Harry Potter und der Orden des Phönix

Potter literary phenomenon has always gone past me (and probably will continue to) and I take their film adaptations as a parade of pretty pictures and good visual effects to see once, digest pleasantly and forget. However, David Yates succeeds where even Cuarón failed: to fully draw me into the plot and awaken my interest in the fate of the characters. Maybe it's also due to the source material, which thickens from episode to episode towards a slightly horror atmosphere, which is only a good thing. And Stephen King is right, Dolores Umbridge, with her sweet yet sinister smile, is indeed one of the nastiest female villains ever to appear in a film (Nurse Ratched from Forman's One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest would be jealous) PS: Kids will be probably get bored, there are few cute creatures and vermin, and they won't even get to see the quidditch. :) (31.07.2007)

Der am besten gefilmte Harry Potter seit Cuarons Gefangenem von Askaban. Ein Minimum an lauen Stellen, eine Handlung, die so gebaut ist, dass bald auch ein totaler HP-Analphabet mitkommt, die Rückkehr von Gary Oldman sowie dem sich ständig verbessernden Radcliffe, der manchmal ja auch so etwas wie Charisma zeigt. David Yates hat beim Geschichtenerzählen ein perfektes Gespür für Atmosphäre und Tempo, und es tut mir gar nicht leid, Dass der Humor verschwunden ist. Das einzige, was ich dieser Serie übel nehmen kann, ist, dass jede Episode de facto das gleiche Thema hat und kein Ende in Sicht ist. Wenn dieser magische Brei jedoch mit einer solchen Anmut aufgebaut ist, habe ich nichts dagegen, noch drei Portionen zu mamfen. Das ändert nichts an der Tatsache, dass eine leicht gerunzelte Nase gegeben durch die unendliche Menge recycelter Rohstoffe (in einem Original von besserer Qualität) verbleibt. Potter liest Filmtrends gut, bringt jedoch nichts Neues mit. [75%] (12.07.2009)

The Rebellion Begins. Daniel Radcliffe must have matured to the phase of puberty when he is eternally pissed and so he has no trouble of really being Harry this time round. Otherwise it’s hard to imagine that, all of a sudden, he learned to act. David Yates excels primarily in dramatic scenes with a minimum of actors. However, he hasn’t (yet) developed a personal style for action and crowd scenes. But he clearly is enamored with Cuarón’s style and manages to copy it more than just well. And, here and there, he adds ideas of his own. The casting of new characters is done well as usual, but, like the old ones, they get an absolute minimum of room. With the exception of Dolores, where Harry finally meets his match. Plus, Yates managed the almost impossible and manages to change Voldemort from a camp, laughable worm to a character that commands deserved respect. Hats off to the creators that they have broken away from the kids’ movie recipe with special effects meant to entertain the very youngest of kids to a rather more mature version which, despite (or thanks to) not having so many special effects, is all the more effective. Unlike the preceding part which turned into a pastiche of uninspiring illustrations to accompany the book, this time round it proved possible to at least create the illusion that there is a complete story that is headed somewhere. The fifth Harry Potter certainly isn’t flawless. And although at no point is this anywhere near as good as Cuarón’s distinctive adaptation, if you compare it to the rather routine and dull Columbus/Newell-style attempts, this comes out as the winner, hands-down. ♫ OST score: 3/5 (23.07.2007)

The only way is rebellion... And a proper one. David Yates has proven to be a hero, cut from the best representatives of Dumbledore's army, when he managed to create an almost perfect Potter adaptation, despite all the criticism about his TV roots and the television look of the first image and teaser. Just like in the book form, Order of the Phoenix became my favorite on celluloid as well. The new screenwriter, Goldenberg (for whom Phoenix was unfortunately the only Potter experience), tweaked every scene to deviate from the original, yet without disturbing its essence. Furthermore, the Hogwarts atmosphere thickened exactly as I had imagined. Yates multiplies every hint of depression and turns Umbridge from unpleasant to unbearable, and from unbearable to the absolute nemesis of all of Hogwarts. Dumbledore then gains the aura of the most powerful living wizard, and his final duel with Voldemort takes your breath away, just like the surprisingly well-processed mythology surrounding divination, the connection of both magical opposites, and it even includes my favorite book part with Snape's memory. I am looking forward to the Half-Blood Prince even more, as Yates will be able to unleash himself from a more secure position. The fans are eagerly awaiting. (15.08.2007)

People who can reliably distinguish between different directorial styles and the quality of the parts of the Harry Potter saga are a bit of a mystery to me, because Harry Potter is, in my opinion, a typical example of a project that significantly suppresses creative individuality in favor of the desires of the producer and the author of the literary source. All the parts that I have seen so far had a very similar value and only the details were different. My rating ranges somewhere between three and four stars. It is a generously made series with a corresponding budget, special effects, and overall production design, but it never was a film that captured my heart. It's simply a fairytale, behind which stands the worldwide success of the books. However, the fifth part started to tire me and I am leaning towards the opinion of literary critics who accuse Rowling of being pretentious and megalomaniacal. She can, however, console herself that she is still far away from Steel and other book production factories. I would be satisfied with just four parts that would thoroughly describe the story of Harry Potter without any filler or dull moments. Overall impression: 65%. (10.10.2010)

I apologize to David Yates that I doubted him. The introduction with the Dementors sets a psychological and dark tone that he doesn’t give up for the rest of the movie. Radcliffe has grown as an actor and even though he has a dumb hairstyle and round glasses, he has charisma. In fact, all of the main trio have improved and are more natural. Emma Watson is growing into a beauty (an Emma Watson poster appeared in my wardrobe out of nowhere, but don’t think I’m some sort of pervert, my sister stuck in on the door :-) and Rupert Grint has all the snappy lines. What most and pleasantly surprised me was the tightness of the storytelling and the overall fluency of action that was lacking in part four. Lots of things were left out, but hey, it doesn’t matter (well, apart from one of my favorite scenes where the main role was played by revitalized brains and a giggling Ron). The special effects are still at a high level even though in places it’s a little creaky, and the action is excellent. The whole final battle at the Ministry of Magic is breathtaking and I am beginning to hope that Yates will launch himself into number six with the same verve. But let Harry’s hair grow a bit :-). (06.08.2007)

The most mature, darkest, and most dynamic Potter film yet, with a truly mind-bending final scene. The adaptation of the book clearly suits a much darker look than in the earlier installments. If this trend continues, it can only be good. (25.12.2011)

Harry Potter und der Gefangene von Askaban und Harry Potter und der Orden des Phönix sind die bisher besten Harry-Potter-Filme. Harry Potter und der Orden des Phönix hat mir vielleicht ein bisschen mehr gefallen – im Unterschied zu Harry Potter und der Gefangene von Askaban fällt mir nämlich keine einzige Sache ein, die ich bei ihm kritisieren könnte. Es ist gelungen, aus der umfangreichen Vorlage das Wesentlichste herauszufiltern, d. h. vor allem den Konflikt von Harry und dem einköpfigen rosa Drachen Dolores Umbridge, die Vorstellung von neuen tollen Figuren (wer sich nicht über Luna Lovegood freut, der hat kein Herz, Tonks war aber auch ausgezeichnet), Voldemorts Zaubereien, den großartigen magischen Kampf am Ende und das absolut fesselnde Duell von Dumbledore und dem Dunklen Lord. Die besten Szenen spielen sich diesmal in den Gängen und in den Räumen von Hogwarts ab. Egal, ob es sich um die Montage "Umbridge sorgt für Ordnung“ (eine ausgezeichnete Szene mit Snape und Ron), die Szenen "Harry trainiert Dumbledores Armee“ oder das Toben der Weasly-Zwillinge handelt – alles hat Schwung und Stil. Der Film wurde mit Leichtigkeit gedreht. In den richtigen Momenten ist er witzig und spannend und er wird von einer ausgezeichneten Musik begleitet. Ich denke, dass die Zaubersaga bei David Yates in guten Händen ist. Ich möchte es aber nicht beschreien. (10.09.2015)

“How dare you speak his name?! You filthy half-blood!” –– Well, look. Steve Kloves was told to piss off somewhere, and behold, this is my favorite movie of the entire Potter saga, thanks to which I was finally, after all these long years of waiting for the right Potter movie to get me, immersed one hundred percent into J.K. Rowling’s fantasy world, and was able to award it five stars in good conscience. The previously unknown Mr. David Yates has emphasized the dark atmosphere of the movie, which really literally engulfs you. In addition, as soon as the amazing Dolores Umbridge, played by the incredible Imelda Staunton, starts to cast her spells on the screen and is so nice to everyone around her that she makes you want to throw up and laugh out loud at the same time, you will be surely reminded of at least one former teacher in it (well, I recognized several). I still remember sitting in the last row of the movie theater and my friends and I would sit in suspense every time Filch nailed Umbridge’s decrees to the wall, waiting impatiently for Filch’s ladder to finally fall. I thought the cast were the most likable in this installment so far, even more so when their ranks were perfectly complemented by Evanna Lynch (I just love that “completely out of it” look of hers!), my beloved weirdo Helena Bonham-Carter (as always, absolutely superb) and also Mr. Hooper’s great soundtrack, which, especially in the finale, perfectly underscored the whole atmosphere of the movie. It is just a real shame that the next installments are to be written by that dumbass Kloves again. –– Edit:  So after watching all eight installments of this franchise, I dare to say that this one outshines the others by a very wide country mile, and in fact it is the only installment where I felt the same excitement while watching it as I did while reading Rowling’s books. It is just so totally obvious that a different person was hired to write the screenplay for this movie. (24.06.2008)

I never really liked this story, both in book form and in the movie form. For me, it's the weakest piece, even though "The Half-Blood Prince" is quite decent, mainly because the movie finale there was absolutely disappointing. "The Order of the Phoenix" is just a kind of empty space for me, waiting to see how it actually turns out. (30.12.2014)