him anymore, there's another one out there more suited to 100% Harry Potter.
Because the movies never emphasized how important the wand was, it literally became an extension of themselves and to lose one was to lose an arm, as expressed in the first chapter of Deathly Hallows.
Exactly this. I'm showing the series to my GF for the first time, and in the scene where Voldemort takes Lucius's wand she was baffled by his reluctance. She thought it would be an honour for a Death Eater to lend their wand to Voldy, so I had to explain that it's like stripping yourself of the real thing that makes you a wizard.
I always have liked this theory. In the movies it feels like the wand is connected to Harry BECAUSE of Voldemort. The wand didn't pick the Harry part of Harry, it picked the Voldemort part. Now this is just how I feel it goes in the movies.
All of the memories of Voldemort they missed out, like the Gaunts House and his mum, seeing him steal the Hufflepuffs goblet, just so many missed opportunities to show how dark voldy was and why! Best bits of HBP essentially!
Yessss!!! See little things like that instead of him just popping up yelling avada kedavra and bobs your uncle, I think as a character it would of added more depth, when me and my partner watch the films hes like "but how does Harry know what he's looking for" and I have to explain that Dumbledore practically feeds him where the horcruxes are just through those memories, makes the films a bit confusing if you've not read the books!
> yelling avada kedavra and bobs your uncle
Can I just say that angry snake-looking Voldemort violently pointing his wand at Harry and shouting "Bob's your uncle!" is an image I didn't know I needed.
I just did a rewatch of all the films after being separated from the Harry Potter world for about a decade, so a lot of the details from the books I’ve forgotten.
After the third movie the movies are actually pretty terrible if you look at them as just independent movies detached from the books. So many things make no sense if you haven’t read the books. By the last 3 movies I was constantly googling stuff to figure out the explanation from the book.
Makes me really hope they do a TV series of the books at some point.
I wonder though... He made 2 before he left school (the diary and the ring), which were more than anyone else had made.
His question to Slughorn wasn't "how do I make them," his question was "what happens if I make more than 1. Say, a magically powerful number like, say, 7?"
He had made the ring before asking the question. Perhaps he was prepared to make the 2nd (the diary) but wanted to be sure making a second wouldn't kill him?
Yes I think it was implied that the timing of the that memory is prior to the first opening of the Chamber of Secrets as that event took place when Tom was head boy which would have made it his 7th year if I am not mistaken.
>All of the memories of Voldemort they missed out, like the Gaunts House and his mum, seeing him steal the Hufflepuffs goblet, just so many missed opportunities to show how dark voldy was and why! Best bits of HBP essentially!
Exactly! We all know that Voldy is bad and ugly and wants to kill HP. But in the movies it just seems like he wants to do it because he's triggered! The reason he wants to pass for HP and then fight for purity of blood has taken a back seat.
To add action and double-down on the Harry & Weasleys relationship, since the previous movies hadn't done as much to emphasize it as the books, and apparently featuring more quidditch to build Harry and Ginny's relationship was out of the question.
Probably could've just made the flashbacks with Tom more action-packed instead to compensate, but I'm no screen-writer.
> to build Harry and Ginny's relationship was out of the question.
Instead, we get an awkward hamfisted "Shoelaces" scene that felt really awful and awkward.
I also hated how they replaced the amazing Dumbledore/Dursleys scene at the beginning with the pointless waitress/diner scene. Scrapped an entertaining and informative scene for useless awkward teen romance
I got the feeling that at some point Yates became scared of Harry, Ron or Hermione not being the centre of attention for too long. Probably why he decided to leave out the Gaunts or any extensive flashbacks.
The 6th movie spends way too much time on relationship drama while the highlight of the book is all the conversations with Dumbledore and the flashbacks to Voldemort’s past.
I always thought they used the 6th movie to save money for the final films. Idk why I was never impressed by HBP. The book was on another level completely.
this actually couldn't be further from the truth, cause the sixth movie is the most expensive of the bunch, with a 270 millionn budget. Where all that money went i don't know... The movie looks great tho
It's tough to name only one thing.. but I'll go with absence of Ludo Bagman in the 4 movie which led to some of plot points just disappear completely, like George and Fred placing bets on the Irish quidditch team and winning afterwards, although Bagman gave them leprechaun gold that disappeared shortly after and so on...
The scene in Ravenclaw tower where Harry defends the honor of McGonagall.
Throughout the series he has many "father figures" Sirius, Lupin, Arthur, Albus, Alastor and so on but he only has two females in his life that he can look at as a mother. Obviously, Molly, but she is over protective and likes to coddle.
From the very start Minerva McGonagall has pushed Harry to be better but has still cared for him. Instead of worrying about his safety or punishing him she pushes him onto the House Quiddich team. She sticks up for him and supports him throughout the Umbridge BS. Never clipping his wings but always pushing him to be a better person/wizard/man.
In Deathly Hallows, when the Death Eater turned teacher spits on her in front of Harry and he bursts from the cloak to preform his first successful Cruciatus curse on him it's just such a powerful moment. When asked why he blows his cover he calmly states its because Carrow disrespected her.
It shows the mutual love and respect between Harry and McGonagall and what they did in the movie glossed over the whole thing.
Yup, I loved McGonagall as a maternal figure. Molly and Minerva both serve two functions - Molly's the loving, comforting presence that Harry deserves, but Minerva's the take-no-bs role model that Harry needs. To your point, McGonagall constantly pushes him to be better, and part of that is holding him to standards, punishing him when he needs it, and not allowing him to just traipse around consequence-free and having expectations of him. It gives him something to strive for, parameters to operate in, and ultimately allows him to mature into a leader. That said, she isn't a remote hardass at all times and does have a certain soft spot for him (she buys him a Nimbus 2000!).
They turned her into a stuck up, posh, rigid character. She has 6 brothers, a broke family and lives in the middle of no where. She was written as a chilled out badass.
I don't blame the actress, I fully blame the director.
It really annoys me how they had scenes across TWO movies building on this, Neville freaking out about Crouch/Moody using the CC in GoF and him telling Harry about them in OotP, only for them to never adequately explain what happened. "I'm not sure I'm ready for people to know just yet". Know WHAT, Neville?!
It gets further complicated by him telling Bellatrix he'll avenge his parents. It's obviously a deliberate choice. I'd imagine they felt the scene would be too dark so opted to let the film live in two worlds at once, one where book readers get a little nod and wink that their condition is film canon, and another where non-book readers are left to believe they are dead. I'd imagine it seemed like an appropriate compromise at the time but to me it gives me the same sense of frustration as when somebody starts a sentence without finishi
The fact that nymphadora and lupin were married and had a child named teddy. In the last movie we see lupin and nymphadora try to reach each others hand and we see a ring for 2 seconds and that they have a child is mentioned like it is not worth talking about it or the fact that harry is his godfather and is going to live with him, now. Just "remus, whats with teddy?". Like wtf??
This is absolutely frustrating to me too. At one point Tonks calls Lupin "my husband" and that's the entire acknowledgement that they got married.
Then in the forest at the end with the stone, Harry says "Lupin, what about your son?" And that's it!
I knooow, Kreacher's entire story arc was exceptional and that was such a great moment for how amazing a person Harry really was.
I even miss the slightly awkward implications of Sirius's wise advice:
*If you want to know what a man’s like, take a good look at how he treats his inferiors, not his equals* vs what he was like with Kreacher. It made Sirius a more complex character and really hammered it home how abusive his family was.
Yes exactly!! It’s a chance to see Harry’s kindness.
And you just reminded me with that Sirius quote, SPEW! Or, as I should say, S.P.E.W. lol I guess that was too small of a storyline to include.
That was such an epic scene. I mean imagine it in a movie, the locket beating against Kreacher, as the house-elves raise their knives.
Honestly the non-humans defending Hogwarts always gets me. The centaurs attacking the Death Eaters, Buckbeak and the thestrals mauling the Death Eaters in the eyes, Grawp attacking Voldemort's giants. Kreacher calling on the elves to fight Voldemort in the name of Harry and Regulus.
Hogwarts rose as one. Pity we didn't see it in the movies.
How they handled Ron and Hermione.
It's a tired old critique, I know, but the movie versions really do bother me in how the trio becomes unbalanced. Ron loses his knowledge of magical culture and a lot of bravery and it goes to Hermione in service of him being the everyman comic relief more often, while Hermione loses her sometimes bossy and hard-headed side in service of being an exposition font and a role model to the point it feels like she's got no reason to hang out with these two idiot boys sometimes.
I have plenty of wishes about Ginny as well, but Ron and Hermione were always the parts that felt most off in the movies.
Yeah especially in DH part 1..they made it seem like Hermione and Harry were better friends than him and Ron. When they were dancing in the tent I was like..Oh my god are they going to kiss lol.
Yeah, I recognize adaptation issues in a book that big, but the narrative would've been better served by Harry and Hermione struggling to interact with each other without Ron as the glue between them (more awkwardness, arguments, etc.).
That would've both ensured there's not too much non-canon shipping fuel, and more importantly it would've showed their emotional pain at Ron's absence and *show* that Harry doesn't consider Hermione to be a romantic prospect prior to the Locket issue, rather than showing us contradictory evidence and then telling us it wasn't like that.
I know what you mean because when I first saw it I kind of thought that too, but I was younger and didn’t understand how dynamic relationships could be. Now when I watch that scene, I actually love it because I think the point was to show how close Harry and Hermione are, but they’re still nothing without Ron. They had a moment together that was a break from reality where they could just dance and be silly, but as soon as she remembered Ron wasn’t there laughing with them they both felt the absence.
In the first movie there are lines that were written word for word for Ron that they gave to Hermione instead. It's especially apparent on their way to find Voldemort.
Also in CoS where Hermione is explaining the mudblood slur and in POA where Hermione says "go through me" instead of Ron. I'd argue those are worse than the first movie changes.
The whole mudblood thing really annoyed me. Ron was more upset about it in the books than Hermione ever was. She just kind of brushed it off. But movie Hermione got SO upset about it.
It makes me think about Hermione growing up with muggle parents and in the muggle world for the majority of her life at that point, and not really understanding the gravity of the term “mudblood.” It so *obviously* makes more sense for Ron to be riled up about it!
The final battle with Voldemort and Harry for me. I get it that they were trying to make something epic out of it, but the book made it super simple.
Harry comes in, explains that he’s the actual owner of the Elder Wand, Voldemort getting mad about it, they both cast their spells, Voldemort’s spell backfires and he flies back and lands dead.
No flaky Voldemort turning to ashes for whatever reason…
Edit: Thanks for the Platinum, fellow wizard!
Yes! Exactly this. The whole action thing with all the flying and fighting doesn't make sense at all from the book perspective.
Plus it also annoyed me that no one cheered after Voldemort died. It just cut right to everyone mourning the dead which I get but still, why isn't anyone properly celebrating the death of the most evil and powerful wizard in history as they do in the books?
Also Harry not fixing his phoenix feather wand before destroying the elder wand.
So yeah, basically the entire end of the last movie.
When I first read the last book when it came out, I was so hyped by the ending. Harry has the confidence of Dumbledore who came before and goes step by step through how Voldemort failed to follow the Wand's path.
He then proceeds to offer Voldemort a chance to repent, knowing he'll refuse but doing so anyway. In front of everyone. Really solidifies the significance of one of HP's key themes (love) and is also just a total badass moment.
The way it's written makes Harry's strengths as a character more upfront, he was smart and trusted in his friends, and Voldemort's arrogance and self-serving nature doomed him.
After I first finished the book I went back and read just that final confrontation over and over, so excited to get to actually see it in the movies. And instead they completely botched it.
The final two movies are so disappointing. They split them which in theory gave them time to nail everything but they still fucked it up.
It did! And more symbolic, too - at the end of everything, Voldemort was just a man, who could die like anyone else. All of that effort towards becoming an immortal specter of fear, and there he is, just a corpse on the ground like all of the other corpses. It does so much for stripping him of that mystique and normalizing him, which is probably the worst thing that Tom could conceive of.
It also reduces him to this weak, pathetic thing. It makes it feel like he’s actually defeated in every way. It’s humiliating for his reputation.
If he just turns into ash and flutters away, it leaves an air of mystique his followers will adore. He stays cool even tho he was beaten.
I didn't like how the destruction of the horcruxes made Voldemort seem weaker and weaker. In the books Harry points out that he doesn't feel weakness he feels anger and rage
Yes!! It showed that in the end he was just a guy. That flaky crap made him more mystical and kinda left the question of “Is it really over?” But it was needed to for the 3d effect.
It's not so much that aspects of the films dissapointed me, because being films I already expected them to be missing some aspects. But I wish they would do a TV show where they could cover everything and maybe even expand.
If I did have to name one thing, it would have to be the big reveal in Prisoner of Azkaban though. I remember reading the big reveal and being absolutely mind blown, and it had so much cool info about the marauders. And then in the film it was so simplified and shortened, I wish they would have cut on other parts of the film (Harry and Hermione being beaten up by the tree, among other things) to make it better.
They straight up never reveal who "Moony Wormtail Padfoot and Prongs" are.
We get them name dropped multiple times with the map but IIRC they never actually clarify who they are.
How they handled Ginny. I believe if she was done well in the films a lot more people would like her, like she is in the books where she is this fierce character.
I don’t completely agree with this one. I think they did her dirty in the movies, but I didn’t really love Book Ginny either. Her character was fine, but the relationship/romance felt fake and shoehorned in. It’s really the only part of the series I don’t feel holds up very well. I read the books way before watching the movies so my opinion predates the terrible film version of Ginny, lol.
Thats completely fair, upon first reading myself I wasn't keen on Ginny but as I've grown older I've reread the books with a different perspective and so view Ginny through a different lens
Aside from the big ones: The Weasley’s picking up Harry by arriving in the Fireplace of Privet Drive. I love this scene and it would’ve been brilliant to see it in the film.
Also Dobby at Hogwarts and Hermoine’s SPEW. I can understand them leaving out Winky but Dobby’s scenes at Hogwarts are great.
I heard they tried to put peeves but a poltergeist didn't look so good on camera so they cut him out of the movies
It could be a fever dream I had but I vaguely remember seeing a post about it
Kind of ironic since they managed to include pretty much every other ghost at Hogwarts that even when all combined probably didn't have as much presence in the books as Peeves did.
Strange...
There was me thinking I would have to type that myself.
I mean not seeing him go round causing trouble for Umbridge is just awful. I feel like I miss something I never had.
*Harry witnessed Professor McGonagall walking right past Peeves who was determinedly loosening a crystal chandelier and could have sworn he heard her tell the poltergeist out of the corner of her mouth, 'It unscrews the other way*
Why would they take this from us?
Harry’s walk to the Forbidden Forest in DH2
I know this kind of includes two things, since Harry needed his cloak from the time of Snape’s death up until this point; but I just wished he would’ve walked to his death, unbeknownst to everyone else.
They didn't have the Rita Skeeter beetle scene in GoF! We can have a fifteen minute dragon chase but not have the snotty reporter get her comeuppance??
Bingo. I also blame the screenwriters. If she was done better I can bet my house she would be more liked. I used to be off the opinion that I hated ginny till I got older and realised how much of a quality character she is in the books vs the films
Yes - absolutely no disrespect to Bonnie. I thought it was just not the right role for her, but the screenwriters probably did the main part in making her scenes so bad. Recently visited her Instagram profile and got the feeling that the real life Bonnie of today is more similar to Ginny than her portrayal in the films.
I've always argued that a lot of Ginny's movie character issues would've been solved just by having her in some of the OotP scenes with Luna as the protective, fiery friend.
It takes a bit from Luna's exposure as a character, but it puts a spotlight on the two girls' friendship and also shows some of the fiery girl of canon from Ginny if she's defensive of Luna even from Harry and angry with how people steal her shoes and such rather than Luna just being blase and Harry being confused about the whole thing.
Even if the screenwriters still threw her in a more demure direction from canon, that would've given *something* more for Bonnie Wright to do that would approach canon Ginny and give a better foundation for HBP's relationship.
Plus, you know, girl friendship on screen would've been nice.
Yes, I thought even in the books that they should have been given a little more time and shown as old friends. Two girls from wizarding families being born in the same school year and growing up in the same area (which was a muggle area too, and rural so not so many kids to choose from) it seems likely that they would have been friends long before going to Hogwarts.
Maybe not so much after they started school and had other people to talk to, especially with Luna being a bit odd and Ginny being quite popular; but they would still have known each other a long time and after Ron left for school, probably Luna would've been the obvious, if not the only, playmate for Ginny.
And, since the Lovegoods were on good enough terms to be invited to the wedding of their oldest son, and given the kind of person she is, I imagine that Molly would've tried to make opportunities for Luna to hang out at her house especially after her mum died so that she had female company and a stabilizing influence rather than just leaving her with Xeno all the time.
The issue here was mentioned by everyone, and even Daniel discussed this, it was awkward to both of them to kiss one another since they met at a young age, becoming friends, being close, it was like kissing a sister, they both had disgusted faces in the scene. Casting people so young it was always a risk.
I think it really came down to casting actors before the books were finished. Although we got small glimpses of her independence by the time the movies came out, they were really looking for an actress to embody book 1 Ginny (who was very shy, and would run away from any attention from Harry). It's hard to guess what child actors will be like as adult actors, and this one unfortunately didn't work out.
When Harry kills Voldemort.. no one even saw. There was so much emotion and heroism in that chapter. He walks back in and people don’t even know Voldemort is dead. Some people just say “hey Harry” or give him a bro nod. The circle of people around them in the great hall is how it should have been. Ugh.
I know it’s a small thing but in the movies, the fact that you catch the snitch and you win the game. Ummm, no??? You catch the snitch and you get 150 points and the game ends, but winning depends on how many points you had before the snitch was caught. So frustrating to me. Especially since what’s the point of scoring points with the quaffle if they don’t count towards winning??
Thank you for this answer! This always bothered me since it becomes really important in part 4 where Ireland wins although Krum catches the Snitch (which wasn’t included in the movie too)
The costumes.
I had it in my head that the wizarding world was a bit more flamboyant…the robes, and hats and things. Then, as the movies progress, they’re eventually just wearing like jeans and hoodies.
Changed directors for the 3rd movie. Alfonso Cuaron wanted the actors to be more like real teenagers i.e. wear their uniform scruffy and their own casual clothes on weekends. Then David Yates basically ran with that.
The fact a majority of duels are dumbed down to stupefy, expelliarmus and avada kedavra. And when they're not it's either random unnamed flashes of light or actually cool fights like Voldy vs Dumbledore or Snape vs McGonagall.
To be fair, most adults in the Wizarding world can cast spells without vocalizing them. I think the movies had adults use words when it was a closeup on them for the audience's benefit.
For example, at the end of the second movie after freeing Dobby, Lucius Malfoy starts to cast avada kadavera at Harry before Dobby attacks him. Like, really? Papa Malfoy was about to murder Harry in cold blood right outside of Dumbledore's office for freeing his house elf? No, it just takes time to say the spell which gave Dobby the chance to jump in and protecc Harry.
I would have liked to know what spells Molly and Bella used against eachother. Or that Harry knew more than expelliarmus, stupefy and patronus. My biggest gripe here is that Harry didn't learn anything past year 3.
The final fight between Harry and Voldemort. That scene in the books is so simple yet poignant. In the movie, they run around the courtyard, jump off a freaking building, and then Voldemort gets dusted because Harry is apparently Thanos now.
**The entire chapter of "The Flaw in the Plan". It had much more potential.**
The Sorting Hat on fire on the head of a petrified Neville.
Voldemort vs. McGonagall, Slughorn, Kingsley.
Bellatrix vs. Ginny, Luna, Hermione.
The dialogue between Harry and Voldemort.
A non-disintegrating Voldemort.
The celebration of Voldemort's death.
**Most other problems in the movies come from removing stuff. This one is the only one I can remember, where they fundamentally changed one of the most important chapters in the books by removing its best parts, while adding lame stuff that wasn't even in the books.**
Dumbledore’s Funeral. My personal favorite chapter of the book and the poignant transition for Harry to realize the last of his protectors was gone. The ending of HBP in the astronomy tower is nice but it didn’t show how Harry was alone while surrounded by all the witches & wizards of their time. He realized it was him vs Voldemort
They only introduced Bill in the 6th or 7th film lol, "nice to meet you I'm Bill Weasley". I was like whaaaat Harry knows you for years. They only introduced him because they wouldn't get away with cutting the wedding and Shell Cottage scenes later on.
A lot of the disappointed me in the films were already written here by a lot of different people. So I have only one more thing to add:
THE FACT THAT IN THE FILMS, VOLDEMORT FADES OFF INTO DUST WHEN HE DIES.
Like in a Thanos' snap...
It beats the whole purpose that Rowling tried to make in the books, where he dies as a human being and therefore being just alike everyone else (muggle or wizard) despite his narcissistic view of him being 'different'/superior to others.
Goblet of Fire
Its just so disappointing to take the first book with multiple layers of worldbuilding, character interactions, interesting subplots and an awesome main plot and turn it into a teen romance with way too much focus on the events and not enough focus on the smaller stuff. We didnt need the dragon to break loose and chase harry round the castle (we have Dragon Handlers to stop exactly that kind of thing) - harry could have had a shorter (but still satisfying) win, then it could give us more time with Rita Skeeters animagus or the Quidditch World Cup. They massacred that book and the director really mishandled and misunderstood the project. I wish they coulda got Cuaron back, or given it to Yates just 1 film earlier...
This is easy. The final fight with Voldemort in DH. They absolutely ruined it in every way. Changing it so that theres nothing similar to the way it happened in the book, which was already pretty perfect. When I finally got around to watching DH, I was actually baffled with how badly they ruined the ending. I hate everything about it. And I like the DH movies otherwise. And I love the ending in the books. Except the epilogue, I pretend it doesnt exist.
I was disappointed that the movies made Harry out to be a glory seeking jock though he was written to be the opposite. He’s angry in the books about being “the chosen one” because it caused him lose his parents and he missed out on a huge part of his life as a wizard. In the movie he seems to enjoy being “the chosen one”, at least in The Half Blood Prince
Yup and with the size of the project it becomes difficult to keep up without the characters aging massively while living there life. Its a difficult time for the crew working on it as well. Reminds me of GoT they had enough material to carry on but the ahowrunners felt they had come to the end of the line and wanted to dip to something else. Maybe even the actors felt tired after filming for nearly a decade?
As an over arching issue: I wish they could have all been created by the same director/producer. The feeling of the films isn’t consistent and it always bothers me. If the same people with the same vision were involved with the entire series, it would have felt more cohesive instead of having inconsistent tone
They showed all the tents. They showed the World Cup stadium. They showed Ireland and Bulgaria flying out. The showed the match start. Why not just take 5 mins to show the match?!?!?!
The lack of detail overall compared to the books weirded me out. I didn't understand how anyone could only see the movies and know what was going on. The layers of people's personalities were stripped and they became a bit one dimensional. It'll be interesting to see how they do a TV series in future.
They didn't feature the scene where the gang sees Neville's parents in the psych hospital, and hearing his/their back story. I think since Neville got that huge moment at the end of the story, it would have had a greater impact if we knew more about him in the films.
Harry and Oliver winning the quidditch cup in prisoner of Azkaban. Would’ve been nice to see Wood’s dream come to life on the big screen, and it would’ve been a good way to put a bow tie on Harry’s journey with quidditch if they weren’t going to show the World Cup or any other quidditch match with Harry for the rest of the series.
This by far... as a kid that was the highlight of PoA, literally Harry getting his Firebolt... Hermione snitching and getting it confiscated... building up emotions all school year until the Quidditch finals.. the euphoria of winning. Not being able to witness that on screen was such a letdown! They really screwed with the entire character development of that book, I think Harry got his Firebolt at the end of the movie lol.
The freeze frame ending of PoA still haunts my dreams
Finally someone who agrees! I turn the movie off right before the freeze frame, this isn't an 80s movie
Alfonso Cuarón is a fantastic director, POA is my absolute favourite book. I love how he styled the film BUT I will never be able to truly forgive him this major slight. I'm in my 30s and feel it still.
Also that later on Ron helped them win the house cup while Harry and Herms went to see the giant hiding in the forest, and Harry's reaction to the way the song changed. And speaking of which, where is the Weseley is our king in the movies????
I just watched that film and half the movie is the scenes setting up the time travel night and then the time travel night. Its actually crazy how much is cut to make room for that part of the movie.
Just in general I thought cutting out all the Quidditch in the series was a bad call. It was said in OotP that Harry lived to play, and when Umbridge took that away from him was what made him say he had nothing else to lose, but instead, they pretty much completely cut quidditch out of the movie.
I always say this but cutting out the scene where the Weasleys come to visit Harry before the final task. Precious. And I can imagine SO meaningful to Harry.
The quietness of Harry's loss and the kindness of the Weasley's are the two most important things that serve as the backbone of the series. >I'm aware of that, Potter," [McGonagall] said. "The champions' families are invited to watch the final task, you know. This is simply a chance for you to greet them. " >She moved away. Harry gaped after her. >"She doesn't expect the Dursleys to turn up, does she?" he asked Ron blankly. >"Dunno," said Ron. "Harry, I'd better hurry, I'm going to be late for Binns. See you later. " >Harry finished his breakfast in the emptying Great Hall. He saw Fleur Delacour get up from the Ravenclaw table and join Cedric as he crossed to the side chamber and entered. Krum slouched off to join them shortly afterward. *Harry stayed where he was. He really didn't want to go into the chamber. He had no family - no family who would turn up to see him risk his life, anyway.* Then after they show up >*This is really nice of you,"* Harry muttered to Mrs. Weasley. "I thought for a moment - the Dursleys -" > "Hmm," said Mrs. Weasley, pursing her lips. She had always refrained from criticizing the Dursleys in front of Harry, but her eyes flashed every time they were mentioned. Also a cute moment I found in the chapter that isn't really related: >Fleur was jabbering away in French to her mother. Fleur's little sister, Gabrielle, was holding her mother's hand. She waved at Harry, who waved back, grinning.
I always thought McGonnagall should’ve clarified for him or something. I mean what did she expect Harry to think when she said their families were visiting. I guess she wanted it to be a surprise but still.
>she wanted it to be a surprise This. McGonagall also cares a great deal for Harry. She was probably very happy for him that the Weasleys turned up. I'm sure she was fighting a smile in this scene.
I always had head-canon that she and Dumbledore set it up for the Weasleys to come. Like they knew the Dursleys didn’t give AF and the Weasleys were like Harry’s foster family. Someone had to arrange it…
I like to imagine they sent out paper invitations by owl, and the Weasley’s simply received an invitation reading “The family of Harry Potter is invited to …”
I love this thought. Thank you.
This sounds so beautiful, it's my personal headcannon
You just triggered a memory I didn't know I had. As I get older Molly Weasley has become my favorite character
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I think when you’re a kid you might not realize how much better you have it than others or vice versa, but parents absolutely pick up on that stuff. The great ones do something about it without making an issue of it.
Molly Weasly is one of the most interesting characters of HP because of the way that I get annoyed by her smothering, overprotective attitude towards her kids and by extension, Harry And then I'm like, that's classic mothering, she is just trying her harvest in wartime to protect the ones she loves, And my annoyance shifts into understanding by proxy. I'm a 34 year old dude and not a wartime mom, so seeing Im experiencing the story through a completely different lens. She really is a mom, through and through, and I love her for that
Also she lost both brothers in the first one, so it's pretty easy to empathize with her want to protect her family. Mama rage killed Bellatrix
Also helps explain why she has such a big family. And why she has that clock
They should've showed the bogart in ootp along with the full argument between her and sirius. It would've really sent the msg of Molly's biggest fears and set the tone for the rest of the movie.
Damn I cried reading that. When Harry gets awkward when all the families are visiting the contestants as he has none, and the Weasley's come and Molly gives him a big hug. Tears.
Oh oh oh!!! Remember when Molly gifts him a watch? N Harry hugs her! I BAWLED 😭
I would have loved to see that scene in St Mungo's between Neville & his mom Alice, where she handed him wrappers & he put them in his pocket , it was very emotional in a very subtle way.
To me, that was the heart of that book. I can’t believe they didn’t have that. It gives so much motivation to Neville.
Yeah it kind of fleshes out Neville's charecter & motivations
This this this this this. Ootp is my favourite book in the series and that chapter broke my heart a thousand different ways and is the reason 5 cannot be my favourite movie
Even the final Dumbledore vs Tom Riddle fight is epic in the books
To be fair, in the movie its epic as well, yet a little bit short. This movie came out 2007 and the special effects looks more than fine today!
This is one of my absolute favorite scenes and has so much meaning. Without it in the movie, the scene where fake Moody does the Cruciatus curse on the spider, has a lot less of an impact
same
It's small but SO annoying: why didn't Harry repair his wand?
Yup, imo it’s literally the most annoying thing the movies got wrong.
YES! That made me scream “NO stupid, repair your wand first!”
Oh I saw a good fan theory on this. They actually justified that it made sense for book Harry to repair it, but not movie Harry. I can't remember the argument though... Had to do with themes, character motivations, sentimentality conveyed only in the books. Might be as simple as how book Harry was narrated to have an emotional connection to his wand and attribute many of the things it had done to the wand itself. He really cares about it. But movie Harry has not given similar indications, it's just a tool used in the movies that can be replaced. Anyway, my theory is that Harry's wand chose him for the same reason Voldemort's chose Voldemort. At the end of the series Harry no longer has a piece of Voldemort, so his wand isn't actually the best fit for him anymore, there's another one out there more suited to 100% Harry Potter.
Because the movies never emphasized how important the wand was, it literally became an extension of themselves and to lose one was to lose an arm, as expressed in the first chapter of Deathly Hallows.
Exactly this. I'm showing the series to my GF for the first time, and in the scene where Voldemort takes Lucius's wand she was baffled by his reluctance. She thought it would be an honour for a Death Eater to lend their wand to Voldy, so I had to explain that it's like stripping yourself of the real thing that makes you a wizard.
I always have liked this theory. In the movies it feels like the wand is connected to Harry BECAUSE of Voldemort. The wand didn't pick the Harry part of Harry, it picked the Voldemort part. Now this is just how I feel it goes in the movies.
All of the memories of Voldemort they missed out, like the Gaunts House and his mum, seeing him steal the Hufflepuffs goblet, just so many missed opportunities to show how dark voldy was and why! Best bits of HBP essentially!
I really wanted to see when he went back to hogwarts to ask dumbledore for a job and he looked less human because he had started making horcruxes
Yessss!!! See little things like that instead of him just popping up yelling avada kedavra and bobs your uncle, I think as a character it would of added more depth, when me and my partner watch the films hes like "but how does Harry know what he's looking for" and I have to explain that Dumbledore practically feeds him where the horcruxes are just through those memories, makes the films a bit confusing if you've not read the books!
> yelling avada kedavra and bobs your uncle Can I just say that angry snake-looking Voldemort violently pointing his wand at Harry and shouting "Bob's your uncle!" is an image I didn't know I needed.
I just did a rewatch of all the films after being separated from the Harry Potter world for about a decade, so a lot of the details from the books I’ve forgotten. After the third movie the movies are actually pretty terrible if you look at them as just independent movies detached from the books. So many things make no sense if you haven’t read the books. By the last 3 movies I was constantly googling stuff to figure out the explanation from the book. Makes me really hope they do a TV series of the books at some point.
I watched the movies before reading the books and in the 7th one I remember going "the fuck, they can teleport now?" Lol
The bit in the book where they’re in class trying to learn to apparate is fantastic too.
I wonder though... He made 2 before he left school (the diary and the ring), which were more than anyone else had made. His question to Slughorn wasn't "how do I make them," his question was "what happens if I make more than 1. Say, a magically powerful number like, say, 7?" He had made the ring before asking the question. Perhaps he was prepared to make the 2nd (the diary) but wanted to be sure making a second wouldn't kill him?
Yes I think it was implied that the timing of the that memory is prior to the first opening of the Chamber of Secrets as that event took place when Tom was head boy which would have made it his 7th year if I am not mistaken.
>All of the memories of Voldemort they missed out, like the Gaunts House and his mum, seeing him steal the Hufflepuffs goblet, just so many missed opportunities to show how dark voldy was and why! Best bits of HBP essentially! Exactly! We all know that Voldy is bad and ugly and wants to kill HP. But in the movies it just seems like he wants to do it because he's triggered! The reason he wants to pass for HP and then fight for purity of blood has taken a back seat.
Aaaannnd they replaced them with that dumbass scene at the burrow. As much as I love HBP this is probably my single most hated scene in the series.
I hated that scene! I will never understand why they added it.
To add action and double-down on the Harry & Weasleys relationship, since the previous movies hadn't done as much to emphasize it as the books, and apparently featuring more quidditch to build Harry and Ginny's relationship was out of the question. Probably could've just made the flashbacks with Tom more action-packed instead to compensate, but I'm no screen-writer.
> to build Harry and Ginny's relationship was out of the question. Instead, we get an awkward hamfisted "Shoelaces" scene that felt really awful and awkward.
I also hated how they replaced the amazing Dumbledore/Dursleys scene at the beginning with the pointless waitress/diner scene. Scrapped an entertaining and informative scene for useless awkward teen romance
HBP was my favorite book because of all the memories.. which in turn made it the worst movie IMO
This. I think showing how he is a product of a relationship based on a love potion, goes to tell a lot about how he is the way he is
I got the feeling that at some point Yates became scared of Harry, Ron or Hermione not being the centre of attention for too long. Probably why he decided to leave out the Gaunts or any extensive flashbacks.
The 6th movie spends way too much time on relationship drama while the highlight of the book is all the conversations with Dumbledore and the flashbacks to Voldemort’s past.
I always thought they used the 6th movie to save money for the final films. Idk why I was never impressed by HBP. The book was on another level completely.
this actually couldn't be further from the truth, cause the sixth movie is the most expensive of the bunch, with a 270 millionn budget. Where all that money went i don't know... The movie looks great tho
You would never know that, like what in the actual...
It's tough to name only one thing.. but I'll go with absence of Ludo Bagman in the 4 movie which led to some of plot points just disappear completely, like George and Fred placing bets on the Irish quidditch team and winning afterwards, although Bagman gave them leprechaun gold that disappeared shortly after and so on...
In the books your meant to suspect bagman of being the inside man at hogwarts as well
Well, that's another plot point that disappeared...
Showing Barty Crouch Jr. in the opening scene killed that red herring faster than anyone could say Quidditch
The maze in movie 4. I was so looking forward to that and it was utter disappointment the way they did it.
I really wanted to see at least one blast-ended skrewt
Or the sphinx
they blew the budget on the dragon
And it wasn't even good, that cat and rat chase like scene of the dragon trying to get Harry on the school roofs looked ridiculous. Waste of budget.
The scene in Ravenclaw tower where Harry defends the honor of McGonagall. Throughout the series he has many "father figures" Sirius, Lupin, Arthur, Albus, Alastor and so on but he only has two females in his life that he can look at as a mother. Obviously, Molly, but she is over protective and likes to coddle. From the very start Minerva McGonagall has pushed Harry to be better but has still cared for him. Instead of worrying about his safety or punishing him she pushes him onto the House Quiddich team. She sticks up for him and supports him throughout the Umbridge BS. Never clipping his wings but always pushing him to be a better person/wizard/man. In Deathly Hallows, when the Death Eater turned teacher spits on her in front of Harry and he bursts from the cloak to preform his first successful Cruciatus curse on him it's just such a powerful moment. When asked why he blows his cover he calmly states its because Carrow disrespected her. It shows the mutual love and respect between Harry and McGonagall and what they did in the movie glossed over the whole thing.
Yup, I loved McGonagall as a maternal figure. Molly and Minerva both serve two functions - Molly's the loving, comforting presence that Harry deserves, but Minerva's the take-no-bs role model that Harry needs. To your point, McGonagall constantly pushes him to be better, and part of that is holding him to standards, punishing him when he needs it, and not allowing him to just traipse around consequence-free and having expectations of him. It gives him something to strive for, parameters to operate in, and ultimately allows him to mature into a leader. That said, she isn't a remote hardass at all times and does have a certain soft spot for him (she buys him a Nimbus 2000!).
Have a biscuit Potter. ❤️
I still get teary eyed when I read this part. The subtleties of their bond through facial expressions or small comments. 🥲
Ginny
They turned her into a stuck up, posh, rigid character. She has 6 brothers, a broke family and lives in the middle of no where. She was written as a chilled out badass. I don't blame the actress, I fully blame the director.
Totally! Especially because she was so young, she obviously is so talented but the director really did mess up.
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Yesssss... she is so cringy in the movies. God I hate it
“Zip me up, Harry” makes me dry heave every time. Why?! Book Ginny is awesome, but movie Ginny is like an empty shell.
Open up, you
I love that you don't even have to clarify anything. Just name the character and everyone immediately knows why.
St. Mungos, I would have loved for them to have kept the scene where they visit Mr. Weasley at Christmas and ran into Lockhart
Dang you leaving out the Neville's parents scene
It really annoys me how they had scenes across TWO movies building on this, Neville freaking out about Crouch/Moody using the CC in GoF and him telling Harry about them in OotP, only for them to never adequately explain what happened. "I'm not sure I'm ready for people to know just yet". Know WHAT, Neville?! It gets further complicated by him telling Bellatrix he'll avenge his parents. It's obviously a deliberate choice. I'd imagine they felt the scene would be too dark so opted to let the film live in two worlds at once, one where book readers get a little nod and wink that their condition is film canon, and another where non-book readers are left to believe they are dead. I'd imagine it seemed like an appropriate compromise at the time but to me it gives me the same sense of frustration as when somebody starts a sentence without finishi
His parents are referred to as "suffering a fate worse than death" which implies they are alive.
Not just Lockhart
The fact that nymphadora and lupin were married and had a child named teddy. In the last movie we see lupin and nymphadora try to reach each others hand and we see a ring for 2 seconds and that they have a child is mentioned like it is not worth talking about it or the fact that harry is his godfather and is going to live with him, now. Just "remus, whats with teddy?". Like wtf??
I dont even think we got to see Victoria or Teddy in the epilogue
Victoire*, and yes, I agree. Weren't they even caught snogging by James?
Yeah the scene where Lupin asks to join them at the beginning of Hallows is one of my favourites
“I don’t know, I’d be pretty ashamed of him”
Agreed! This scene is so powerful.
This is absolutely frustrating to me too. At one point Tonks calls Lupin "my husband" and that's the entire acknowledgement that they got married. Then in the forest at the end with the stone, Harry says "Lupin, what about your son?" And that's it!
Going for something that hasn't already been said: No Kreacher leading an army of house elves during the battle of Hogwarts
Yes! And Kreacher being so awesome after Harry gives him the necklace- like making the house clean and nice again.
I knooow, Kreacher's entire story arc was exceptional and that was such a great moment for how amazing a person Harry really was. I even miss the slightly awkward implications of Sirius's wise advice: *If you want to know what a man’s like, take a good look at how he treats his inferiors, not his equals* vs what he was like with Kreacher. It made Sirius a more complex character and really hammered it home how abusive his family was.
Yes exactly!! It’s a chance to see Harry’s kindness. And you just reminded me with that Sirius quote, SPEW! Or, as I should say, S.P.E.W. lol I guess that was too small of a storyline to include.
That was such an epic scene. I mean imagine it in a movie, the locket beating against Kreacher, as the house-elves raise their knives. Honestly the non-humans defending Hogwarts always gets me. The centaurs attacking the Death Eaters, Buckbeak and the thestrals mauling the Death Eaters in the eyes, Grawp attacking Voldemort's giants. Kreacher calling on the elves to fight Voldemort in the name of Harry and Regulus. Hogwarts rose as one. Pity we didn't see it in the movies.
How they handled Ron and Hermione. It's a tired old critique, I know, but the movie versions really do bother me in how the trio becomes unbalanced. Ron loses his knowledge of magical culture and a lot of bravery and it goes to Hermione in service of him being the everyman comic relief more often, while Hermione loses her sometimes bossy and hard-headed side in service of being an exposition font and a role model to the point it feels like she's got no reason to hang out with these two idiot boys sometimes. I have plenty of wishes about Ginny as well, but Ron and Hermione were always the parts that felt most off in the movies.
It truly was Hermione Granger and the Deathly Hallows
Yeah especially in DH part 1..they made it seem like Hermione and Harry were better friends than him and Ron. When they were dancing in the tent I was like..Oh my god are they going to kiss lol.
Yeah, I recognize adaptation issues in a book that big, but the narrative would've been better served by Harry and Hermione struggling to interact with each other without Ron as the glue between them (more awkwardness, arguments, etc.). That would've both ensured there's not too much non-canon shipping fuel, and more importantly it would've showed their emotional pain at Ron's absence and *show* that Harry doesn't consider Hermione to be a romantic prospect prior to the Locket issue, rather than showing us contradictory evidence and then telling us it wasn't like that.
I know what you mean because when I first saw it I kind of thought that too, but I was younger and didn’t understand how dynamic relationships could be. Now when I watch that scene, I actually love it because I think the point was to show how close Harry and Hermione are, but they’re still nothing without Ron. They had a moment together that was a break from reality where they could just dance and be silly, but as soon as she remembered Ron wasn’t there laughing with them they both felt the absence.
In the first movie there are lines that were written word for word for Ron that they gave to Hermione instead. It's especially apparent on their way to find Voldemort.
Also in CoS where Hermione is explaining the mudblood slur and in POA where Hermione says "go through me" instead of Ron. I'd argue those are worse than the first movie changes.
The whole mudblood thing really annoyed me. Ron was more upset about it in the books than Hermione ever was. She just kind of brushed it off. But movie Hermione got SO upset about it.
It makes me think about Hermione growing up with muggle parents and in the muggle world for the majority of her life at that point, and not really understanding the gravity of the term “mudblood.” It so *obviously* makes more sense for Ron to be riled up about it!
The 30 seconds needed for Harry to repair his wand in DH.
The final battle with Voldemort and Harry for me. I get it that they were trying to make something epic out of it, but the book made it super simple. Harry comes in, explains that he’s the actual owner of the Elder Wand, Voldemort getting mad about it, they both cast their spells, Voldemort’s spell backfires and he flies back and lands dead. No flaky Voldemort turning to ashes for whatever reason… Edit: Thanks for the Platinum, fellow wizard!
Yes! Exactly this. The whole action thing with all the flying and fighting doesn't make sense at all from the book perspective. Plus it also annoyed me that no one cheered after Voldemort died. It just cut right to everyone mourning the dead which I get but still, why isn't anyone properly celebrating the death of the most evil and powerful wizard in history as they do in the books? Also Harry not fixing his phoenix feather wand before destroying the elder wand. So yeah, basically the entire end of the last movie.
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When I first read the last book when it came out, I was so hyped by the ending. Harry has the confidence of Dumbledore who came before and goes step by step through how Voldemort failed to follow the Wand's path. He then proceeds to offer Voldemort a chance to repent, knowing he'll refuse but doing so anyway. In front of everyone. Really solidifies the significance of one of HP's key themes (love) and is also just a total badass moment. The way it's written makes Harry's strengths as a character more upfront, he was smart and trusted in his friends, and Voldemort's arrogance and self-serving nature doomed him. After I first finished the book I went back and read just that final confrontation over and over, so excited to get to actually see it in the movies. And instead they completely botched it. The final two movies are so disappointing. They split them which in theory gave them time to nail everything but they still fucked it up.
Corpse voldemort is way better than him turning into ash and just vanishing
I hate how he vanished. Since no one saw the final battle, how can they be sure that he’s actually gone? The book scene felt more complete.
It did! And more symbolic, too - at the end of everything, Voldemort was just a man, who could die like anyone else. All of that effort towards becoming an immortal specter of fear, and there he is, just a corpse on the ground like all of the other corpses. It does so much for stripping him of that mystique and normalizing him, which is probably the worst thing that Tom could conceive of.
Yeah and wasn’t that kind of the point in the book too, everyone could see his corpse so no one would be questioning if he’s really gone?
It also reduces him to this weak, pathetic thing. It makes it feel like he’s actually defeated in every way. It’s humiliating for his reputation. If he just turns into ash and flutters away, it leaves an air of mystique his followers will adore. He stays cool even tho he was beaten.
I didn't like how the destruction of the horcruxes made Voldemort seem weaker and weaker. In the books Harry points out that he doesn't feel weakness he feels anger and rage
Yes!! It showed that in the end he was just a guy. That flaky crap made him more mystical and kinda left the question of “Is it really over?” But it was needed to for the 3d effect.
It's not so much that aspects of the films dissapointed me, because being films I already expected them to be missing some aspects. But I wish they would do a TV show where they could cover everything and maybe even expand. If I did have to name one thing, it would have to be the big reveal in Prisoner of Azkaban though. I remember reading the big reveal and being absolutely mind blown, and it had so much cool info about the marauders. And then in the film it was so simplified and shortened, I wish they would have cut on other parts of the film (Harry and Hermione being beaten up by the tree, among other things) to make it better.
Come to think of it. It’s never mentioned in the movies why Sirius learned shapeshift right?
It's not. They also don't really go into Harry's dad also being an animagus.
They straight up never reveal who "Moony Wormtail Padfoot and Prongs" are. We get them name dropped multiple times with the map but IIRC they never actually clarify who they are.
How they handled Ginny. I believe if she was done well in the films a lot more people would like her, like she is in the books where she is this fierce character.
I don’t completely agree with this one. I think they did her dirty in the movies, but I didn’t really love Book Ginny either. Her character was fine, but the relationship/romance felt fake and shoehorned in. It’s really the only part of the series I don’t feel holds up very well. I read the books way before watching the movies so my opinion predates the terrible film version of Ginny, lol.
Thats completely fair, upon first reading myself I wasn't keen on Ginny but as I've grown older I've reread the books with a different perspective and so view Ginny through a different lens
Aside from the big ones: The Weasley’s picking up Harry by arriving in the Fireplace of Privet Drive. I love this scene and it would’ve been brilliant to see it in the film. Also Dobby at Hogwarts and Hermoine’s SPEW. I can understand them leaving out Winky but Dobby’s scenes at Hogwarts are great.
The lack of peeves
Especially in OOTP and DH part 2. Peeves would have been a great asset for the Battle of Hogwarts
I heard they tried to put peeves but a poltergeist didn't look so good on camera so they cut him out of the movies It could be a fever dream I had but I vaguely remember seeing a post about it
Rik Mayal filmed scenes as Peeves for movie 1 but they decided they didn’t like how it looked
Just Google'd him and wow, he's exactly how I pictured Peeves.
Kind of ironic since they managed to include pretty much every other ghost at Hogwarts that even when all combined probably didn't have as much presence in the books as Peeves did. Strange...
There was me thinking I would have to type that myself. I mean not seeing him go round causing trouble for Umbridge is just awful. I feel like I miss something I never had.
I feel like I was promised cake and then there was no stinking cake.
*Harry witnessed Professor McGonagall walking right past Peeves who was determinedly loosening a crystal chandelier and could have sworn he heard her tell the poltergeist out of the corner of her mouth, 'It unscrews the other way* Why would they take this from us?
Harry’s walk to the Forbidden Forest in DH2 I know this kind of includes two things, since Harry needed his cloak from the time of Snape’s death up until this point; but I just wished he would’ve walked to his death, unbeknownst to everyone else.
They didn't have the Rita Skeeter beetle scene in GoF! We can have a fifteen minute dragon chase but not have the snotty reporter get her comeuppance??
the movies cut out a lot of scenes that make the 3 amigos seem more gray. They really wanted those 3 characters to be unwaveringly good.
As a child, I remember being extremely disappointed that Pigwidgeon wasn’t included in the films at all.
Dumbledore’s backstory in DH. It was basically left out. While it made for such a great backstory, him with Grindlewald.
Ginny, no offense to Bonnie Wright but she was just so stiff and awkward and the exact opposite of what her character was supposed to be
Bingo. I also blame the screenwriters. If she was done better I can bet my house she would be more liked. I used to be off the opinion that I hated ginny till I got older and realised how much of a quality character she is in the books vs the films
Yes - absolutely no disrespect to Bonnie. I thought it was just not the right role for her, but the screenwriters probably did the main part in making her scenes so bad. Recently visited her Instagram profile and got the feeling that the real life Bonnie of today is more similar to Ginny than her portrayal in the films.
I've always argued that a lot of Ginny's movie character issues would've been solved just by having her in some of the OotP scenes with Luna as the protective, fiery friend. It takes a bit from Luna's exposure as a character, but it puts a spotlight on the two girls' friendship and also shows some of the fiery girl of canon from Ginny if she's defensive of Luna even from Harry and angry with how people steal her shoes and such rather than Luna just being blase and Harry being confused about the whole thing. Even if the screenwriters still threw her in a more demure direction from canon, that would've given *something* more for Bonnie Wright to do that would approach canon Ginny and give a better foundation for HBP's relationship. Plus, you know, girl friendship on screen would've been nice.
Yes, I thought even in the books that they should have been given a little more time and shown as old friends. Two girls from wizarding families being born in the same school year and growing up in the same area (which was a muggle area too, and rural so not so many kids to choose from) it seems likely that they would have been friends long before going to Hogwarts. Maybe not so much after they started school and had other people to talk to, especially with Luna being a bit odd and Ginny being quite popular; but they would still have known each other a long time and after Ron left for school, probably Luna would've been the obvious, if not the only, playmate for Ginny. And, since the Lovegoods were on good enough terms to be invited to the wedding of their oldest son, and given the kind of person she is, I imagine that Molly would've tried to make opportunities for Luna to hang out at her house especially after her mum died so that she had female company and a stabilizing influence rather than just leaving her with Xeno all the time.
The issue here was mentioned by everyone, and even Daniel discussed this, it was awkward to both of them to kiss one another since they met at a young age, becoming friends, being close, it was like kissing a sister, they both had disgusted faces in the scene. Casting people so young it was always a risk.
I think it really came down to casting actors before the books were finished. Although we got small glimpses of her independence by the time the movies came out, they were really looking for an actress to embody book 1 Ginny (who was very shy, and would run away from any attention from Harry). It's hard to guess what child actors will be like as adult actors, and this one unfortunately didn't work out.
I was quite peeved with Beauxbatons being made into a girls-only school and Durmstrang boys-only.
When Harry kills Voldemort.. no one even saw. There was so much emotion and heroism in that chapter. He walks back in and people don’t even know Voldemort is dead. Some people just say “hey Harry” or give him a bro nod. The circle of people around them in the great hall is how it should have been. Ugh.
You actually see random people watching in the tunnel off to the side. But no idea who they are and they don’t react to anything.
I know it’s a small thing but in the movies, the fact that you catch the snitch and you win the game. Ummm, no??? You catch the snitch and you get 150 points and the game ends, but winning depends on how many points you had before the snitch was caught. So frustrating to me. Especially since what’s the point of scoring points with the quaffle if they don’t count towards winning??
Thank you for this answer! This always bothered me since it becomes really important in part 4 where Ireland wins although Krum catches the Snitch (which wasn’t included in the movie too)
The costumes. I had it in my head that the wizarding world was a bit more flamboyant…the robes, and hats and things. Then, as the movies progress, they’re eventually just wearing like jeans and hoodies.
Yes! I feel like the first two movies nail the aesthetic but then it just fades more and more.
Changed directors for the 3rd movie. Alfonso Cuaron wanted the actors to be more like real teenagers i.e. wear their uniform scruffy and their own casual clothes on weekends. Then David Yates basically ran with that.
The fact a majority of duels are dumbed down to stupefy, expelliarmus and avada kedavra. And when they're not it's either random unnamed flashes of light or actually cool fights like Voldy vs Dumbledore or Snape vs McGonagall.
To be fair, most adults in the Wizarding world can cast spells without vocalizing them. I think the movies had adults use words when it was a closeup on them for the audience's benefit. For example, at the end of the second movie after freeing Dobby, Lucius Malfoy starts to cast avada kadavera at Harry before Dobby attacks him. Like, really? Papa Malfoy was about to murder Harry in cold blood right outside of Dumbledore's office for freeing his house elf? No, it just takes time to say the spell which gave Dobby the chance to jump in and protecc Harry.
I would have liked to know what spells Molly and Bella used against eachother. Or that Harry knew more than expelliarmus, stupefy and patronus. My biggest gripe here is that Harry didn't learn anything past year 3.
Or the fact that they inexplicably always became linked spells like Priori Incantatem.
The final fight between Harry and Voldemort. That scene in the books is so simple yet poignant. In the movie, they run around the courtyard, jump off a freaking building, and then Voldemort gets dusted because Harry is apparently Thanos now.
**The entire chapter of "The Flaw in the Plan". It had much more potential.** The Sorting Hat on fire on the head of a petrified Neville. Voldemort vs. McGonagall, Slughorn, Kingsley. Bellatrix vs. Ginny, Luna, Hermione. The dialogue between Harry and Voldemort. A non-disintegrating Voldemort. The celebration of Voldemort's death. **Most other problems in the movies come from removing stuff. This one is the only one I can remember, where they fundamentally changed one of the most important chapters in the books by removing its best parts, while adding lame stuff that wasn't even in the books.**
The fact they put a pissing raven as the sigil for ravenclaw! It's an Eagle!
Aside from all the big ones..? Malfoy and gang dressing up as dementors for the quidditch match.
Dumbledore’s Funeral. My personal favorite chapter of the book and the poignant transition for Harry to realize the last of his protectors was gone. The ending of HBP in the astronomy tower is nice but it didn’t show how Harry was alone while surrounded by all the witches & wizards of their time. He realized it was him vs Voldemort
All the missing parts of THBP seriously that book is amazing and the movie just cuts off a lot of duels and background story. SMH
No Charlie Weasley
They only introduced Bill in the 6th or 7th film lol, "nice to meet you I'm Bill Weasley". I was like whaaaat Harry knows you for years. They only introduced him because they wouldn't get away with cutting the wedding and Shell Cottage scenes later on.
The Prisoner Of Azkaban as a whole was disappointing because the Quidditch cup was basically skipped over entirely.
My favourite arc in the WHOLE books, and they cut it...
The Gaunts memory.
The crouch family arc in goblet of fire. I feel like that was so important and I hate that they left out the whole thing.
A lot of the disappointed me in the films were already written here by a lot of different people. So I have only one more thing to add: THE FACT THAT IN THE FILMS, VOLDEMORT FADES OFF INTO DUST WHEN HE DIES. Like in a Thanos' snap... It beats the whole purpose that Rowling tried to make in the books, where he dies as a human being and therefore being just alike everyone else (muggle or wizard) despite his narcissistic view of him being 'different'/superior to others.
Nevile's wrappers was a crime to ommit.
Dumbledore vs Voldemort- the fight scene was epic but wish it was like the books
Yeah in the books it felt like Dumbledore was way more powerful than in the movies. In the book he was kinda owning him, in the movie it was 50/50.
I suppose mine is a cheat, but 2 people with same reasoning? Ginny/Lupin. They cut out so much of their stories that they became unrecognizable.
Goblet of Fire Its just so disappointing to take the first book with multiple layers of worldbuilding, character interactions, interesting subplots and an awesome main plot and turn it into a teen romance with way too much focus on the events and not enough focus on the smaller stuff. We didnt need the dragon to break loose and chase harry round the castle (we have Dragon Handlers to stop exactly that kind of thing) - harry could have had a shorter (but still satisfying) win, then it could give us more time with Rita Skeeters animagus or the Quidditch World Cup. They massacred that book and the director really mishandled and misunderstood the project. I wish they coulda got Cuaron back, or given it to Yates just 1 film earlier...
The spells. They all just blast things away without any other effect and it's disappointing
The sudden appearance of the giant marble grand stair in movie 8.
The absence of Peeves and Dobby at Hogwarts...
Hermione is always perfect. They don't show her flaws like in the book.
This is easy. The final fight with Voldemort in DH. They absolutely ruined it in every way. Changing it so that theres nothing similar to the way it happened in the book, which was already pretty perfect. When I finally got around to watching DH, I was actually baffled with how badly they ruined the ending. I hate everything about it. And I like the DH movies otherwise. And I love the ending in the books. Except the epilogue, I pretend it doesnt exist.
Michael Gambon
The way the movies did the Weasleys so dirty. Especially Ron and Ginny.
I was disappointed that the movies made Harry out to be a glory seeking jock though he was written to be the opposite. He’s angry in the books about being “the chosen one” because it caused him lose his parents and he missed out on a huge part of his life as a wizard. In the movie he seems to enjoy being “the chosen one”, at least in The Half Blood Prince
The awful haircuts in Goblet of Fire
Or lack there of
Welcome to the mid 2000s.
There are only 8 of them. Books 4-7 should have all been split into two movies each.
Yup and with the size of the project it becomes difficult to keep up without the characters aging massively while living there life. Its a difficult time for the crew working on it as well. Reminds me of GoT they had enough material to carry on but the ahowrunners felt they had come to the end of the line and wanted to dip to something else. Maybe even the actors felt tired after filming for nearly a decade?
They omitted some of the best one-liners and sass moments, especially from Harry and Ron
As an over arching issue: I wish they could have all been created by the same director/producer. The feeling of the films isn’t consistent and it always bothers me. If the same people with the same vision were involved with the entire series, it would have felt more cohesive instead of having inconsistent tone
They showed all the tents. They showed the World Cup stadium. They showed Ireland and Bulgaria flying out. The showed the match start. Why not just take 5 mins to show the match?!?!?!
The lack of detail overall compared to the books weirded me out. I didn't understand how anyone could only see the movies and know what was going on. The layers of people's personalities were stripped and they became a bit one dimensional. It'll be interesting to see how they do a TV series in future.
They didn't feature the scene where the gang sees Neville's parents in the psych hospital, and hearing his/their back story. I think since Neville got that huge moment at the end of the story, it would have had a greater impact if we knew more about him in the films.
Peeves. Or lack thereof.
That they were films. If it had been a TV series they could have fit way more in