I spent most of Saturday reading, and finished Order of the Phoenix in the evening, over a plate of pad Thai at Nit’s. Oddly enough, the table next to me held a mom taking her kid out to dinner, and I could tell that the girl was craning her neck to see what I was reading, and then she finally whispered to her mom “look…look mom, she’s reading Harry Potter!” I suppose I don’t really look like the Harry Potter reading type, because her mother stole a glance at me and when I grinned she turned pink and studied her pot roast intently.

One thing I really like about Order of the Phoenix is that Harry stops being a little saint and starts being a bitchy adolescent, screaming at his friends, breaking Dumbledore’s office possessions, being irritable all the time. It really humanizes his character for me, especially when he finds out that his father was not exactly a little darling either. There’s a lot of disillusionment going on, what with Sirius dying and Harry’s father turning out to be a vindictive, spiteful little shit. Which I think makes Harry stronger, because he is really forced to think and act for himself.

There’s also some interesting foreshadowing in that infamous scene with Snape, when Snape calls Lily a mudblood. Snape, clearly, is obsessed with lineage, as evidenced in the Half-Blood Prince.

I also think it’s intriguing that Rowling makes Sirius into a kind of unlikable character in this book, a marked contrast with Dumbledore in the next one. Sirius seems reckless, impatient, especially in his dealings with Kreacher. Indeed, as a father figure, Sirius does not really seem like the best choice. The loss of Sirius seems like it would bring Harry closer to Lupin and the Weasleys, which is perhaps the goal. Sadly, I do not think that the Weasleys will make it to the end unscathed…the only question for me is which one(s) will die.

I also think that it’s interesting to see Dumbledore’s great weakness, love, revealed. We have Dumbledore confessing to Harry that he kept secrets from him to protect him. Yet, at the same time, Dumbledore puts love forth as one of the strongest powers on Earth, the very power that protects Harry. I think that love will be very important in book seven, because it’s one of those big things that guides people’s choices. Snape, for example, may redeem himself through love.

The book also made me wonder about ghosts and portraits. Clearly, the portraits are able to keep up with current events and exchange information. In a way, people with portraits are not truly dead, although their bodies might not be present. Likewise with the ghosts, and I would like to learn more about how ghosts are created, since Nick is so coy about it in the exchange that he has with Harry at the end of the book. Dumbledore doesn’t strike me as the type who is afraid of death, so I doubt he’s going to come back as a ghost, but his portrait is certainly going to make an appearance, I’ll bet.

I also feel like Harry has a lot to learn, as demonstrated by the duel between Voldemort and Dumbledore. Obviously, Dumbledore is insanely skilled and powerful…and I wonder if Harry is strong enough to take Voldemort on alone. If Harry isn’t, who is going to teach him the skills he needs to defeat Voldemort?

The giant squid pops up, once again, lending further credence to my suspicions that the squid is important! I don’t know how or when, but expect a crucial squid sighting in book seven, my friends.

Reading the book also brought home the differences between the book and the film for me. There were definitely some things which should have been in the movie, but were not, in my opinion. But maybe it’s because I’ve read the book that I think this…perhaps people who have only watched the movies think the film is fine, even though they’re missing out on the nuances of many of the characters.

[Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix]

Never fear, dear readers, I am not skipping ahead, and am still working my way through Goblet of Fire. We did, however, just return from seeing “Order of the Phoenix,” so I am reporting on it.

First of all, people in movie theatres talk way too much. I rather wish that they would not, because it makes it very difficult for me to enjoy movies. The same goes for rustling, chewing in my ear, and dropping loud things on the ground and then giggling.

At any rate, I went with a large mixed group. The reception was for the most part positive, although Baxt did not like the movie very much at all, making some very valid points about the film. Of course, we had to stand outside the theatre for half an hour after we got out, viciously dissecting every scene of the movie and complaining about things that got left out. Brendan, who reads the books after he sees the movies, seemed thoroughly confused by much of our animated conversation outside.

My opinion was that the film was reasonably good, although there were some definite weak points. As in the past, my major criticism of the movie was that it cut out all the plot points not directly related to Harry, even if it weakened the overall plot and feel of the movie. I also felt like they set up some awkwardness for themselves later on by leaving bits out.

In true nerd fashion, here are some scenes I wanted to see that weren’t in the movie:

• McGonagall’s class getting inspected, and a great number of scenes with her in general. I thought she stood up to Umbridge well in the book, and that was important. Also, she’s a great actress and a great character.
• St. Mungo’s at Christmas, which was a really great scene…with some interesting information, too.
• Marietta Edgecombe and the “sneak” episode.
• More of the Department of Mysteries. We saw the Hall of Prophecy and the weird room with the veil, and that was it.
• The whole plot with Harry coming out to The Quibbler, and the return of Rita Skeeter. Where was that? Hello?
• The locket, and other scenes in and around the Black household.
• Hagrid being taken away, and McGonagall being injured.

I did not like the timing of certain scenes at all. I did not agree with the Weasley brothers escaping during the OWLs, since in the book they make a big point of respecting academics and they ruined that in the movies. I also really didn’t like Neville telling Harry about his parents, because I thought it was far more powerful for the trio to stumble on the parents in the hospital. Snape whisking Harry away for Occlumency didn’t work for me either, and I didn’t like the abridgment of Dumbledore’s great escape. And what was up with the centaur scene? In the book, Hermione shows her weakness by trying to manipulate the centaurs, and that didn’t happen in the movie at all. In fact, many of the scenes which cast the characters in a bad light were cut, and I thought that was a poor choice.

And will they please stop changing things? The continuity issues are driving me absolutely batty.

However, there were some things I liked. I liked Umbridge a great deal, and I loved her office with the horrible kitten plates. I also enjoyed the showy battle between Dumbledore and Voldemort, although I think they could have spent the film’s budget on some more interesting things. I absolutely loved Luna, I thought she was an excellent actress and a very good fit for the role. And the thestrals were excellent. I enjoyed the fact that the movie was more dark, and slimy, slippery, not as sunny and friendly as the last ones were. It was far more mature, for certain, especially the scene of Harry’s detention.

I’m not sure what my rating is yet. I need to digest the movie a bit more. But I think it is certainly worth seeing.

[Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix]