So, I went to see Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire last night, and while it was for the most part entertaining it still suffered from many of the problems that I mentioned in my 7 reasons why Harry Potter is overrated post as well as in the podcast discussion between Mark and myself. The pace lagged in parts and there were certain disconnects for me as a non-reader of the books.

However, while watching, I also realized yet another reason why I'm not a Harry Potter fan: Harry himself has no agency in any of the films. If you haven't yet seen the movie or read the book, then I advise you stop reading this post now, as I am about to offer a little bit of a spoiler after the jump.

Speaking of Harry Potter podcasts, G4 TV's The Attack of the Show video podcast's [iTMS link] most current episode is a skit depicting what could possibly happen if Hogwarts were forced to become a public school and admit Muggles.

I'm not saying it's a good skit. I'm just saying it's a skit that has something to do with Harry Potter and it's on a tech show on a gaming network.

It's only three minutes and fourteen seconds long, but that's 3:14 I'll never get back, so I thought I'd share.

Mark Beall and I just got finished slapping together a Harry Potter Cinematical Podcast where we discuss the franchise, the most recent movie, The Goblet of Fire, and the fan phenomenon surrounding Harry Potter.

Here's a direct link to the MP3 of the podcast. You can also subscribe to our podcast via the iTunes Music Store using this link, which will launch iTunes. Or, if you use another podcasting program, feel free to subscribe directly to our feed:

http://blog.moviefone.com/category/podcasts/rss.xml

The podcast weighs in at 5.1MBs and lasts for 26 minutes. We hope you enjoy the discussion.

When I first met my wife's family and her father and sister heard that I was a Doctoral student in Literature, they began to rant and rave about how wonderful Harry Potter is, asking if I'd read every single book like they did. I, naturally, recoiled in horror. Don't get me wrong. I'm going to see the movie tomorrow night. But that doesn't change the fact that this whole series is over-rated. It's good. Just not that good.

In no particular order, I present to you (immediately after the jump) why I think Harry Potter is entirely overrated...

I've been converting the Star Wars Trilogies to an appropriate size for carrying around on my new video-capable iPod, and suddenly all kinds of Star Wars information starts popping up online and flowing my way. My good friend Trevor posted about Lucas being a cheater, then Bob's post pops up on Cinematical, and then both Scott and Jen sent me links to this Slate article, almost simultaneously. Talk about postmodern.

Anyway, it's an interesting read, as it notes that with the release of Revenge of the Sith on DVD readers of the Star Wars films can now read "all six Star Wars films back-to-back, as a single text. This is how Lucas himself regards the series, often joking that, including his 1973 hit American Graffiti, he has made only three movies in his career." I may try marathon watching all 6 films in a row on my iPod (hooked into a TV), but I seriously doubt I will at any point mistake the films as one big art film. It's nice to think that that is the case and that it would somehow redeem how terribly horrible Episodes I and II were, but, alas, the Jar Jar plague upon those films combined with the un-isness of the overly digital bits is undeniable.

If you've never bought movie tickets online before via Fandango and you have an American Express card, then here's your chance to go cheap on that movie date you have lined up for the weekend.

Simply head on over to Fandango, buy one ticket at regular price with your Amex card and then apply the coupon code "AMX1" at checkout. Too bad I've already used Fandango (as well as every other online movie ticket purchasing service), or I'd be jumping on this offer.

[via dealnews]

I'm thinking of writing Karina, Ebert, and Roeper and asking for my money back on this one. It wasn't horrible or even necessarily a bad film, but it fell far short of the buzz and praise that had built up from the time it first started receiving reviews and my viewing of it last night. Perhaps the long litany of bad films over the summer months has fooled everyone else into thinking this movie to be starkly original. A History of Violence is a familiar story: a man with a dangerous past he thought he had successfully escaped has that past intrude on his current life through a bit of happenstance.


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