Harry Potter (film)/YMMV

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List only tropes or trope examples that reflect the entire series or which span multiple films here. Tropes specific to a single film should go on that film's page.

• And the Fandom Rejoiced:
  • Evanna Lynch is Luna Lovegood!
  • The Tale of the Three Brothers told in a beautifully animated sequence.
  • Alan Rickman is one of the least contested casting choices, with the main complaint being that he's so much older than Snape.
  • As soon as you see her, it's hard to imagine anyone but Maggie Smith playing McGonagall.
  • Bill Nighy is Rufus Scrimgeour!
• Award Snub: The series didn't win a single Academy Award during its 10 years.
• Awesome Music: Courtesy of John Williams above all; the music by the replacement composers is generally well-liked, too. The best can be found here.
• Better on DVD: While the movies don't make complete sense on their own, they make better sense when viewed in a marathon (esp. with the deleted scenes), especially since the installments are released one or two years apart, which adds up quite quickly. It's a bit much to expect someone who didn't rewatch the series on DVD to remember Gryffindor's sword after eight years.
• Continuity Lock Out: Because of time constraints, much of the backstory gets cut, leaving many viewers who haven't read the books scratching their heads: each individual movie is more or less comprehensible by itself, but when put into a movie continuity, certain things don't make sense. These are mostly listed on the YMMV pages for the individual films they affect, but here are a few with broader scope:
  • Percy is given only a cameo with no explanation as to why he's on the Ministry's side in Order of the Phoenix, nor why he's suddenly fighting Death Eaters beside his family in Deathly Hallows - Part 2.
  • This trope is actually Inverted between Half-Blood Prince and Deathly Hallows - Part 1 - a Non Sequitur Scene halfway through Half-Blood Prince that wasn't in the book involves the bad guys burning The Burrow (the Weasleys' house) to the ground. With no explanation at all, it reappears without a scratch in Deathly Hallows.
• Creator's Pet: Hermione, to a lot of people. She is known to be the screenwriter's favorite character. While in the first two films she was portrayed utterly correct to her role in the books, the third film prettied her up considerably (though this may have just been how the actress grew up), gave her most of Ron's better lines, had her wear pink, and generally portrayed her to be the leader of the Trio who could do no wrong. The fourth film, too, calls a lot of attention to how beautiful she apparently is. By the last film, this is toned down considerably (Ron actually figures out two important plot points before she does, for instance).
• Draco in Leather Pants:
  • Barty Crouch, Jr. Thank you, David Tennant.
  • Scabior, due to the pedophilic role that he played in the films.
• Ensemble Darkhorse: Quite a few characters not given much attention in the books suddenly become more popular once there's an actor playing them. One example? Yaxley, who in the books was just a named Death Eater. In Deathly Hallows - Part 1, he acts more like a well-dressed British gangster. It helps that he's played by the badass Peter Mullan. Also, his walking instead of running after the fleeing Trio in the Ministry made him a lot scarier!
• Evil Is Sexy: Bellatrix Lestrange. In the books, her stay in Azkaban had strongly diminished her beauty. In the movies, however...
  • Her teeth are really manky and disgusting, though. Then again...

Tom Felton: "...Even with those teeth, I'd still... you know."

• • Barty Crouch Jr.
  • Scabior.
  • Lucius Malfoy.
• Growing the Beard:
  • Definitely debatable, but Prisoner of Azkaban and Goblet of Fire were the best reviewed movies in the series, so this applies for critics. It was with Prisoner of Azkaban that the series became a more Pragmatic Adaptation.
  • Deathly Hallows Part 2 appears to be the most universally-approved adaptation - critics loved it, and the fanbase is largely positive towards the overall product (though not without the occasional quibble). Given that Part 1's reception was a little more lukewarm and rather more divided, this is especially impressive.
• Hate Dumb:
  • We all knew Sir Michael Gambon was never going to top Richard Harris as Dumbledore, but some of the hate he got for it is really scary.
  • Let's not forget Katie Leung aka Cho Chang getting lots of fangirl hate, death threats included.
• Harsher in Hindsight: All of Neville Longbottom's Butt Monkey moments become this as his childhood traumas are eventually revealed. In particular, Goblet of Fire, fainting during Mad-Eye Moody's Crucio demonstration, when the Pensieve scene later reveals that that was what happened to his parents.
• Hilarious in Hindsight:
  • After Bill gets mauled by Greyback, the narration states that he "now bore a distinct resemblance to Mad-Eye Moody". Moody is played by Brendan Gleeson. Bill is played by his son Domhnall.
• Internet Backdraft: Want to have some fun? Find some Potter fans and claim you prefer the films to the books. Expect them to retort that that is because you haven't read the books. And then, if you really want to have some fun, say you have read the books and still prefer the films.
• It's the Same, Now It Sucks: The film series' fanbase's opinion, especially if they prefer the later films to the first two. See also They Changed It, Now It Sucks, below.
• Misaimed Fandom: Helena Bonham Carter has noted that many fans are revolted by Bellatrix, yet partially want to be her.
• Periphery Demographic: Hermione and the actress who portrays her, Emma Watson, are really popular among male fans.
• Smurfette Breakout: Out of the three leading actors, Emma Watson has received the most publicity. While Daniel Radcliffe and Rupert Grint have gotten a large amount of roles, it is Emma who has remained in the public eye the most.
• They Changed It, Now It Sucks: The film series' fanbase's opinion, especially if they preferred the first two films to the later films. See also It's the Same, Now It Sucks, above.

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