With director Mike Newell at the helm, the next installment in the Harry Potter series hits all the right notes and takes the requisite dark turn as Lord Voldemort (Ralph Fiennes) makes his first appearance. From Harry, Ron and Hermione’s first port key trip (to the Quidditch World Cup) through the three exciting challenges of the Tri-Wizard Tournament, there’s plenty of exciting territory to cover in this film.
As is always my complaint, there’s just not enough Snape (Alan Rickman.) Thankfully, scoring duties have been transferred from John Williams to Patrick Doyle, who contributes a soundtrack that compliments rather than overpowers what’s on screen, all of which looks great. As with the books, this is the Harry Potter film in which the characters, and the young actors portraying them, really grow up. [**** out of 5]
2 Things @ Once 