The fifth film in the Harry Potter franchise was, to me, the best. Sure, it wasn’t as faithful to the book as the other films but it had least (like the previous film)had style something completely lacking from Chris Columbus’ first two genre, flat looking entries in the series. As with all of Columbus’ films, it the films were too literal and lacking in any real suspense. ***

“Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix” is probably the darkest Potter film yet. No one except for Harry’s friends including Hermione (Emma Watson) and Ron (Rupert Grint) believes that Potter (Daniel Radcliffe) saw Valdemort (Ralph Fiennes). Potter is targeted by the authorities and labeled a liar. Sensing that he will have to take matters into his own hands he forms Dumbledort’s Army which and begins to train other students in the defensive arts. Meanwhile Dumbledort (Michael Gambon) sees his authority ebb away as a new defensive arts teacher (Imelda Staunton) gradually takes control away from his at Hogswort. The escape of Bellatrix Lestrange (Helena Bonham Carter) cousin of Harry’s godfather Sirius Black (Gary Oldman) signals that Valdemort and his evil army are preparing for battle leaving Harry, his friends and the secret society The Order of the Phoenix as the only defense against their evil. What’s amazing is that director David Yates has brought his experience in television to the big screen in a big way making “Phoenix” the most compact of the films so far in spite of the fact that it is adapted from the a novel even longer than the first two. Part of the credit also goes to screenwriter Michael Goldenberg who co-wrote the screenplay for “Contact” and wrote the script for the live screen version of “Peter Pan” from 1997. ---

Image & Sound:

As if by magic we get a sharp, crisp and colorful transfer. Featuring moody cinematography (unlike the candy floss cinematography of the first two Potter films) “Phoenix” captures the mood of the novel quite well. ***

You can hear all those spells with all their detail intact as the 5.1 mix makes nice use of the format putting effects around the various speakers as necessary. This is the second film liberated from John Williams’ too cutesy themes (I love Williams but his score did not work well for the “Potter” films) and has one of the best scores as well. Nicholas Hooper’s score sounds marvelous in its presentation here. ---

We’re a bit light in this department. Well, that’s not totally true, it’s just that the special features aren’t all that…special. We get 10 minutes of scenes that were cut from the film. Sometimes these are bits and pieces that just didn’t fit into the film (and they didn’t) other times they are extensions of scenes already in the film but cut for good reason (they overstayed their welcome). ***

“Trailing Tonks” features actress Natalia Tena (who plays Nymphadora Tonks in the film hence the title) giving us a tour of the studios and the sets. ***

“Harry Potter and the Magic of Editing” is short and to the point. Director Yates and editor Mark Day discuss how only minor edits can alter the pacing and feel of a film and gives us some brief examples. ***

I’ve saved the biggest but not necessarily the best for last. “The Hidden Secrets of Harry Potter” is an Electronic Press Kit in everything but name only. We get plenty of bits and pieces of interviews but nothing solid. It’s a trifle and it’s a pity that it’s here—it’s a waste of space. Heck, give ME the same budget and I could come up with three dozen featurettes worth more time and consideration. ---

Final Words:

“Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix” stands as one of the richest films in the series along with “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire” (directed by Mike Newell). Director Yates and his team fashion a worthwhile adventure that captures all the wonderful gusto of the novel while trimming back some of the excess detail that didn’t fit the main narrative of the film. ***

This is the first “Potter” DVD set that feels like it was made for a double dip. The extras are extraneous and hardly essential to enjoying the film. Rowling’s books are a marvel but books don’t translate well to film unless they are pruned down to the main narrative stalks and Yates manages to do so nicely.