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Harry Potter and The Half-Blood Prince by J.K. Rowling
To those who believe that magic is just a figment of our imagination, you are wrong. The Harry Potter series captures just that. Whether you read books or watch movies, this series is a great way for you to awaken that inner wizard or witch. J.K. Rowling captures many emotions, and brings the readers back home, as some would say, with each book. The Harry Potter series are fantastic, with seven books and eight movies total. My personal favorite, book and movie wise is Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. The reason as to why I like this book and movie so much is because of all the emotions captured in one small part out of the series. This book and movie also start the plot twist throughout the story. This series is of course fantasy; they also capture love and action in the plot. As for those who have never laid eyes on a Harry Potter movie or picked up the books, I would recommend that you start at the beginning, simply because of the emotional level you build up with the characters over time. You also would not understand the storyline if you picked up any random book. The story follows a famous young wizard named Harry Potter, who attends the best wizarding school in England, named Hogwarts, who finds over time that he himself must defeat a dark wizard named Voldemort. This then raises the conflicts of Harry losing some friends, and facing difficult and hard challenges being as young as he is. What I believe to be the main purpose of the Harry Potter series is that J.K. Rowling captured the meaning of love and friendship can conquer all. I believe this because J.K. Rowling refers back to this in the books, and the characters always stick together and help Harry beat what he must conquer to continue on his journey.
So Harry Potter is unquestionably the all-time best-selling movies and books, and I would not doubt it. The second Harry Potter book broke record sales for any children's book, and the others simply followed. My personal favorite would definitely be Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. In this particular movie and book, J.K. Rowling chose the theme of Good vs. Evil. I know this because of how Harry comes to the realization of how he will have to fight and conquer the dark lord Voldemort. In this book and film, the entire plot of the Harry Potter series starts to turn and change. The vibe in the book turns from cheerful to dark and eerie. I personally love this book because of the suspense and the emotions that are included and conveyed through the words on the page. Through this story, Harry finds himself facing some sort of conflict, and the majority of the time it is an enemy.
Outstanding or Cringe? Surprisingly with both the movie and the book, they are both outstanding. The book is one of the best-written books by J.K. Rowling simply because of the level of thought and detail she put into her books. Then as for the movie, I personally would say that they are insanely close to the books. Most movies will wander off the beaten track of the book and try to keep watchers entertained. The characters that got cast fit their roles and follow along with the books. Then the information that is included and summarized gives you the same idea that the books do yet go much more into depth about. The movies convey such a deep meaning and really make you long for that magical feeling. The way the movies take what J.K. Rowling wrote in words and turn them into moving actions on a screen are outstanding. The immediate connection you have back to the books almost makes you want to cry with joy. As some would say, Hogwarts is always there to welcome you back home. I would definitely say that if you are interested in magic, adventure, and action, that you should pick up a Harry Potter book. If you are not a reader, then watch the movies; both are great options.
Now the quality of the books and films. The books have so much thought put into them, how certain character names translate perfectly to the characteristic of the character; how the descriptions of the events are perfect, with almost none of very little mistakes made. The amount of thought that J.K. Rowling put into the books and the writing is amazing. She thought of every little detail and perfected it. Therefore, the screenplay, as one could expect is phenomenal. Just enough story to give the watchers the same understanding and satisfaction that the readers would achieve, in each movie. The acting is also phenomenal; the characters convey the perfect emotions, which made me feel like I am actually there. There will never be a time when I will watch a Harry Potter film, or read a Harry Potter book, that I will not fill with excitement and cry tears of joy. The direction of the films is also outstanding. The way they pulled together every scene and got the watchers to feel the perfect emotions. Then as for the writing, the books are even better than the films in my opinion. As always, books go into more detail and give you more back-story because they can be as long as the author wants them to be. Now, of course, there is no music in the books, but as for the music in the movies, it is perfect. The music puts everything together and gives you an even deeper emotional connection to what is happening in the scene. The Harry Potter soundtrack will forever be one of my favorite instrumental compositions. I personally like to listen to each soundtrack for each Harry Potter book I read. The songs convey the meaning of the scenes, and the emotions. Each personalized song, made specifically for the scene makes you fill with joy, remorse, tension, or even suspense. Music gives a connection that other media usually cannot convey. A movie without music is usually bland. Every component of a movie is extremely important to create an amazing movie.
Now for the flaws, as I have stated before, the Harry Potter books and movies are almost perfect. Yet like everything, they have some flaws. Specifically, in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, there was the factor of who controlled the Elder Wand. Now I cannot go into much detail about this simply because it would ruin the book or movie for you, but the Elder Wand is one of the most powerful wands in the history of wands to ever be created; and it so by happens that one of the most powerful wizards is in control of the Elder Wand. Now to gain control of a wand, you must disarm the wizard who is the master of it. Now in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, it is a bit confusing as to who the wand belongs to towards the end of the movie. There are other people who would disagree with this statement, but this is the general consensus. There are other mistakes, and even J.K. Rowling admits that as an author she has made mistakes; such as when she said, "As obsessive fans will tell you, I do slip up! Several classrooms move floors mysteriously between books and these are the least serious continuity errors! Most of the fan sites will point you in the direction of my mistakes. But the essentials remain consistent from book to book because the story has been plotted for a long time and it is clear in my mind." – J.K. Rowling. This simply states that since she is merely human, she too can create mistakes. Yet with all the effort and work she has put into these books, the story is understandable and clear to her. As with all pieces of literature, there are editorial mistakes, grammar mistakes, plot and storyline mistakes. Even in some of the Harry Potter movies, there are editorial mistakes. Such as in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, there was one mistake where a character went out of the editing screen, and his body seemed to disappear. There will always be mistakes in movies and books, but if you are a fan of Harry Potter or magic and adventure of some sort. I would not let this dampen your spirits of seeing or reading Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.
Therefore, in the end, Harry Potter will always be one of the best series in my mind, whether it be the books or the movies. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince may be one of the best in the series. I believe the themes and the lessons in the film are outstanding, and convey a great meaning; how love and friendship conquer all. I also believe the film or book is of great quality and should be enjoyed by anyone who loves magic, adventure, and action. The acting, direction, music and overall film quality is bewildering, because of how amazing it is. I have never watched a movie where I instantly feel at home with the opening screen. The book is the same way. The amount of thought put into each sentence and name. The back-story and the overall meaning is perfection. Every time I open the first cover on any Harry Potter book, I instantly feel at home again. Yet as always, there will be flaws with the plot and story line. Such as deeply discussed meanings and solutions to the Elder Wand; but as a human being J.K. Rowling admits to making mistakes, but says that with the thought and effort it makes sense to her. So no matter how old or young you are, if you want to bring to life that longing hope for magic, I recommend you read or watch Harry Potter, especially Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.
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