Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

Posted on 27. Mar, 2008 by Gino Sassani in 1080p, 2.40:1, Dolby Digital 5.1 (English), Dolby Digital 5.1 (French), Dolby Digital 5.1 (German), Dolby Digital 5.1 (Italian), Dolby Digital 5.1 (Japanese), Dolby Digital 5.1 (Spanish), Family, PCM 5.1 (English), Reviews, Sci-Fi / Fantasy, VC-1, Warner Bros.

It’s year 3 at Hogwarts, and behind the scenes there have been some significant changes in the Harry Potter universe. Chris Columbus gave up the directing duties to Alfonso Cuaron. While Cuaron was faithful to the traditions established by Columbus, I do believe he did a rather nice job of adding his own dark touches to the Hogwarts landscape. Whether it was a new director or simply greater maturity, there is no question that Cuaron got better performances out of the three major actors. Richard Harris had unfortunately left us, so the crucial role of Dumbledore was taken over by Michael Gambon. Gambon might not have had quite the charisma of Harris, but he brought a certain gentler wisdom to the character that has worked out nicely enough in the end. The most important cast addition has to be that of Gary Oldman as Sirius Black. He’s pretty much only in the final third of this film, but the character is a pivotal one, and Oldman is devilishly perfect for the part.

The story isn’t overly complicated: Harry Potter (Radcliffe) and his friends Ron (Grint) and Hermione (Watson) return for year three at Hogwarts under the cloud of an infamous escaped wizard. Sirius Black (Oldman) appears to be a threat to the entire wizard community and perhaps a personal threat to Potter himself. Potter must confront powerful dementors and his own storied beginnings to unravel this latest mystery.

While the world of Harry Potter was created primarily for a younger adolescent audience, there is no question that the tapestry is epic, and compelling enough to satisfy adults. I believe the true success of these films lies within that idea. It is truly rare when a film arrives that can appeal so completely to both groups. Prisoner of Azkaban is perhaps the darkest, but I don’t think the most frightening, Potter film. The creature images of the previous entry were considerably more graphic and disturbing to the younger children. I’m going to take some heat for this, but I am so happy there was a very limited scene of the famous quidditch games. They are very popular, it seems, but I find them a dreadful bore. The children are beginning to mature, both as characters and actors. While Daniel Radcliffe has improved quite noticeably from the first film, I must admit that it is the performance of Emma Watson that showed the greatest maturity and potential. Richard Harris was most certainly missed, but I think that Michael Gambon conjured up a nice, while more limited, performance of the wise old Dumbledore. As with all of the Harry Potter films, this one begins with Harry’s tedious life in the normal world. I’m sure that each time viewers of all ages are eager to see Harry return to his element and friends.

Video

The Prisoner of Azkaban is presented in its original aspect ratio of 2.40:1. The VC-1 encoded image is quite sharp and full of detail. The dark tone of the film requires an extremely solid black level, which is delivered here. Colors are intentionally soft, but what they lack in brilliance, they more than make up for in richness. Dark reds in particular jump out at you with their realistic tone and definition. Details are magnificent, allowing the viewer to see the subtle set dressings and designs in a format truly worthy of the craftsmanship that created them. The CG f/x blend into the action flawlessly with no edge distortion or noticeable difference in lighting. Even the quiddich match is a dark and rainy affair, and mercifully short. This is a far darker Harry Potter, and the hi-def presentation allows the film to retain its dark nature without giving up anything in detail and sharpness.

Audio

The PCM lossless 5.1 track is nothing short of brilliant. The uncharacteristic John Williams score alone is worthy of more than a little praise. Did you notice that he stole the main theme from Universal’s Dracula? The music goes a long way to give us an enormous sense of size at Hogwarts. Williams does his usual best to distinguish the mundane world from that of Hogwarts. Ambient sounds abound and are integrated nearly perfectly into a solid mix that allows you to truly experience the film rather than be a uninterested witness to it all. Dialog is quite impressive when you consider how low many of the voices are throughout the film. There are not as many stand out audio segments in this film. There are many clever uses of surrounds, particularly when dealing with the two time lines.

Special Features

Unlike the DVD release these extras are all easy to find. I found the original DVD menu to be about the most convoluted and confusing one I’ve encountered. <>

Additional Scenes: There are 5 unfinished scenes here with an optional explanation as to where they fit in.

Creating The Vision: gives us about 10 minutes of interviews with various cast and crew on the new film’s look.

Head To Shrunken Head Interviews: is a pretty fun section. You’ll find 6 minute segments where cast members are interviewed by a host and the film’s shrunken head. The sections are quite candid and often humorous.

Conjuring A Scene: Here you’ll get to see some of the f/x wizardry performed behind the scenes at Hogwarts.

Care Of Magical Creatures: This is a short treat. If you like animals, this is the feature for you. You’ll meet the trainers and animal actors themselves.

Choir Practice: A short little sing-a-long game.

Trailers: The first three films’ trailers are presented here.

Final Thoughts

The franchise continues to improve with the third film. I think that here is where the larger story really begins to unfold, and we see just the first signs of the ultimate battle and which characters are allied with which sides of the coming reckoning. I was nervous to see the film change directors, as I’ve seen too many other good franchises ruined in that fashion. Look no further than the Batman films from the 90’s. Perhaps it was the strong presence created in the first film, or merely the strength of Rowling’s vision, that has kept the films so tightly together even with the changes that are inevitable during a decade long project. Whatever the reason, the third film never missed a beat. Cuaron took the challenge and met it head on. “Mischief managed.”