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List Price: $34.99 | | Label: Warner Home Video
Salesrank: 13
Released: December 8, 2009 |
| Our Price: $17.49 |
| Used Price: $20.49 |
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MPAA Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Media: DVD |
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Editorial Review:
Voldemort is tightening his grip on both the Muggle and wizarding worlds and Hogwarts is no longer the safe haven it once was. Harry suspects that dangers may even lie within the castle, but Dumbledore is more intent upon preparing him for the final battle that he knows is fast approaching. Together they work to find the key to unlock Voldemort’s defenses and, to this end, Dumbledore recruits his old friend and colleague, Professor Horace Slughorn, whom he believes holds crucial information. Even as the decisive showdown looms, romance blossoms for Harry, Ron, Hermione and their classmates. Love is in the air, but danger lies ahead and Hogwarts may never be the same.
Description of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (Two-Disc Limited Special Edition):
The sixth installment of the Harry Potter series begins right where The Order of the Phoenix left off. The wizarding world is rocked by the news that "He Who Must Not Be Named" has truly returned, and the audience finally knows that Harry is "the Chosen One"--the only wizard who can defeat Lord Voldemort in the end. Dark forces loom around every corner, and now regularly attempt to penetrate the protected walls of Hogwarts School. This is no longer the fun and fascinating world of magic from the first few books—it's dark, dangerous, and scary.
Harry (Daniel Radcliffe) suspects Draco Malfoy (Tom Felton) to be a new Death Eater recruit on a special mission for the Dark Lord. In the meantime, Professor Dumbledore (Michael Gambon) seems to have finally removed the shroud of secrecy from Harry about the dark path that lies ahead, and instead provides private lessons to get him prepared. It's in these intriguing scenes that the dark past of Tom Riddle (a.k.a. Voldemort) is finally revealed. The actors cast as the different young versions of Riddle (Hero Fiennes-Tiffin and Frank Dillane) do an eerily fantastic job of portraying the villain as a child. While the previous movies' many new characters could be slightly overwhelming, only one new key character is introduced this time: Professor Horace Slughorn (with a spot-on performance by Jim Broadbent). Within his mind he holds a key secret in the battle to defeat the Dark Lord, and Harry is tasked by Dumbledore to uncover a memory about Voldemort's darkest weapon--the Horcrux. Despite the long list of distractions, Harry, Ron (Rupert Grint), and Hermione (Emma Watson) still try to focus on being teenagers, and audiences will enjoy the budding awkward romances. All of the actors have developed nicely, giving their most convincing performances to date.
More dramatic and significant things go down in this movie than any of its predecessors, and the stakes are higher than ever. The creators have been tasked with a practically impossible challenge, as fans of the beloved J.K. Rowling book series desperately want the movies to capture the magic of the books as closely as possible. Alas, the point at which one accepts that these two mediums are very different is the point at which one can truly enjoy these brilliant adaptations. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince is no exception: it may be the best film yet. For those who have not read the book, nail-biting entertainment is guaranteed. For those who have, the movie does it justice. The key dramatic scenes, including the cave and the shocking twist in the final chapter, are executed very well. It does a perfect job of setting up the two-part grand finale that is to follow. --Jordan Thompson
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (Two-Disc Limited Special Edition) Reviews:
Badly paced and extremely shallow. 
2009-12-15 - This film is nothing but setup, and at 2 1/2 hours, that's a crime. At the end, I felt absolutely nothing. The book didn't leave an impression on me, either, but at least it had more details that made it more worthwhile. I loved the "Order of the Phoenix" movie, so I was surprised at this mistep from the same director. Blame it on the source material, I guess.
Missed opportunities once more... 
2009-12-15 - What is it about Harry Potter movies that make them so unmemorable? Obviously it can't be the source material. The beloved series by J.K. Rowling is pure magic, no pun intended. Still, as a fan of the books, I watch each film, excited each time around to see the story of Harry Potter unfold on the big screen. I'm not sure what I'm expecting from these films. I mean, they are adaptions of a book. In my opinion, books are always better than their movie counterparts. The Lord of the Rings trilogy might be the only exception in my mind, but that's another story.
What has frustrated me about the movies are the missed opportunities, and I'm not even talking about scenes from the books that didn't make the films. Here's an example:
In Order of the Phoenix, the climactic battle at the end of the film between the Death Eaters and The Order culminates in the timely arrival of Dumbledore. In the book, this is nothing short of a "Gandalf On A White Horse" moment. He arrives as the battle seems lost, and kicks some serious tail. In the film, he walks out of a fireplace like he just woke up from a nap.
In this latest film, The Half-blood Prince, we see more of the same. Once again, a battle sequence at the end of the book finds all hell breaking loose at Hogwarts, after Dumbledore... well... You know. Instead the Death Eaters just casually walk out of the school, as if it were a passing period. What makes this an even greater insult is that the filmmakers decide to add a scene that wasn't in the book, and frankly, serves NO PURPOSE. The "Attack On The Burrow", as it has come to be known, makes no sense. It accomplishes nothing. It doesn't advance the plot.
The filmmakers have one more chance to get it right with the Deathly Hallows.
I really hope they do.
Great disk package for a movie that could have been a bit better 
2009-12-15 - The movie is what it is and the debates and comments will go on.
What I am reviewing is this particular disk package.
This package has a BluRay disk, a DVD disk and a digital copy that can be downloaded for a windows media player or on Itunes. I love the fact that with one package I can cover all three types of media I play regularly. My biggest objection is the size of the digital copy for I-Tunes. I own a IPod touch and space becomes quiet valuable. This is a rather large file but does look great on my Ipod Touch.
Only person on Planet Earth who had not read the books! 
2009-12-15 - I tried to read the first Harry Potter book on its release as I am an avid fantasy lover. I couldn't make it through the first chapter because I kept comparing it, unfairly, to the Chrestomanci series. When the movies came out, everybody raved about them so much that I started to watch them and was perhaps the only person on the Planet Earth who had not read the books when they saw the movies. I loved the movies up to this one and went back and read the books after I saw each movie and enjoyed them because I now had a clearer image of Rowling's world. Some things in the books were of course left out of the movies but nothing damaging. Until now.
I so looked forward to seeing the Half-Blood Prince and can now only ask "What?" Other reviewers have pointed out that it is meant to be continued in Deathly Hallows and that a lot has been left out of the movie that was in the book. It grieves me to say this, but the movie is almost unwatchable for somebody who has not read the book even though I have read the novels up to Order of the Phoenix and knew the characters and unfolding plot. I am sure that I will like the movie more on second viewing after reading the book, but it should not have to be like that. The other movies could stand on their own. This one cannot. The subject matter is much too complex and dark to be raced through like a music video. If it couldn't be done in one movie (as another reviewer said) then it should either be in two parts or the script reworked. There seemed to be a lot of unnecessary snogging going on and the important bits about Draco, Snape, et. al. were just skimmed over. I continually felt that something important was missing.
As I said before, the best things about the Potter movies was that they were in themselves genuinely good films, well written and plotted, and could be watched in or out of order and enjoyed by any adult or child who hadn't read the books. What a shame that this trend could not have held out until the end.
Don't be suprised, if you've seen the other movies.
2009-12-14 - At this point everyone who has read the books and watched the movies should know what to expect. Added lovey scenes, and deleted important seens. So buy this movie for the visuals and the acting. Don't buy this if you're expecting to see the book take place on your TV.
p.s.
What's with the diner scene?
