However, opinions of the films generally divide book fans right down the middle, with one group preferring the more faithful approach of the first two films, and another group preferring the more stylised character-driven approach of the later films.
Some feel the series has a "disjointed" feel due to the changes in directors, as well as Michael Gambon's interpretation of Dumbledore differing from that of Richard Harris's.
Chris Columbus's approach was extremely faithful to the source material, recreating the book as much as possible. A criticism is that his two films contain much action but little emotion, undeveloped characters, and an abundance of expository dialogue. Such a strict recreation of the book also results in a slow pace, and consequently, the films are accused of being too long.
Alfonso Cuarón's approach was more stylized and lively, using many handheld long takes and dark uses of colour. Unlike Columbus, his dislike of expository dialogue or explanation of back story (most notably the Marauder's story) led to criticisms of his approach being "style over substance". His re-imagining of Hogwarts and student attire caused some to feel the continuity of the series had been hurt, though some find it to be closer to the descriptions in the novels. Furthermore, his quick fire pacing led to a shorter film, leading some to call Cuarón "lazy". However, the film is often perceived by fans and critics to be the best in the series.[34]
Mike Newell's approach focused more on humour and character development. Newell delved more into interactions between the students and their relationships, creating the feeling of a British boarding school. A criticism is that Newell left in moments of slapstick, childish humour (such as Madame Maxime eating food from Hagrid's beard) in favour of the book's subplots, resulting in a rushed, disjointed film.
David Yates took his first Harry Potter movie, Order of the Phoenix in an entirely different direction. He focused more on the tone of the book, ensuring that the film was as dark as its counterpart. While the book is by far the longest in the series, the movie is the shortest to date. This has led to criticisms that the movie is missing the delight and "magic" that previous installments had. However, it is unclear whether these "problems" should be attributed to Michael Goldenberg (the screenwriter, taking over for Steve Kloves) or rather to Yates himself. On the other hand, some have seen his direction as an improvement; comparable to Cuarón's dark style.
Yates also directed the sixth film, Half-Blood Prince, which many critics said was one of the best movies of 2009 and the funniest of the Potter films. He chose to place an obvious contrast on the film, keeping the theme of the book. Yates decided to go along with the element of humour in this film, as well as blending in the darker features. Audiences have critically reviewed this film as having too much humour and romance and not enough dark material. Fans have also expressed that many scenes were omitted and some new scenes were added - however, movie critics and many fans too, have stated that the flow of the movie is exceptionally good and that the removal and adding of scenes was acceptable for cinematic purposes. The mixture of light and dark factors also contributed to the film's success. Many have said that the sixth film is a huge improvement from the previous installment. Others have also compared this film favorably to Alfonso Cuaron's Prisoner of Azkaban, stating that it is a possible contender for the best Potter flick.[35]
Rowling has been constantly supportive of the films,[36][37][38] and evaluated Half-Blood Prince as her favourite one in the series. [39] She wrote on her web site of the changes in the book-to-film transition, "It is simply impossible to incorporate every one of my storylines into a film that has to be kept under four hours long. Obviously films have restrictions - novels do not have constraints of time and budget; I can create dazzling effects relying on nothing but the interaction of my own and my readers' imaginations".
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