Monday, December 14, 2009

Half-Blood Prince Spoiler Alert!

Dumbledore dies and Harry Potter is an incredibly overrated franchise.

Don't get me wrong, there are some good ideas, but they're dragged down by tedious plots and a third rate hero. The most recent film in the series, The Half-Blood Prince, is a prime example of everything wrong with the franchise. Too long, too slow, and the story doesn't have an ending so much as it just stops. I suppose Half-Blood Prince works just fine as a chapter in a longer story, but not as standalone film. And if Dumbledore dropped the aloof and mysterious act and just explained his plan at the beginning like a normal person, the film could have easily trimmed half an hour off its runtime.

And on top of that Harry still sucks. Self-centeredness is to be expected in a kid who's constantly being referred to as the Chosen One, but it would be much more tolerable if we were at least shown why Harry's so damn special. As far as I can tell, he's a reckless idiot who's constantly in over his head. And if not for Dumbledore and his dear dead parents, Harry would have been killed long ago.

I know I'm in the minority on this. I know wizard high school is the second most beloved concept in fiction after virgin vampire. But, in my opinion, Harry Potter is just one more story where the execution falls far short of the concept.