Harry Potter And The Half Blood Prince

I will start this off by saying that I am not a purist about these movies. When they capture the mood of the books as well as enthrall me with their spell, I leave the theater happy. Yes, stuff gets left out, or changed, but I have so far never been really disappointed by any of the films. This one was no exception. I was memerized from start to finish, and left the theater feeling like it all went by way to fast, why was it so short, oh, it's been two and a half hours. Basically, I loved it and enjoyed myself greatly. I have not read the sixth book since it was published, so I do not remember specifics about what all ws left out. I know there was quite a bit of Voldemort/Tom Riddle backstory left out, but I felt that what was left in sufficed to make their point. I did think that the Half Blood Prince parts got a little short changed - and the blatant announcement by Snape at the end was a little blunt, but that is a minor issue in an otherwise well done film. I also found it somewhat weird that they never said any of the minor character's names - Lavender was only once reffered to as "Lav", and Tonks was in and out without being called by her name once. Not a big deal for die hards, but kind of distracting for people who can't remember quite as well (like the lady next to me who kept asking her boyfriend "what's that guy's name?). I doubt it would have killed them to change lines from 'be careful' to 'be careful, Tonks.' But again, small issue. Overall I was pleased with this movie, and had a great time watching it, although it does certainly prime you for the final two. Watching this one I was really struck by the fact that while obviously a major plot point occurs, there is no real climactic battle or stand alone story. More than any of the other books and films, it really only serves as a prologue for the final chapters. And given that there won't be any more movies for a year, that makes this one a little less satisfying. But only a little - cause I had a kick ass time.