Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

Title: Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
Year: 2009
Director: David Yates
Writer: Steve Kloves, based on the novel by J.K. Rowling
Starring: Daniel Radcliffe, Michael Gambon, Rupert Grint, Emma Watson, Jim Broadbent
Music: Nicholas Hooper
Distinctions: Oscar nomination for Best Cinematography
Length: 153 minutes
Synopsis: the headmaster of the school for wizards uses a celebrity student to get information about an evil wizard from a teacher
How I saw it: in the theater, today
Subjective Rating: 6/10 (Okay).
Objective Rating: 8/10 (points off for pacing and cinematography) c. 2.7/4 (Good).

It kept my interest. Good movie, but it felt like it was constantly just missing what it could have been; for instance, the climax took place off screen. There are a lot of scenes which seem like they should be a big deal - and fans of the books would have been upset if they were left out - such as the attack on the Weasley residence, which have no real connection to anything else in the movie. [edit: Wait, that scene wasn't actually in the book, so why did they add it? To demonstrate how Death Eater attacks don't result in anyone getting hurt?] The narrative is hurt a lot by being tied down to the established format of being told primarily from Harry's perspective; the potentially much more interesting story is about Snape and Malfoy, both of whom have disproportionately small roles.