Two Quickie Reviews

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire: I was able to go and see the latest installment of the Harry Potter franchise yesterday afternoon. I had read a bit about it, mostly positive, with a few reviews asserting that there was something missing with this one, that perhaps it lacked the heart of its predecessors. I am here to refute that assertion.

The latest adventures from Hogwarts has Harry, Ron, Hermione and the rest of them firmly in the grip of adolescence. they are 14. I don't know if you have all purged the years from 13 to 15 from your memories, but those are wretched years, full of insecurity, awkwardness, and out-of-control hormones, and HP: GOF captures these years as well as any movie I have seen. The events surrounding a Hogwarts Ball are almost painfully vivid in their recapturing of the dreaded junior high dance. I almost relived Carrie Pfenning rejecting me in 7th grade. Meanwhile at the heart of the plot is a competition for the most talented of the older wizards (age limit: 17) into which Harry somehow gets plunged (PLOT DEVICE ALERT!!!). The competition consists of three tasks with deadly potential. All of this culminates in the return of Voldemort.

This sequel is clearly transitional -- the stage is set for what is yet to come. I am one of those folks who comes to everyone's favorite bespectacled wizard-in-training via the big screen, and I only plan to read the books after the movie series is completed, because the movies have compellingly provided my image of the characters and the school, and besides, I don't have time to dive into a multi-book fantasy series at this point when books I need to read threaten to take over my desk and office. But as soon as the movie ended I lamented the fact that we will likely not see the next installment for quite some time.

One of the aspects of the movies that I most like also provides my one caveat: This is not one to which to bring your toddlers or grade-school children because as Harry and the others have grown up, the movies have grown with them. The movies are thrilling, but for the little ones, there is simply too much violence and gore, and even death. This is a series that grows with its first audience. Fture generations will get to grow along with them. But don't let advertising campaigns accelerate that growth. This is a more mature Harry Potter, and its heart might be somewhat hidden under adolescent pain and awkwardness, but that heart certainly beats clearly.

The Red Sox Acquire Josh Beckett:. Derek likes this one very much. Very, very much. Two Thumbs Up. A+. Five Stars. Five out of Five. It almost makes the Manny Trade watch a bit less painful.