Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban- Ferraro

"Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban"
2004
Dir: Alfonso Cuarón

I chose to blog about the 3rd HarryPotter movie, since I felt that was the most different adaption from the book.

The adaptation is done very well here. The writers have been able to give us a story that was basically stemmed from the beginning. What they've done, however, is just take what was essential to the plot to make their 2-hour movie, and in the process, cut out important backstories and character arcs.

For example, Hermione's cat Crookshanks actually plays a vital role in the book. It is he who befriends Sirius and helps him into Hogwarts. He is also able to stop the Whomping Willow, and constantly goes after Scabbers because he knows he's really Peter Pettigrew. In the movie, however, he is just a random cat that suddenly appears in Hermione's care and seems to only go after Scabbers because he's a cat, plain and simple. Also, we don't understand why Professor Lupin is sick, just that he is, and we coincidentally are told about werewolves. He is suppose to have a grudging past with Lupin, yet it's never explained why and how. He just appears out of nowhere to save the children. Where's the tension between the two?

In this case, like almost every other adaptation, original is better.