If you are one of those who subscribe to Entertainment Weekly, then you were one of the many who were treated to a couple of great articles for Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix in the latest edition. Besides the 'exclusive' images, that are now available online, one of the reports gave a quick mention on items that didn't make the cut while being transferred from book to film.
Reported Missing: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
When you have an extended book (800+ pages) with chapters the length of a Bible, then it is a guarantee that some of the book's plot lines -- and even entire characters -- will not make the cut on film. Here are some things you are guaranteed not to see in the film:
3. They couldn't film everything in the book
Come on, give them a break — Phoenix runs to 870 pages! Longtime series screenwriter Steve Kloves sat Phoenix out — he'll be back next time — and left new scribe Michael Goldenberg (Contact, Peter Pan) a major compression job. The main plot is intact, as Harry becomes a resistance fighter against the repressive Ministry of Magic. But all that stuff about Ron Weasley becoming a Quidditch king? Cut. Mrs. Weasley's pestilent boggart? Nixed. Dobby the house elf? Poof — gone. Young wizard Neville Longbottom's poor, mad parents in St. Mungo's hospital? Snipped. If you ask Radcliffe, these details aren't crucial. ''This is one where the fans will be especially pleased,'' the actor says. ''It's chock-full of stuff.'' (Despite that density, the producers say Phoenix will run under two and a half hours and be the shortest film so far.) And for those who hate abridged scenarios? ''The book is there if you want to read the book,'' Radcliffe says. ''People should be able to let that go.'' But Rupert Grint sounds a little bummed that Ron is more than ever a peripheral figure. ''I was quite looking forward to the Quidditch stuff,'' he says. ''Maybe next year.''
Dobby the house elf has been shit on since Goblet of Fire, so seeing him go is no surprise. SPEW (Society for the Promotion of Elfish Welfare) got no love in Goblet, so why give Hermione's organization love in this installment? Since Quidditch is slowly getting phased out of the books, Warner Bros. has no problem phasing the CG-rich sport out of the films.
There is one point above that does disappoint - St. Mungo's and Neville's parents. Neville's importance in the Potter franchise blooms in OotP, and the character's parents also deserve their due.
What about the locket quickly discovered in Black's house at the beginning of OotP? Did Warner Bros keep that? If they did, assume that JK Rowling gave them a wink to do so.
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix opens
to theatres on July 13th.
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