Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire Movie Review

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005)

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Written by: Steve Kloves (screenplay), J.K. Rowling (novel)
Directed by: Mike Newell
Starring: Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint, Ralph Fiennes, Robert Pattinson, Michael Gambon, Alan Rickman, Brendan Gleeson, Robbie Coltrane, Jason Isaacs  Maggie Smith
Rated: PG-13
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Plot
In his fourth year, Harry finds himself competing in a hazardous tournament between rival schools of magic, but he is distracted by recurring nightmares of Voldemort.

Verdict
The Harry Potter movies went downhill after this one, but at least this was a great send off. This has a lot of touching moments as the kids continue to grow up. We get to see Harry becoming a hero even if he is reluctant. This movie provides more spectacle as the movies were becoming more popular, and the stakes are much higher. It's darker, like the third, but that's inevitable when the most evil wizard is close to a return. The nice thing about this movie is that the driving force, the tournament, isn't a bad guy after Harry. This movie isn't about escaping evil, but developing his abilities.
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Review
This was my favorite of the first four movies when I first saw them, though now that's distinction belongs to Prisoner of Azkaban. Both are very good.

The third movie was darker in tone, and this continues. One of the first scenes involves Voldemort killing a minor character. At Hogwarts the big event isn't a killer basilisk or a fugitive, it's the Tri-wizard Tournament. Finally something positive, at least it should be.

Albus Dumbledore

Harry is selected as the fourth in the tournament despite not meeting the age requirements and not wanting to be in the tournament. I haven't seen the movies that followed in quite a while, but this movie is Harry wrestling with being a hero and his own morality. In every task, his considerations are broader than himself. He wants to save everyone. Maybe that means he has a hero complex, but being in the spotlight is something he's always tried to avoid. He attempts to save everyone, but that is based more on circumstance than his past driving him.

This movie does have a few gaps in the magic. There were, as in every movie, a few instances that I questioned why magic wasn't used. Then again magic is often used as a curiosity in the movies, not always as a well reasoned addition to the world.

Emma Watson as Hermione with Krum

I wish the movie had fleshed out the other tournament champions. They are cool characters because we're told they are, but developing them more would have made their plights more important. I understand this is already a long movie, but I'm curious how the other champions bested the trials.
We see none of that, only Harry's perspective. That makes it easy to root for Harry, when he's the only competitor we see. Despite that, the story is a great way for Harry to be in danger without re-treading too much ground from the previous movies.
Harry has more than a few heroic moments, but it's a bit of manipulation as the characters he's saving, other than Ron or Hermione, aren't developed.

Rupert Grint and Daniel Radcliffe as Ron and Harry

The stakes are much higher in this movie with death and destruction becoming almost common. We see Death Eaters, which are a cool design, though not as menacing as Dementors. Voldemort is finally back. This movie is bigger, with more effects, and the main villain finally revealed. I did miss the smaller focus the previous movies had, but Voldemort and Harry facing off is a huge moment in the series.