Harry Potter & The Order of the Phoenix

“But they’re older now”. Thus was the brilliant observation of Jabel’s wife upon our sleepy exit from the theater in the wee hours of Wednesday morning. Jabel, his brilliant bride, myself & aj ventured out with a room full of school kids (alas, we weren’t the OLDEST ones in the crowd, but we were def in the top 5 or 10) to see the latest Harry Potter movie, The Order of the Phoenix. I had just remarked how “dialoguey” the movie was, and that there seemed to be less magical and spectacular events than in prior films, when the aforementioned better half of my best bud proffered her retort.
And it’s true, you know? Harry, Hermione, Ron & the crew are older, a full year, in fact, and as they navigate the mid-teen years it seems like change is the order of the day. Perhaps it’s the quality over quantity focus that is developing in their decisions to use magic, a sort of magical maturation, if you will.
In the looks category, Ron appears to me to the one who’s “aged” the most, what with his bulkier, more pronounced teenage bulkiness. Harry is just behind him, although he remains quite wispy and apparently underdeveloped, which adds to his role as underdog. Neville Longbottom and Draco Malfoy both seem to be at quite an awkward stage in their developments, and let’s just say that nature has not been very good to either of them. Hermione, on the other hand, maintains a little girl appearance, which is as odd is it as disappointing. She needs to grow up and get pretty, which I’m sure she will in the last two films. I’m speaking, of course, of the actors that play these characters, but the physical changes are inseparable between the portrayer & the portrayed.
Emotionally and mentally there seems to be an overall maturity being revealed as well. I noticed how Ron was less inclined to act out in a nervous, short-tempered manner, and was rather quite reserved when faced with conflict and aggression. Harry, again, isn’t quite up to Ron’s development here, it seems, still being inclined to lash out and appear overwhelmed at times.
All in all, Phoenix was an enjoyable book and movie, and the role played by Sirius Black in both was a joy to me. I hate that he died, but the ending scene at the Ministry of Magic was my favorite part of the story. The book was long, and the movie was comparatively short at 2 hours, 18 minutes, but the crescendo happened perfectly. Perhaps it’s magic, but this film doesn’t suffer from an anti-climactic ending.