Movie Watch: Harry Potter & The Half Blood Prince

Yesterday, Queenie and I went to watch the latest installment to the Harry Potter movie franchise, Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince.

It was supposed to be a gathering where 3 of us would watch this movie together. However Moonie chose love over friends and decided to watch it with her boyfriend instead of us. I do feel disappointed at her choice since we have been following the Harry Potter movies ever since the first day it was aired.

Anyway I have learned not to ask Moonie to go out with me anymore. Attached people are best left alone. They usually would want to spend all their free time with their partners rather than friends. I'll just let her be. One day it will be my turn. When I have my partner, I will also dump Moonie and choose my partner. Ha! Eh... I gotta get a partner first.

Right.

This post is getting out of topic. I am supposed to write about the Harry Potter movie loh...

Daniel Radcliffe reprises his famous role as the boy wizard in Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince. By now he has already mastered the art of portraying Harry and in this particular movie, Harry gets to date. Hee... Yep.

There's a kissing scene between Harry and Ginny, Ron's younger sister. The actress, Bonnie Wright, has certainly grown up differently from the days when she was acting in the second installment, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. Little did we know that her role would turn out to be such a major factor in Harry's life.

It was in this book that Harry fell in love with Ginny for real. For once, Ginny's affections finally gets returned and we get to see a little bit of their romance in the movie as well. Too bad majority of their love story gets cut off but that is to be expected since the book is way too thick to be fully adapted into a movie.

Tom Riddles a.k.a. Voldemort's past also gets revealed through Dumbledore's memory. Riddles' odd question on horcrux finally set the events for Harry's future when he sought to be immortal by destroying all that stood in his way and making little trinkets into his soul carriers.

It is truly scary to see that Riddle could think up such an evil plan at such a young age. No wonder everybody is so scared of him. Even the mention of his name sends shivers down everyone's spine.

However the next book, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, seems destined for a better treatment as Warner Bros will release the film in two parts. Well it makes economic sense for the company as the movie is going to be the last huge cashcow in the Harry Potter franchise. After all there are only seven books in the Harry Potter universe and being able to make eight movies out of that is already amazing enough. Furthermore no other recent book series has managed to get adapted fully into movies the way Harry Potter series did. Narnia didn't even come close.

Sadly in this movie, we also witnessed the final moments of dear old Headmaster Albus Dumbledore. Personally I liked his character as he has always been so supportive of Harry. At the very last moment, he sacrificed his life for Harry so that Harry could go on to defeat that damn Voldemort. It was fitting that it was Severus Snape that ended Dumbledore's life. I'm sure we wouldn't have had it other way, unless its a natural death.

I am looking forward to the final installments to the movie franchise and I'm sure Warner Bro will do a good job. J K Rowling would not have it other way too.

Emma Watson and Daniel Radcliffe on Yahoo! Movies '20 Stars 20 and Younger' List

According to HPANA, Emma Watson and Daniel Radcliffe are listed in Yahoo! Movies '20 Stars 20 and Younger' List.

Apparently, Watson tops the list with her famous role as Hermione Granger in the Harry Potter movie franchise. Overall her total domestic box office gross is $1,461,797,64! *gasps* That's hell a lot of money that girl's been raking in for the studios!!!

As for Daniel Radcliffe, he ranks number 2 in the list alongside Watson. He also owes his success to his titular role in the Harry Potter movie franchise. Overall his total domestic box office gross is $1,411,173,590! Slightly lesser than Watson but still an awesome feat. So now we know Warner Bros is actually a super rich studio firm, eh? They have to thank JK Rowling for writing such an amazing book series in the first place. She's amazing, aren't she?

Now I am looking forward to the upcoming Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince movie which will be showing in July 2009. Gosh, time better fly faster this time!

Happy Birthday, Ronald Weasley!

Today is Ronald Bilius Weasley's birthday. He is one of the main characters in J K Rowling's famous Harry Potter book series. He is the best friend of Harry Potter and is the second youngest Weasley, just in front of Ginny Weasley.

In the movie adaptation, he is played by Rupert Grint. Some pictures of the actor are shown below:

Rupert Grint

Rupert Grint with Daniel Radcliffe in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

From left to right: Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson and Rupert Grint

Hmmm, they always seem to be standing in the same order, don't they?

Well, actually Daniel Radcliffe is my favourite actor out of the 3. But his birthday is in July so I have to wait till then before I can gush about him. Anyway I found some pictures that are backdated to 2001, when they first appeared in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone:

From left to right: Rupert, Daniel and Emma

From left to right: Daniel, Rupert and Emma

They are so cute, aren't they? Now they have grown up so fast and by the time Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince arrive this July, they would have been adults, in western terms. Man, I can't wait for the movie to arrive!!! Warner Bros better not delay the movie again. Grrr...

New Half Blood Prince Movie Posters

According to HPANA, there are some new high resolution movie posters released for Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince.

They look quite mysterious and gloomy at the same time. See the pictures below for illustrations.

Professor Dumbledore

Harry Potter

According to the date printed on the poster, the upcoming movie is slated for release on 17 July 2009. Oh man, I can't wait for the movie to arrive soon! It was supposed to be released last year but Warner Bros changed its mind. *sighs*

Anyway, Daniel Radcliffe looks so cool in this poster. He has certainly grown into this character ever since he first started acting as Harry Potter when he was just 11 years old.

Let's hope the new movie will surpass its predecessors and create new records for the Harry Potter franchise.

New Japanese Trailer for Half Blood Prince

According to HPANA, a new Japanese trailer for Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince has just been made available online via Youtube. I have attached the video below for easy referencing:





Daniel looks good in this trailer and I can't wait for the new movie to be released as soon as possible. July seems so far even though I know time can fly by in a flash. Warner Bros is making the fans wait and wait even though it has no reason to. *sighs*

Tales of Beedle the Bard is the Fastest Selling Book for 2008

According to Telegraph, J K Rowling's latest book, The Tales of Beedle the Bard, has just become the fastest selling book for 2008.

The Tales of Beedle the Bard – mentioned in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, the latest book in the wizard boy series – sold 367,625 copies in the first three days after publication on December 4.

It is apparent that her fans are still very supportive of her even though she had wrapped up the Harry Potter universe. That includes me as well. So I am very happy that her latest book has done so well, especially since it's going to be sold for charitable purposes.

Till to date, I still can't bring myself to read it as I want to prolong my reading period as long as possible. Then I won't have to let go of Harry so fast. Weird, isn't it?

Anyway, let's savour the book's success for now, before another new book comes in to take away the feat.

=)

Yay! I finally got my copy of Tales of Beedle the Bard!

Tales of Beedle the Bard is finally released in Singapore on 4th December 2008 and I am very delighted to have bought my own copy at Popular's Bookshop yesterday evening.

Tales of Beedle the Bard was initially intended to be given to six people who are most closely connected to its author, J K Rowling and as well as through helping her throughout the 17 years of her Harry Potter journey.

A seventh copy was eventually made to be auctioned off at Sotherby's in London to raise funds for The Children's Voice campaign by The Children's High Level Group. The book was bought by Amazon.com at a record price of £1,950,000 and the proceeds helped to improve the lives of institutionalized children across Europe.

Below are some images of the original hand-made book by J K Rowling:
















Amazon.com has decided to publish the book to all Harry Potter fans, much to every Muggles' delight. w00t! A Collector's Edition is also available for sale through Amazon here. However, at a price of $100, I am better off with buying the standard UK version. The Collector's Edition comes with the following:

• All five fairy tales from the original The Tales of Beedle the Bard
• Outer case disguised as a wizarding textbook from the Hogwarts library
• 10 ready-for-framing prints of J.K. Rowling's illustrations
• Exclusive reproduction of J.K. Rowling's handwritten introduction
• 10 new illustrations by J.K. Rowling not included in the Standard Edition or the original handcrafted edition
• Velvet bag embroidered with J.K. Rowling's signature
• Metal skull, corners, and clasp
• Replica gemstones
• Emerald ribbon

The collection sure sounds cool but it's simply too expensive for me to buy, especially since the Sing dollar is so weak against the UK sterling pound. =(




So I contended myself with the standard edition. A picture of my copy of the book is posted below:




Hmm, the picture is not very well-taken though. In any case, the book is being retailed for S$19.26 at Popular's Bookshop. With the 20% discount off top-selling books, I only had to pay S$15.41 for my copy.

Thank goodness I didn't make a preorder as the price would have been S$21.95. So now I am still admiring my book and I have yet to start reading it. It's such a joy to be holding it in my hands for the moment. For this book will almost signify the end of the Harry Potter world, which has kept me enthralled for so long.

Rowling did mentioned that she might one day publish a Harry Potter encyclopedia of her own but how soon will that day come, no one knows. However, no one ever wants the Harry Potter dream to end. At the very least, that's how I'm feeling right now.

During the years when Rowling was still writing the story through to the seventh book, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, I could still remembered the long wait for each Harry book to be completed, published and released to the world at the exact midnight. Though I did not queue overnight to get my hands on the books, I did made preorders to ensure that I get my own copy of the book.

The moment I get my book, I would hurry back home and settle down in my bed to start my journey into the magical world once more. And each time, Rowling did not disappoint. I'd still remember the day that I flipped the final page of the Deathly Hallows. Harry's journey had came to an end. No more eighth book or nth book to look forward to anymore.

That's why when Rowling announced that she had written Tales of Beedle the Bard, I became instantly happy for I know that there will be a day when this new book will get published and come into my hands. When that happens, I will get transported back to Harry's magical world again, even though it will be for a short time.

Boy, I sound so much like a crazy fan, don't I? Still, I don't mind going through all that again if I have a choice once more. For now, I shall be walking through the magical world with Tales of Beedle the Bard.

Tada!

JK Rowling Talks About Her Fave Harry Potter Scene

According to Mugglenet's source, JK Rowling has contributed an extract of her favourite Harry Potter scene to The Birthday Book, which marks the 60th birthday of the Prince of Wales.

In it, she talks about Harry's walk into the Dark forest, where Voldermort is waiting to kill him to end the prophesy that was foretold by Professor Trelawney many years ago. She wrote on Harry's accepptance of his fate by his own will rather by the expectations of the Wizarding World which expects him to destroy the evil Voldermort once and for all.

He could have chosen the easy way out by rejecting his fate and goes away from the Wizarding World to avoid confrontation with Voldermort. Yet he's brave enough to face his own destiny, that he is the only one who can destroy Voldermort and he walks his final path with conviction.

Albus Dumbledore is proud of Harry and is rightfully so. As a fan of the Harry Potter series, I am also feeling proud of Harry. JK Rowling's portrayal of Harry is so vivid and rich that makes it easy for readers and fans to connect to him on a personal level.

Now that the series has drawn to a close, I feel very sad that there will be no more insights into Harry's wondrous world. Nonetheless, I still possess the 7 books of the series and can still re-read them to relive the memories of Harry and his friends.

There is also the release of The Tales of Beedle the Bard and I am going to preorder it next week so that I can get my hands on the book. Man I can't wait for 4th December to arrive soon enough!

w00t!!!

Interesting Commentary on Twilight Series

If you haven't heard about the Twilight series by now, you should seriously thank your lucky stars for that. No, seriously.

IF, by chance, you are interested to know about this series, you should try wikipedia. It's got a brief summaries of all 4 books that will help you to understand the series in a jiffy.

Alternatively, you can also check out Cleolinda's LJ, in which she gives her own commentary on all 4 books and trust me, you will have fun reading her comments. She's downright hilarious and witty in her excerpts. Which kind of makes me feel inferior. It's true, I swear.

My writing is so boring compared to hers. I should really, really learn a pointer or two from her. But for now, you should satisfy your Twilight craving by visiting her site. It's definitely worth a visit.

Cheers!

PS. I should have just stick to my Harry Potter. Darn. I absolutely love JK Rowling.

It's 10 Years Since...

It was 10 years ago when Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone was first published to worldwide fame.

Now Scholastic is celebrating the 10th anniversary for the first Harry Potter book. Time truly flies and even I didn't realise that it's been 10 long years ever since the series was first started by J K Rowling.

Too bad I can't join in the celebration as I don't live in New York city, the headquarters of Scholastic.

Nonetheless I am happy that the Harry Potter series has come so far in its journey and even though the last book has been released, I still can't bear to let go of the series and the fantasy world which Rowling has created.

Everything about the Harry Potter universe has been so wonderful and for me, I will treasure my Harry Potter books no matter what.

Long live Harry Potter and J K Rowling!

=D

Harry Potter Stars to Attend Teen's Funeral

According to Telegraph, Daniel Radcliffe and other Harry Potter stars will be attending Robert Knox' funeral, who was tragically killed on May 16 in a knife attack.

Daniel Radcliffe as Harry Potter in the upcoming Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince

It will no doubt be a sombre affair but at the same time, it's touching to know that Dan and the other stars are paying their respects to a barely known star. Such an amazing display of camaradie is indeed heartwarming.

May Robert Knox rest in peace.