Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #183 in DVD
• Released on: 2009-06-15
• Rating: Suitable for 12 years and over
• Format: PAL
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 132 minutes

Synopsis
Young wizard-in-training Harry Potter (Daniel Radcliffe) returns to Hogwarts for his fifth year of studies, only to find that the magical community seems to be in a curious state of denial about his recent encounter with the sinister Lord Voldemort (Ralph Fiennes) in the fifth instalment of the popular fantasy film series based on the best-selling books by author J.K. Rowling. Rumour has it that the dreaded Lord Voldemort has returned, but Minister for Magic Cornelius Fudge (Robert Hardy) isn't so sure what to make of all the hearsay currently floating around the campus of Hogwarts. Suspecting that Headmaster Albus Dumbledore (Michael Gambon) may be fuelling the rumours regarding Voldemort's return in order to undermine his authority and lay claim to his job, Fudge entrusts newly arrived Defence Against the Dark Arts professor Dolores Umbridge (Imelda Staunton) with the task of tracking Dumbledore and keeping a protective watch over the nervous student body. The young wizards of Hogwarts will need something much more effective than Umbridge's Ministry-approved course in defensive magic if they are to truly succeed in the extraordinary battle that lies ahead, however, and when the administration fails to provide the students with the tools that they will need to defend Hogwarts against the fearsome powers of the Dark Arts, Hermione (Emma Watson), Ron (Rupert Grint), and Harry take it upon themselves to recruit a small group of students to form 'Dumbledore's Army' in preparation for the ultimate supernatural showdown.

Customer Reviews

An excellent film but a poor book adaptation.
I strongly strongly recommend you read the book before watching the film. That goes for the whole series but particularly for this one because this film does not do the book justice. In terms of film quality though this is very impressive, hence the 4* rating. They miss plotlines out which is of course expected but I believe this is the longest book and the shortest film which was a silly choice in my opinion. It flew by dreadfully fast, the first 6 capters all happened in the space of 15 mins. I wonder I had not read the book beforehand how much of this film I would understand - not very much I think as the film jumps around.

The biggest plus for this film is that it is visually spectacular, particularly the firework display and the film climax. I was impressed with Evanna Lynch, newcomer, and Daniel Radcliffe who has come on in leaps and bounds since the first film, this is the first time in my opinion when his acting can't be described as shaky. However, Michael Gambon has not read the books and as a result hasn't got Dumbledore quite right, he's supposed to be the height of calm, and polite - the perfect gentleman and headteacher, and he snapped at the students in this one!

In conclusion, this is a great family film but please read the books before watching, or at least watch the series in the correct order!

Magically devious film
This film is the best harry potter film yet (thanks to david yates) with a plot and feel to the film that makes you part of the film it self. I've read all the books and this one was the worst but surprisingly the best film out of the harry potter collection. The story line is great with exciting dementor attacks from the begining. The story does seem to drag in the middle of the film but gets a huge boost at the end scene in the ministry with superb deatheater fight scenes and the finale with a legendry battle between dumbeldore and voldemort with expolsive and clever spells throughout the battle. This is a must buy to all harry potter fans as its the best film yet and its also the only film that doesnt seem to miss huge chunks out of the book. Dont listen to the other reviews as they clearly havent even picked up a harry potter book and compared it to the film, they dont know the magic behind harry potter but this film explodes the magic everywhere.

Didn't need a crystal ball for this one
New film on the way? Part of one of cinema's biggest ever franchises? Guess what? It's time to wring those last few Galleons from your purses and buy yet another re-release.
Arriving with all the excitement of a packet of poo flavoured Bertie Bott's comes this shameless cash-in. A useless single disc affair with bog all extra's & the laziest re-packaging you've ever seen,(ooh it's got what year he's in at the top of the slipcase & a picture of the noseless one himself!),.
The film itself is the best of the lot as at last even the hopeless Rupert Grint has finally learned how to act & the darker shades of the plot are exposed well. Harry has the hump as his hormones get the better of him & he sulks about grumbling about his lot in life & getting all gooey over the disturbingly tasty Cho.The action is tougher than before & our heroic three are given stellar support from a potty Brendan Gleeson, an even pottier Helena Bonham Carter & a whole host of top notch performances all of which are overshadowed by the sheer horror of Imelda Staunton's turn as the truly nasty Dolores Umbridge. The sense of frustration & unfairness is turned up until at the end the mayhem that ensues at the ministry of magic comes as a blessed relief. Only of course it's short lived & the whole film ends on a downer. Great stuff!
The same, however, cannot be said for this shameless piece of marketing. There's nothing new for the fan & if you're new to all this, (welcome back by the way, how was Mars?), then go & buy the 2 disc set. It can be bought new for less than this waste of a release.