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Barring the inherent appeal of the J.K. Rowling source material (which, to us non-Potter readers is a moot point), the winning chemistry of Radcliff, Watson, Grint and company is, finally, the only reason to stick this one out. The directorial energy and invention of the past two entries (courtesy of Alfonso Cuarón and Mike Newell) raised the bar of the Potter series beyond Chris Columbus’ rather inert and unimaginative takes on the first two Potter installments. Yates’ direction hews closer to the Columbus model than to either Cuarón’s or Newell’s inspired turns.

What Yates gives us is a joyless, by-the-numbers Harry Potter, club-footed and ponderous in tone and, generally, an exercise in patience and loyalty to have to sit through, at least for fans of the past two films. The plot is essentially another run-through of intrigue and insidiousness pitting Harry and friends against a cabal of wizards keen on seizing control of Hogwarts from Dumbledore, and, thereby, paving the way for Voldemort to close in on Harry. As the cabal’s infiltrant, Dolores Umbridge, Staunton is pitch-perfect in her twinkle-eyed, campy villainousness. Under Umbridge’s pert nose, Harry begins secretly to recruit his fellow wizards-in-training in organizing a small force to defend against Voldemort’s imminent invasion.

The previous two Potter films wielded visual creativity, but Phoenix is so flat in that department that one begins to wonder, well, where all the wonder went. The effects are a return to the embarrassing stodginess that characterized the Columbus efforts, and Yates’ storytelling, so self-serious, breaks a sweat trying to stay faithful to Rowling’s dour tone. What Yates, and likeminded adaptors need to bear in mind is that cinematic flair always trumps slavish adherence to source material, and, furthermore, just because the story’s a bummer does not mean that the storytelling ought to be. Other supporting members in the cast — Gambon, Fiennes, Oldman et al. — are all dutifully solid in their roles, as they have been in past Potter outings. And it’s that quality in the film’s performances — a lived-in, reliable sense of trust we’ve now gained for each of the series’ performers that keeps us engaged in Phoenix’s storyline. We turn to Phoenix to re-connect with performers who’ve, by now, won our hearts, only to have Yates dampen the party.

Grade: C

Directed by: David Yates
Screenplay by: Michael Goldenberg
Cast: Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint, Ralph Fiennes, Michael Gambon, Imelda Staunton, Brendan Gleeson, Gary Oldman, Julie Walters, David Thewlis

After the horrendous Sorcerer’s Stone, I stayed away from Chamber of Secrets. Chris Columbus is a hack of the lowest order and the best thing he did was to waive his directing duties for the third Harry Potter film and hand them off to Alfonso Cuarón. Cuarón is one of my favorite directors of the past ten years: He can be sardonic and whimsical at once, and that heady mix comes through in his visual flair.

The first hour and a half of Azkaban are absolutely wonderful: beautifully, almost lyrically paced, with Cuarón’s gift for visual textures, color tones and camerawork filling the screen. Early on, Cuarón style is like Terry Gilliam’s from Time Bandits–employing that dirty yellow-and-brown color combo to get at the doldrums of British middle-class life. Then, once the action flies off into the fantasyland of Hogwarts, Cuarón’s imagery delights again and again. Radcliffe, Watson, and Grint are really growing into their roles, and all consistently engaging and likeable heroes. In the movie’s final hour or so, however, it’s hijacked by the mechanics of Steve Klowes’ script. Cuarón ditches the fun and gets bogged down in perfunctory plotting that doesn’t go anywhere, and limps towards an ill-developed finale.

Azkaban takes us a notch forward in Harry’s development, but, had the story been less intrusive and snarled, it might not have spoiled Cuarón’s and our fun. Cuarón is a cinematic magician, whether it’s the spontaneous antics of Y Tu Mama Tambien or the storybook joys of A Little Princess. The guy can do no wrong.

Grade: A-

Directed by: Alfonso Cuarón
Written by: Steven Kloves
Cast: Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint, Gary Oldman, Michael Gambon, Julie Walters, Emma Thompson

Mike Newell picks up directing reins in this follow-up to Prisoner of Azkaban and it’s good to see this series really take a qualitative leap upward with the last two movies. Newell’s movie takes its stylistic cues (intentionally or not) from the wonderfully moody, almost expressionist touches that Cuarón brought to the last film but without the lightness of touch that Cuarón brings off in each of his movies. Still, I enjoy Newell’s films (Donnie Brasco in particular)–he’s got a sharp eye, his work with actors is excellent, but, at least in the case of Goblet of Fire, his filming of Steve Klowes’ admittedly heavy-handed script does plod and lag in the last hour.

The three leads continue to inhabit their roles more and more deeply with each film, and they’re all charming. The action is dark, intense, and, though Goblet of Fire feels overlong by, at least 30 minutes, I enjoyed Newell’s handling of this magical milieu. The effects are consistently brilliant (unlike the doofy effects of Sorcerer’s Stone), and there’s a real humanism stirring at the heart of Harry Potter’s story.

Essentially, this installment of Harry Potter’s adventures introduces sex and mortality into the life of the budding magician. In fact, my favorite part of the film is along the middle, during the lead-up to the Christmas Eve Banquet. It’s full of scenes whose honesty, sincerity, and sense of romantic longing earn them the humor and heartache radiating out of them, and make for really funny and beautiful stuff. After the dance, though, the film takes a turn into some heavy territory that leads Harry into the clutches of Valdemort. The grim tone feels overwrought but, in Newell’s hands, and in those of his cast and screenwriter’s, the movie remains dramatically solid. Still, it did leaving me wishing for a less noisy, less hammer-over-the-head approach that might have foregrounded characters over spectacle.

Grade: B

Directed by: Mike Newell
Written by: Steven Kloves
Cast: Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint, Timothy Spall, Ralph Fiennes, Miranda Richardson, Gary Oldman, Maggie Smith, Brendan Gleeson, Alan Rickman, Michael Gambon