1. Harry Potter And The Half Blood Prince Cuts Out Voldemorts Backstory
Like anyone born, ever, I was obsessed with Harry Potter. Not so obsessed I can write an article that doesnt have Potheads tearing me to shreds, but I was there early every morning after release to get the books (my parents, for a reason that is becoming clearer as I get older, werent too keen on going to Waterstones at midnight) and always read them pretty swiftly. The series was a defining part of my generation, but reached much further into popular culture and my affections. Well, the books at least. Dont get me wrong. The films as an overall series work pretty well and I always caught them in the cinema. They just werent that great on their own (Prisoner Of Azkaban aside), always coming across as pretty safe spectacle (amplified when the first couple came out against The Lord Of The Rings). Still, I was always quick to point out that they worked as a whole because the story they were adapting was so well paced and creative that no amount of David Yates light-dimming and colour-greying could ruin them. You can probably see where Im going with this. The Half Blood Prince was my favourite of all the books, not only because it felt like a massive leap forward in the overarching plot, what with Snapes reveal and Dumbledores death, but because it delved into the origins of Voldemort. Seeing his family and early years created an image of this person almost destined to be evil; it doesnt make him sympathetic, but helps us (and Harry) get a better idea of who were fighting. The film kept only two of these moments in and both were incredibly brief and seemed to miss the point, with David Yates keen to return to the amped up teenage romance. I personally think audiences needed to know much more about how Tom Riddle Snr. was tricked into fathering the Dark Lord than see Ron flit from girl to girl. This trend certainly effected the later two films, but it wreaked most horror with Half Blood Prince, essentially adapting half the story. Got anymore films that ignored the source at their peril? Go down to the comments and let us know.
