Raising Boys

Harry Potter, Triwizard Tournament, Mad-eye Moody….. November 22, 2005

My son Dylan happened to read the great big sign on the roadside near the Ayala Center in Cebu City that said “Now showing: Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire,” while we were on our way to meet with a friend from Australia over the weekend.

My husband and I had initially considered going by ourselves to watch the movie but because Dylan already knew it was showing, we decided to bring him along as well. Since Lennon is only 2, and his capacity to sit still through a 2 1/2-hour movie suspect, we thought it best to leave him at home.

Having read the printed version of this Harry Potter film, I went into the moviehouse not really expecting much. But I was pleasantly surprised. The film was great and I consider it the best among the Harry Potter films. Needless to say, the special effects were spectacular.

The film features a 14-year-old Harry Potter facing the trials and tribulations of growing up and the realization that his archenemy Lord Voldemort, who murdered his parents and tried to kill him as well when he was a baby, was getting stronger. Directed by British director Mike Newell, the movie captured the complexities of adolescence and the underlying theme of good battling evil in the magical realm.

Dylan, who has a general background about the Harry Potter plot, seemed to understand the movie. He asked though why Harry had tried to hide when Hogwarts Headmaster Albus Dumbledore called his name during the identification of the Triwizard Tournament champions and why Professor Snape keeps cuffing Ron, Hermione, and Harry on the back of their heads during Potions class.

I particularly liked the scene that depicted travel using a portkey. It was exactly how I had imagined it to be as described by J.K. Rowling in her book. My son Dylan wanted to know if the portkey travel would work for long distances as well.

Dylan laughed during the funny scenes and found the dragon scary and impressive at the same time. He found Professor Mad-Eye Moody interesting, too.

Other scenes that my son and I liked include the small tent that opened up to a several rooms, Quidditch World Cup, arrival of students from the Beauxbatons Academy of Magic and Durmstrang Institute, Triwizard Tournament tasks that involved dragons, merpeople, and a creepy maze, and Voldemort’s revival and his duel with Harry.

After the movie, my son said he kept looking for the goblin earlier on in the movie because this is what came to his mind when he read goblet in the title. Later on, he realized the goblet of fire was that thing that Dumbledore unveiled when he announced that Hogwarts would be hosting the Triwizard Tournament.

If a person goes into the moviehouse not knowing anything about Harry Potter and what his story is about, he’d probably need to watch the movie twice to fully understand it. I suppose this is one of the limitations of adapting 734 pages of print, one in a series, into a 2 1/2 hour film. Overall, though, I think the movie captured the essence of the book, even though it had to do away with some important parts.