The Scene: 'Potter's' 'I killed Sirius Black'

By JD Cargill
CNN

(CNN) -- "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" hit thousands of theater screens across the country at midnight Wednesday.


Ginny Weasley and Harry Potter develop a romance in "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince."

Since then, fans have been buzzing about some of the film's most impressive scenes -- including one called "I killed Sirius Black."

In the scene, Potter is confronted by Death Eater Bellatrix Lestrange, who is creating mischief for both the boy wizard and his latest crush, Ginny Weasley. (Death Eaters are followers of the series villain, Voldemort.)

Exhilarating for some, but frustrating for others, this particular scene from the franchise's sixth installment is a cinematic creation, as it never occurs in the J.K. Rowling novel.


That aside, it includes pyrotechnic explosions, blazing fires, a massive chase sequence and the use of dark arts -- the Harry Potter version of black magic.

In this week's "The Scene," actors Daniel Radcliffe, who plays Harry Potter; Bonnie Wright, who stars as Ginny Weasley; and director David Yates comment on the action.

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'Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince' reunites a roster of Britain's finest actors

The "Harry Potter" movies bedazzle not only with special effects, but also with their Shakespearean casts. Some of Britain's top actors portray mentors and dark spirits.

Going all the way back to the first term at Hogwarts, the ensemble has included notable elders, from the late Richard Harris as the kindly Albus Dumbledore to the formidable Ralph Fiennes as Harry's arch enemy, Lord Voldemort.

This summer, "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince," which opens July 15, features returning stars Maggie Smith, Alan Rickman, Helena Bonham Carter, Michael Gambon and Robbie Coltrane. New to the cast is Oscar-winner Jim Broadbent, who enters the picture as potion expert Horace Slughorn.

"The Harry Potter world is a crowded world, and we always try to choose actors who are very vivid," says casting director Fiona Weir, whose first "Potter" film was 2005's "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire." "Even though they can play into the heightened 'Harry Potter' world, it's important they remain truthful and naturalistic."

Hogwarts has been like acting school for the younger cast members. Tom Felton, a k a Draco Malfoy, says he has learned by observing the other performers at work. Draco was introduced as a school bully in earlier episodes, but the character becomes decidedly more sinister in "Half-Blood Prince."

"Our teachers are the best actors in the world," says Felton, who will make an appearance at the Garden State Plaza in Paramus on Friday. "Sometimes you've got to remind yourself to stay in character, because you can just sit there and marvel at how each of these people jump from their own persona to this whole other persona."

Between takes, Felton said, he chatted with Bonham Carter, who portrays a ghastly predator named Bellatrix.

"Helena is such a lovely, highly educated lady," says Felton. "She'll be telling me about something interesting that happened in the 16th century and straight away, when they roll cameras, she turns into the most evil woman I've ever seen in my life."

The franchise is firmly rooted in England. Rather than recruiting American stars to feign British accents, a la Renee Zellweger in "Bridget Jones's Diary," the producers have consistently drawn from the British talent pool.

"These are British stories, and over here we have a wealth of fabulous actors," says Weir. She works in collaboration with director David Yates, who's been at the helm since 2007's "Order of the Phoenix." They've just started production on the series' coda, "The Deathly Hallows," which is to be released in two parts.

"We don't have a blockbuster film culture like there is in America," notes Weir. "Our actors, a majority of them, come from a theater background or come from an independent film background."

The list of "Potter" alums reads like a West End who's who. Past installments have featured such thespians as Kenneth Branagh, Emma Thompson, Gary Oldman, John Hurt and Imelda Staunton. It may seem an unlikely assortment for a series based on children's books, but Weir says "Potter" has its own allure for performers.

"It's a unique phenomenon," she explains. "Some of the cast came to it knowing the minutiae of the stories, and for some it's their first experience with it and they devour the books. More than one actor has said, 'My children will forgive me for everything I ever do if I get to be in the film.'"

One of the toughest roles to fill was Lord Voldemort, a villain as mythical as Darth Vader and Hannibal Lecter combined.

"That was a big challenge, but Ralph was the only person, really, for that part," says Weir. "I'll never forget him in 'Schindler's List.' There was no one in the world more frightening than the commandant he played."

Bonham Carter was also selected based upon her work in a completely different genre.

"Ever since 'Fight Club,' she's been playing quite frightening people," says Weir.

The characters have grown more complex as the saga nears its closing chapter. Draco emerges as a powerful nemesis in "Half-Blood Prince." Felton was struck by the transformation when the novel debuted four years ago.

"My friend told me, 'You have to get the book,'" Felton says. "I had a feeling something was happening with Draco, but I had no idea it would become this whole other scale. Draco's no longer calling Harry names. He's trying to kill him."

In terms of typecasting, Felton isn't overly concerned because he changes his appearance to play Draco, bleaching his hair. He's already seen one former cast-mate flourish post-Potter.

"I don't think it affected Robert Pattinson too much," he says, referring to the "Twilight" star, who portrayed a doomed student in "Goblet of Fire." "He's showing us the way."

Credit by : nj.com

Review : Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

Review: The best Potter movie, blending rich drama and easy camaraderie among the actors with the visual spectacle that until now has been the real star of the series. It doesn't skimp on the Quidditch action, sorcery duels or occult pyrotechnics, but they're simply part of the show now. "Half-Blood Prince" brims with authentic people and honest interaction. David Germain, Associated Press Now playing. Stars: Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint, Jim Broadbent, Michael Gambon Director: David Yates Studio: Warner Bros. Web site: harrypotter.warnerbros.com Rated: PG for scary images, some violence, language and mild sensuality. Running time: 153 minutes.

Credit by : The Journal News.

'Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince' actors face challenge of keeping careers magical

This was one time Tom Felton, one of the stars of "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince," could have really used a spell of protection.

Chauffeured to a recent appearance at a store opening, the 21-year-old actor found a throng of jubilant admirers waiting for him.

"We felt like the Beatles because there were people cheering," says Felton, who is still sporting his dyed blond locks from his turn as the dastardly Draco Malfoy. "We thought we would put the window down and be like, 'Hi, it's nice to see you.'

"We put the window down, this woman reached right in and grabbed my hair," he says, reenacting his squirming under the fan's grasp. "'Pull the window up, pull the window up!'"

Welcome to life for a student of the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, where the young actors are learning the pressures of a franchise that has earned almost $4.5 billion at the box office worldwide.

But with the sixth installment of the franchise hitting theaters and the last two movies currently being filmed simultaneously, a major crossroads is looming for the franchise's young actors. Will there be enough magic left in their careers after Harry Potter?

"The success that they've had in the eight years would make an entire career for most people, but they've turned into really good actors over the course of the last few years and hopefully that ability will help them transcend these roles," says Paul Dergarabedian, box office analyst for Hollywood.com.

But the movie industry is littered with the wreckage of the careers of former child actors that couldn't make the transition into adult roles. For every Jodie Foster, there are a dozen Lindsay Lohans and Macaulay Culkins.

"They're waiting for you to become the stereotypical child actor and go off the wheels a bit," says "Potter" veteran Rupert Grint, 20. "But I'm not planning on it. We're too busy to go too crazy, anyway, because we're filming most of the year."

The films' young stars also have one major advantage over child actors past: They're working with a cast heavy on award-winning British veterans like Alan Rickman and Dame Maggie Smith. Harry himself, Daniel Radcliffe, said he agreed to take on his gutsy role in "Equus" on castmate Kenneth Branagh's recommendation.

"Can you imagine how intimidating that must have been for them when they were starting out," says director David Yates. "By osmosis, they've probably been picking up so much, because the only actors they've ever worked with are these incredible veterans who are the best at what they do."



There's also the inevitable type-casting that comes with being in one of the biggest film franchises of all time — even Sean Connery had a hard time shaking the mantle of James Bond.

"Well, I wouldn't mind being Bond," says Felton, "then it would be see you later, Potter."

But it will be hard for them to let Potter go.

At a press conference in New York last week, Radcliffe reminisced about filming a scene from "Half-Blood Prince" that he's sure will be one of the highlights of his career. It's an action-packed sequence when he emerges from the water, encircled by both flames and an army of "Inferi," to witness Dumbledore (Michael Gambon) unleashing hell from his wand to vanquish the computer-generated creatures.

"And then I get to climb up onto the central island and I see Michael Gambon there looking like God or Moses just swirling fire around his head," says Radcliffe. "It was one of those moments where I went… 'It does not matter how many more films I do, I will never have this scene or anything like it again.'"

Both Radcliffe and Felton say they see inspiration in an older, former co-star who worked on "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire." Hollywood's newest hunk Robert Pattinson is currently filming "Twilight: New Moon," the second movie in the upstart vampire franchise that leads the industry in screaming, hair-grabbing fans.

Just because it's now "Twilight" time, however, doesn't mean the sun is setting on the world of Harry Potter.

"It probably will be quite devastating when it ends, because our lives have literally revolved around it since we were 9 or 10," says Emma Watson. "God knows how I'll feel, but I still have got a while left for filming. I've still got two films to promote, so I don't have to worry just yet.

"I just don't feel like this will ever really be over for us. … I think Harry Potter's too big."

Credit by : nynews.