Wizards and a funeral

Unless you’ve been living in a cave, you’ve probably at least heard of the wildly imaginative Harry Potter books by J.K. Rowling and the three successful movies that have been released over the last five years.

“Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire,” though still featuring all-magic-all-the-time, shifts its focus more to the realities of everyday life. Gone is the childhood of the main characters, the young wizards Harry, Ron and Hermione. These three, now 14, must cope with the much weightier subjects of insecurity, love, jealousy and death.

Mike Newell, famous for his “Four Weddings and a Funeral,” directs this film at a brisk pace. There is a lot of material to be covered from the book, so the camera does not have time to linger too lovingly on the dazzling special effects (as it did in the first two films by Chris Columbus).

Harry (Daniel Radcliffe) is mysteriously entered into a wizards tournament, a competition among three schools that is deemed so dangerous it is restricted to older students. This divides the Hogwarts students into two camps -- some are rooting for Harry, others for handsome Cedric Diggory.

Also competing is Fleur Delacour, whose lovely blond femininity makes Ron (Rupert Grint) stammer; tall, silent hunk Viktor Krum manages to make Hermoine (Emma Watson) grow up literally before our eyes.

Harry is developing a crush on pretty Cho Chang but, like Ron, is unsure what to do about it. Their angst over getting a date for the Winter Ball is sweetly familiar.

Grint and Watson are really coming into their own as actors. Radcliffe is a bit stiff but still garners sympathy for his role as a boy who’s both admired and resented, an outsider among his peers and a geek around girls.

The supporting performances by Britain’s premier actors is again icing on the cake. Michael Gambon, Maggie Smith, Robbie Coltrane, Gary Oldman and the deliciously sour Alan Rickman all make return appearances. New in this film is Brendan Gleeson as the aptly named Mad-Eye Moody, a cantankerous professor who is part wizard and part pirate -- peg leg and all.

Finally, we have Ralph Fiennes as the supremely evil Lord Voldemort, Harry’s archenemy. Fiennes makes a much more interesting villain than leading man, in spite of makeup that looks to be left over from “The English Patient.” His silky-smooth voice and haughty manner reek of evil.

Like the first “Star Wars” trilogy, the Harry Potter series is gradually crossing over to the dark side. Those looking for a happy ending in “Goblet of Fire” may be a bit dissatisfied but should feel confident that all good things come to those who wait for the next in the series.

* SUSANNE PEREZ lives in Costa Mesa and is an executive assistant for a financial services company.

Another take on ‘Goblet of Fire’

There’s a flickering light in the loft above the cemetery. “Kids,” scoffs the innkeeper as he places his tea kettle onto the kitchen stove. Lantern in hand, he makes his way through the graveyard toward the source of light.

He climbs the stairwell, wooden planks creaking beneath his feet. He stops, looking into the room beyond. Inside are three men, two of them despicable villains at the receiving end of orders from their weak and ailing master.

As the innkeeper spies on their secret meeting, a serpent-like creature slithers stealthily by, weaving to and fro as it glides into the occupied room. In a tongue of his own, the serpent reveals the innkeeper’s presence, and consequences ensue.

At the instant of his discovery, pearls of sweat roll down an emotionally exhausted boy’s face as he wakes up to his friend Hermione shaking him out of his nightmarish reality. The dream is but an antecedent of its own ultimate circumstance. The boy is its link. The boy is Harry Potter.

The film is, in essence, the story of the fourth year of Harry Potter’s life at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, and his never-ending battle with You-Know-Who.

Oh, yeah, and there’s this thing called the Goblet of Fire, which ultimately leads to a contest between three, or rather four, wizards; this goblet is the metaphorical source of all turmoil that exists in this story. Though emblematically good, figuratively it’s not such a nice thing.

Despite the inevitable comparisons made between books and movies based on them, in this case it is somewhat difficult to identify which version gives a more satisfactory element of pleasure and imagination. No detraction can be made from J.K. Rowling’s creativity and originality; there just can’t be. Abstractions are what exercise the mind’s ability to produce recognizable and concrete images that meet each individual’s standards. It forces you to have an opinion.

Movies, however, meet these certain criteria with limitations. That’s not to say they aren’t good.

This movie is great. It holds the audience’s attention the whole time without going on unnecessary excursions to Tangent Land.

While this film did neglect to include some scenes that seemed overwhelmingly important to the success of the novel, the exclusion of these pieces set the film in absolute harmony.

The use of the excess may have jeopardized the flow and could have made for an extremely long movie, though I’m not really sure that it would have been such a big deal.

Once again, the same fabulous cast offers a performance that truly captures the story. Watching them grow and develop as people, the viewer cannot help but feel a sense of “my baby is all grown up.”

Yet another chapter is complete. Yet another duel has been fought. Yet another dream has been dreamt. And when it comes down to it, this world is just like ours. Only it’s magical.

* SARA SALAM is a senior at Corona del Mar High School.

Walking the line with Johnny Cash

Director James Mangold stretched his credentials with the complex thriller “Identity” in 2003.

In “Walk the Line,” he paints the early tumultuous years of Johnny Cash with a more conventional brush. There are familiar elements with predictable moments and cliches common in musical biographies. But the dynamic acting and obvious chemistry between the stars of this movie lift this film to a higher level.

Joaquin Phoenix doesn’t channel Johnny Cash in the surreal way that Jamie Foxx played Ray Charles to earn a best actor Oscar last year. But Phoenix has more than enough charisma to bring the country music legend to life.

Reese Witherspoon is beautifully cast in the role of her career as June Carter. She brings real depth and character to this role and catapults herself into the ranks of Hollywood’s A-list actors.

The long-suffering relationship between Johnny and June is the core of this story. The simple screenplay presents a series of vignettes from their lives punctuated by drugs, discord and great concert moments. The two of them sing all the musical numbers in their own voices with great confidence, lending weight to their vibrant performances on stage.

This movie is a little too long and not without flaws. But if you come for the music, you’ll stay for the fine acting and find that it does justice to the Man in Black.

* JOHN DEPKO is a Costa Mesa resident and a senior investigator for the Orange County public defender’s office.

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