


Much of the movie is spent going over the soap opera-esque relationships. They're all grown up and are ready to act like angst-ridden teenagers with overactive libidos. Our three heroes find much more than danger from the Dark Lord this year at Hogwarts. I'm sure Potter purists will be able to fill me in on that, but a movie based on a book needs to be able to stand on its own. Even after my second viewing of the film, I still find myself confused as to why Harry and Dumbledore know they need to go to that cave. We find out who it actually is, but not what it means at all).

Half-Blood Prince takes full advantage and assumes that the audience has indeed read the books (Example: Never, ever in the entire movie is the Half-Blood Prince thing ever explained. As a person that has been slow to get to the books, this is bothersome. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince finds itself almost completely disregarding the last movie, where Harry built up Dumbledore's Army with some of the students at Hogwarts. The story has become self-aware and points out things viewers might be wondering too. I've been asking myself that same question for the past six years." One of the strengths of this newest 'Potter' film is its ability to poke fun at itself. At one point Professor McGonagall approaches the three of them after a student is attacked by an unseen force, and asks them "Why is it, that whenever anything happens, it's always you three?" Ron Weasley replies, "Believe me, Professor. With Lord Voldemort growing more and more powerful, Harry, Dumbledore, Ron, and Hermione find themselves smack dab in the middle of another adventure.
