Behind The Scene:Directing Harry Potter's Magic
By Susan James
When American director Chris Columbus started pre-production on 'Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone' in 2000, he planned to direct all seven films based on the Harry Potter books himself. "Be faithful to the book" was his mantra and his goal was to buy British — all British cast, all British locations. When the first film was released, Potter fans were both pleased and a bit disappointed. Yes, the first movie was faithful to the story but pickier viewers wondered why Columbus hadn't upped the artistic ante and improvised a little.
With movie No. 2, 'Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets' (2002), Columbus kept to his game plan. Stick to the book. No deviations. Again a slight sniff of disappointment from film buffs. The strain of putting a faithful recreation of the world of witchcraft and wizardry on the screen exhausted Columbus and the Potter magic wand passed to Mexican director Alfonso Cuaron, whose screen sensibilities were decidedly different. Film No. 3, 'Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban' (2004), took liberties with the book. Its colors were bleak and its denizens looked ragged next to the Ivy League approach of Columbus. The story seemed leaner and meaner, the three kids — Harry, Ron and Hermione — more in touch with the down and dirty world of their real-life teen-age counterparts. Cuaron's work got rave reviews. "It's a myth for our times," he announced. But he also understood that a myth can be told in a number of ways. While the main themes are set by author J.K. Rowling, like jazz improvisations, the director gets to add his own riffs.
Last November, film No. 4 hit theaters. 'Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire' was the first Potter movie to be directed by a Briton, Mike Newell. Like Columbus and Cuaron, Newell had a track record that included films about young people. Yet he approached the new Harry Potter as an adult challenge. "The first two films are very sunny," Newell said. "This one's so completely, radically different. The only limitation is what you can imagine." And through a wicked assortment of complex computer generated images (CGI), from dragons to merpeople to a resurrected Voldemort, Newell imagined quite a lot.
The new spellbinder on the Potter front is British director David Yates, who is in the midst of filming 'Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix' (due out July 7, 2007). Websites devoted to all things Potter are having a field day guessing Yates' choices when confronted with the task of cutting the fabric of the book to fit the exigencies of the film. Is Quiddich in or out? What about that kissing scene with Cho Chang? Actor Daniel Radcliffe, Harry's alter ego, has gone on record praising Yates for pushing him emotionally and psychologically. Scenes of teen-age angst abound. Next July, Yates will have his moment in the floodlight of Pottermania.
But standing right behind him are a flock of fast track directors like Joss Whedon and Night Shyamalan and eccentric mavericks like Terry Gilliam, waiting — they hope — for a spell at the helm. Directing a Harry Potter film has become one of the most coveted assignments in moviedom. Columbus is considering a return performance. So is Cuaron. Shyamalan is haunted by the fact he turned down the first film and wants a chance to lay the ghost. Harry Potter is no longer just a series of phenomenally successful kids' books, it's a director's cut, complete with personal wand and Marauder's Map guide. An invitation to all those masters of the director's chair to enter the myth-making possibilities of the magic shop. What director could resist? Five films down and two to go. The line forms on the right. See you at the movies.
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