I made sure to see it in IMAX in 3D and TOTALLY loved it!! While purists are pissed that many things in the book were left out of the movie, I absolutely commend the filmmakers for continuing to bring the books to life in the best way they can. The movies will never do the books justice. Never. Ever. Never. Movies cannot be 8 hours long so things have to be left out. I honestly believe the Harry Potter movies just keep getting better. It’s amazing how much the cute little kids have grown into young adults. Their acting performances have gotten better with age as well. Tom Felton as Draco Malfoy was a revelation … his performance was excellent. I loved the blue tint quality that the movie had over all … it felt a lot like a black & while film. I really did love this big screen adapation … I want to see it again. The opening portion in IMAX 3D was fun … I might have to see it again ;)

Also, it’s time for me to re-read the series. When my reading pile gets a little smaller, I’m planning on re-reading all of the Harry Potter books straight thru. I need to be ready for the final, 2-part film Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. I think the only way to do the final book justice is over 2 movies … perhaps, at last, HP purisists will be satisfied.

Tonight, I’m planning on hanging out with my friend Tony … not sure what we’re gonna be doing but I haven’t seen him in ages. It’ll be good to hang out again :)

If Potions Professor Horace Slughorn had mixed a brew to conjure up torrential rain, the weather could not have been worse for the premiere of “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.” Dedicated fans braved thunder, lightning and Biblical downpours in London’s Leicester Square to catch a glimpse of the film’s stars arriving at the opening of the sixth film in the wildly popular “Harry Potter” franchise. While dreadful weather has become an unfortunate tradition at Potter premieres (it rained during the 2007 premiere of “Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix”), the latest installment holds something new for fans. “The Half-Blood Prince” offers up an uncommonly large helping of humor as Harry, Hermione and Ron enter their sixth year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. “I think this film’s funnier,” said star Daniel Radcliffe who plays the titular young hero. “There are a couple of moments which I laughed out loud at.” Hormones are also running high inside the castle walls, with romances blossoming between some of the formerly chaste characters. But, says director David Yates, for all the romance and humor, the film still has a very dark side. “It is a bit bipolar,” Yates told CNN. “On the one hand, there’s all this snogging and romance and on the other hand people are getting killed and bridges are being blown up.” “The humor is there to kind of leaven the intensity of what happens later on in the movie,” he added. If the latest Harry Potter installment treads more adult terrain, it’s not just because the three lead actors — who started as unknown children — have grown up. The three have amassed huge fortunes and international recognition off the back of the films. Daniel Radcliffe wowed Broadway by going nude in “Equus,” Emma Watson has become the face of Burberry and Rupert Grint recently hit the headlines with a dose of swine flu. A dark storyline runs through the core of “The Half-Blood Prince”: The ascendancy of the malevolent Lord Voldemort threatens the wizarding world, while tragic events provide some genuinely scary moments and spell the end of childhood for Harry and the others. “I think it’s aimed at a slightly older audience,” says Emma Watson, 19, who plays bookish heroine Hermione Granger in the franchise. “I think the films have grown up with the audience” … Fans have had to wait an extra eight months for the latest installment after Warner Bros (which, like CNN, is owned by Time Warner) delayed the release of the movie after the success of “The Dark Knight” to spread out its blockbusters. It is estimated the film cost $250 million to make. The last film, “Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix,” came out in 2007 and took $938 million at the box office worldwide. The five films have so far made $4.5 billion in worldwide box office, making it the most successful movie franchise in history. The Harry Potter franchise is based on the best-selling series of books by British writer J.K Rowling. The first film, “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone,” directed by Chris Columbus, was released in 2001.

OMG RELEASE THIS MOVIE ALREADY!!! We still have about a week left to wait for the film to hit theaters and I’m already freakin’ out about it. The Harry Potter story gets seriously serious in Half-Blood Prince and I can’t wait to see it on the big screen. Even tho those Londoners had to get soaked to the bone at last night’s premiere, I envy that they’ve been able to see the film already. I can’t even wait any more … Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince opens in theaters on July 15. Are y’all as excited as I am?

[Photo credit: Splash News; Source]

The official British site has been newly revamped with new animations, new music and loads of new goodies (all downloadable HERE). In addition to this new batch of movie posters you can also find wallpapers, AIM icons and more. After the jump, check out the other new posters that have just been made available to fans …

It appears the theme of this new batch of photos is “relationships”. I suspect that this may be the last bunch of promo materials to be released before the movie FINALLY hits theaters. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince opens on July 15 … and not a moment too soon.

[Source]

Each of the main characters has another more nefarious person standing behind them. Draco Malfoy is behind Harry Potter, Horace Slughorn is behind Hermoine Granger, Fenrir Greyback is behind Ron Weasley and Severus Snape is behind Albus Dumbledore. Head on over to MuggleNet.com to check out hi-res versions of these posters … they’re pretty sweet. It shant be long now … Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince will be upon us soon!

[Source]

Half-Blood Prince has been given a new release date of July 15, 2009 but considering as long as we’ve been forced to wait for this new film, I’ll take what I can get … having the film open two days earlier is just fine by me. I’m so happy that the film just looks better and better with each new trailer we get. After the jump, check out this new trailer in full …

I can’t get over how adult the kids look … I mean, I know while reading the books we learn that the “kids” are maturing but seeing the actors look all mature really drives home the point. This movie will be amazing … I can’t wait to see it. While it would’ve been nice to see it last year (like originally planned), having it postponed to this Summer gives us something to look forward to. Aren’t these posters great? It’s awesome to have Harry Potter back on the scene again.

[Source]

Finally … the delayed release of this movie really didn’t sit well with many people so I’m sure there are a lot of fans who are looking forward to the resumption of Harry Potter’s exploits in this new film. After the jump, check out two more Harry Potter 6 teaser posters that have also been released today …

Albus Dumbledore, FTW! He is absolutely my fave HP character (and not because he is gay either). While I am not too much looking forward to seeing his eventual fate acted out on the big screen, I am glad that he will be a big component of The Half-Blood Prince. For those of you lookin’ for HP 6 goodies, you can click HERE to see 21 movie stills from the film. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince hits theaters on July 7th.

[Source]