Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2009)

As Harry Potter begins his 6th year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, he discovers an old book marked mysteriously "This book is the property of the Half-Blood Prince" and begins to learn more about Lord Voldemort's dark past.

Director:

David Yates

Writers:

Steve Kloves (screenplay), J.K. Rowling (novel)

Stars:

Daniel Radcliffe, Michael Gambon, Rupert Grint

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 8 wins & 24 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Daniel Radcliffe	...	Harry Potter
Michael Gambon	...	Professor Albus Dumbledore
Dave Legeno	...	Fenrir Greyback
Elarica Gallacher	...	Waitress
Jim Broadbent	...	Professor Horace Slughorn
Geraldine Somerville	...	Lily Potter
Bonnie Wright	...	Ginny Weasley
Julie Walters	...	Molly Weasley
Rupert Grint	...	Ron Weasley
Emma Watson	...	Hermione Granger
Helena Bonham Carter	...	Bellatrix Lestrange
Helen McCrory	...	Narcissa Malfoy
Timothy Spall	...	Wormtail
Alan Rickman	...	Professor Severus Snape
Oliver Phelps	...	George Weasley

Storyline

In the sixth year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft, and in both wizard and muggle worlds Lord Voldemort and his henchmen are increasingly active. With vacancies to fill at Hogwarts, Professor Dumbledore persuades Horace Slughorn, back from retirement to become the potions teacher, while Professor Snape receives long awaited news. Harry Potter, together with Dumbledore, must face treacherous tasks to defeat his evil nemesis.

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Plot Keywords:

book | professor | potion | blood | locket | 

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Taglines:

Dark Secrets Revealed

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Genres:

Adventure | Family | Fantasy | Mystery

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG for scary images, some violence, language and mild sensuality

Details

Official Sites:

Official site Official site [au]

Country:

UK USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

15 July 2009 (USA)

Also Known As:

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince: An IMAX 3D Experience

Filming Locations:

Scotland, UK

Box Office

Budget:

$250,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

£19,784,924 (UK) (17 July 2009)

Gross:

$301,956,980 (USA) (11 December 2009)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros, Heyday Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

153 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Terry Gilliam, who was J.K. Rowling's personal choice to direct Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, was approached to direct this film. However, Gilliam said, "Warner Bros. had their chance the first time around, and they blew it."

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Goofs

The 'wheat/corn' outside the Burrow at Christmas is actually a reed bed, which can definitely grow to the height shown in the film in winter in Britain.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Bellatrix Lestrange: [faded voiceover] I killed Sirius Black!

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Crazy Credits

The end credits take their shape from what look like ink spills, resembling the appearance of the collected memories when they are poured into Dumbledore's Pensieve.

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Connections

Featured in The Rotten Tomatoes Show: Up in the Air/Everybody's Fine/Brothers (2009)

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Soundtracks

"Odo the Hero"
(uncredited)
Written by J.K. Rowling
Performed by Robbie Coltrane & Jim Broadbent

User Reviews

Key points missing!

If you love the series like I do you will know that in every movie they have to cut parts of the book out. Most of the time they manage it without compromising the integrity of the film. This time they fall very short of the mark. For those that have not read the book this movie will impress. The effects are top notch and it is a very engrossing film. I understand the need to cut the movie in order to fit it into a realistic time frame. In doing so, it seems as if they cut key parts in order to allow for more comedy. They also cut out a large action scene at the end of the movie. This scene could have been added if not for the adding of a scene in the middle that was not part of the original book. Furthermore, the scene makes no sense because during which they destroy something that is key to the book in the seventh volume. Not only do they cut scenes, but they change others to suit what purpose you might ask? The unfortunate answer is I don't know. Another minor point that I noticed during the movie is, although there is not as much violence as previous movies the overall film includes adult content that in my opinion warrants the pg-13 rating.

Do not misunderstand me. I recommend seeing the movie as it is enjoyable, but trying to change a masterpiece like J.K. Rowling's book is a mistake and I think this movie suffered from it. If I didn't have the book to reference I would've rated this movie an 8, but the simple fact is I do and it unfortunately falls short.