DVD Reviews

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (Ultimate Edition) – Blu-ray Review

By Patrick Luce Jun 27, 2011, 18:08 GMT

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 ...more

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince gets the Ultimate Edition treatment on Blu-ray and is once again worth the purchase price thanks to the great packaging and extras. Bonus material includes Maximum Movie Mode, more than four hours of special features, a 48-page book with images from years 1-7, and Year 6 cards.

It also helps that the film is yet another solid entry for the franchise based on the hit book series by J.K. Rowling, and looks incredible on Blu-ray’s crystal clear picture. Half-Blood Prince does an excellent job of setting up the final two Potter adventures and continues the franchise’s growth into more mature themes, sinister plots, and a darker look (despite a PG rating).

Having re-watched the earlier Potter films (all of which are now available in Ultimate editions), it is interesting to see the growth of the series – both in the level of talent the actors are bringing to the screen and the production of the films themselves. The series is growing more mature, and everything seems to reflect this growth. Hogwarts isn’t quite as friendly and inviting, and loving characters seem to be taking on a more dangerous feel to them.

Half Blood Prince was directed by David Yates (who handled directing chores on Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix and on the final two films in the franchise) with a screenplay by Steve Kloves (who has adapted several of Rowling's novels including the upcoming Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, parts 1 and 2).

The film sees returning cast members Daniel Radcliffe as Harry Potter, Rupert Grint as Ron Weasley, and Emma Watson as Hermione Granger. They are joined once again by Robbie Coltrane as Rubeus Hagrid, Michael Gambon as Professor Albus Dumbledore, Maggie Smith as Professor Minerva McGonagall, and Alan Rickman as Professor Severus Snape.

The film also features a strong performance from Tom Felton as Draco Malfoy (who continues to grow as an equally vile villain for Harry to square off against and not just a simple school bully) and Bonnie Wright as Ginny Weasley (who begins to matter more and more to the story).

With Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, our trio of friends (Harry, Ron, and Hermione) has to continue to balance their education, the threat of danger at every turn, life at Hogwarts, and the most deadly of all - teen hormones. Once again, Ron delivers most of the humor as he experiences quite a bit of trouble in the department.

In addition to teen love, the gang also has to deal with that pesky growing threat from Voldemort and his band of Death Eaters – who have been taking out members of the Ministry of Magic. Things have gotten so bad that Dumbledore has issued an order to search students as they arrive for the school year, and put up protection to keep the Death Eaters out of the school. He also brings in Professor Horace Slughorn (Jim Broadbent) to teach a potions class.

Dumbledore has another reason for bringing Slughorn to the school and tasks Harry to get to know the wizard so that he can get a memory Slughorn shared with a young Tom Riddle – who went on to become "He Who Must Not Be Named."

Dumbledore believes the memory is the key to defeating Voldemort, but it takes Harry most of the film to get close enough to achieve the task.

As if Voldermort isn’t enough, Draco moves from bully to a real threat to Harry and has been given a task of his own to achieve. He is also under the protection of Snape. Harry believes that Draco has joined the Death Eaters and is responsible for several students being harmed by curses (including Ron).

Romance starts to bloom between Ron and Hermione as Ron becomes a jock thanks to his Quidditch skills (which Hermione and Harry help out), and Hermione realizing that she has a thing for Ron – no matter how hard she tries to get rid of the feelings. She also has to deal with Ron’s obsessive girlfriend, and the fact that she isn’t the best student at the school thanks to a book Harry finds that once belonged to the Half-Blood Prince.

The trio along with Ginny (who Harry beings to realize he has feelings for) spend a good deal of the movie trying to discover the identity of the Half-Blood Prince, and eventually getting the book away from Harry.

Those looking for lots of Potter action might be a bit disappointed as the film tends to take a bit of screen time building the teen romances - along with other subplots such as Harry and his mission with Slughorn, and Draco’s obsession with a cabinet.

Regardless of the stall, the film’s third act kicks it into overdrive with Harry and Dumbledore heading off to gain the upper hand against Voldemort and then coming face to face with Draco, Death Eaters and betrayal. The film still isn’t as much fun as some of the other entries (Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire remains my favorite of the series), but does an excellent job establishing the dark tone which will follow in the final films.

On Blu-ray, the film looks incredible with all of its production values (such as lighting and costuming) working their magic together to continue to change with the dark overtones of the story. The various elements of the movie all work together to reflect what is happening and help the viewer realize we have come a long way since that first train ride to Hogwarts.

Potter fans will want to invest in this new edition of the film thanks to the wealth of special features and the bonus material in the Ultimate Editions. Like past Ultimate Edition releases, Warner Bros. does an excellent job giving fans a reason to spend their money on another copy of a movie they might already own. The set might not be for the casual viewer, but Potter fans will like what they find as well as the Maximum Movie Mode – which is lead by Daniel Radcliffe.