Alfonso Cuaron has said time and time again that even though he loved the books, he really didn't care for the Harry Potter films. So when given the opportunity to direct,, he just wanted to make something dark and scary with a studio budget. And it's precisely this attitude that created the best film in the saga. For the first time, we get a truly dark and gritty portrayal of Hogwarts and it was a great sign of things to come. By not really sticking to the style and tone set out by Chris Columbus, Cuaron actually created a very arty and languid film, his long, flowing shots getting a lot of use and creating some extraordinary scenes. Cuaron also makes the decision to make the Dementors very gruesome and creepy, when they could've very easily been toned down or made more child-friendly. He was also responsible for bringing the incomparable Gary Oldman into the series, who was really the only actor who could've played Sirius Black, as nobody would get the balance right between tragic hero and sinister villain like he did. The film is, at moments, genuinely terrifying and features very little CGI compared to its predecessors and subsequent films. Cuaron didn't care if he scared children or if he ruined the franchise, apparently, which is why we get something so dark and different to the other films. To be honest, it's no surprise that this film was almost rated 12A/PG-13. What's more impressive is that the suceeding films picked up his darker tone and prose-chopping approach after he left the franchise, proving that sometimes, really not giving a f**k is the best way forward and worthy of imitating.
3rd Year Film and Television Production student at Edge Hill University. Writer of "Stockton's Last Stand" and screenwriter/director of "Hunted" and "Spyfail 2: The Search for Spyfail 1".
I also do stand-up comedy sometimes... I'm told I'm marginally funny.
