On July 13, 2007, last Friday, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix opened nationwide (in the U.S., and also in France). I saw it with a bunch of my friends, and we enjoyed it a lot.
     
  It starts out on Privet Drive, in a park, where Harry and his cousin Dudley are attacked by dementors. For those of you who don’t know what a dementor is: they are the guards of Azkaban, the wizard prison. Only witches and wizards can see them—so Harry sees them, but Dudley does not. Dementors suck the light and soul from your body, and you are left living, but with no purpose. Harry uses the Patronus Charm, which helps get rid of dementors. He saves his life, and his cousin’s, but he gets a letter from the Ministry of Magic, expelling him from Hogwarts for doing underage wizardry in the presence of a Muggle (a non-magical person). 
     
  Harry goes with the Order of the Phoenix, the group of people who are trying to stop Voldemort, to stay with them for the rest of the summer. Harry’s friend Ron’s parents are in the Order, so he is with his friends Ron and Hermione for the rest of the summer. Ron and Hermione tell him that Cornelius Fudge, the Minister of Magic, refuses to believe that Voldemort has returned, so he’s been making fun of Harry in the main wizarding newspaper, The Daily Prophet. Harry also has a hearing at the Ministry of Magic, where he is cleared of all charges, and gets to go back to Hogwarts.    
      
 When Harry and his friends return to Hogwarts, Harry feels very alone. Students are avoiding Harry because of what is being said in The Daily Prophet. They have a new Defense Against The Dark Arts teacher, Dolores Jane Umbridge, who normally works for the Ministry of Magic. She is giving Harry cruel treatment when Harry goes to detention for losing his temper in class about Voldemort coming back. Harry keeps taking his anger out on his friends, and they are getting more and more annoyed with him so much that they aren’t really together as much.  To top it all off, the headmaster of Hogwarts, Albus Dumbledore, is avoiding Harry, making him only feel more alone than ever. But Hermione Granger, one of Harry’s friends, has an idea, to form their own Defense Against The Dark Arts classes, with Harry as their teacher. Thus the D.A., Dumbledore’s Army, begins.
 
      Students must prepare for their Ordinary Wizarding Level Exams, O.W.L.’s, throughout the whole year. During Harry’s exam, he sees his godfather, Sirius Black (played by Gary Oldmen) being tortured by Voldemort in the Ministry of Magic. Harry and his friends go to the Ministry of Magic to try to rescue Sirius, and one person meets a terrible fate.
      
 I thought that the movie was very good, actually, the best of the movies in my opinion! It stayed the most accurate to the books, which is something that pretty much every Potter fan looks for in the movies. The only noticeable thing that they left out was Quidditch, the wizard sport, which adds to the emotion of some characters, but it’s not a major point or anything. The book itself, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, was near 900 pages (870 pages in the U.S. hardcover edition) so they have a bit more of an excuse to not including certain parts of the book, as opposed to the previous Potter movies. The book is probably the darkest of the Potter series so far (Deathly Hallows will probably be darker) and they really included that aspect of the book well in the movie by showing Harry’s frustration, isolation, and Voldemort’s return in the movie. I thought that overall, the acting was great, and the screen play was just as good. So I’d probably give it around a 4.5 star rating, and I highly recommend it.

  "Hogwarts Under Siege

“Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix,” the fifth movie in the series, begins, as most of the others have, with a spot of unpleasantness at the Dursleys, and ends with Harry facing down Lord Voldemort. The climactic battle between the young wizard (Daniel Radcliffe) and the Dark Lord (Ralph Fiennes) foreshadows the final, potentially fatal showdown we all suspect is coming in Book Seven, which will be published later this month.

Anticipation of that event may be stealing some thunder from this movie — a rare instance of the book business beating Hollywood at its own hype-producing game — but between now and publication day on July 21, Potter fans can take some satisfaction in a sleek, swift and exciting adaptation of J. K. Rowling’s longest novel to date. Devotees of fine British acting, meanwhile, can savor the addition of Imelda Staunton (an Oscar nominee for “Vera Drake”) to the roster of first-rate thespians moonlighting as Hogwarts faculty.

Curiously enough, “Order of the Phoenix,” clocking in at a little over two and a quarter hours, is the shortest of the “Harry Potter” films. The nearly 900-page source has been elegantly streamlined by Michael Goldenberg, the screenwriter (who replaces Steve Kloves), and David Yates, the director (who follows Chris Columbus, Alfonso Cuarón and Mike Newell in the job). There is no Quidditch, and not many boarding-school diversions. Instead, “Order of the Phoenix,” which begins like a horror movie with a Dementor attack in a suburban underpass, proceeds as a tense and twisty political thriller, with clandestine meetings, bureaucratic skullduggery and intimations of conspiracy hanging in the air.

Mr. Yates, whose previous work has mainly been in television, is best known in Britain for “State of Play,” a brilliant mini- series about power, corruption and deceit. Those are among the themes he explores in this film, which depicts a wizard world riven by factionalism and threatened by chaos and inflexible authoritarianism. While Cornelius Fudge, the minister of magic (Robert Hardy), maintains his highly suspect denial of Voldemort’s return, a coup at Hogwarts threatens the benevolent administration of Albus Dumbledore (Michael Gambon). Harry, meanwhile, has gone from prince to pariah, smeared in the magical press (where his name is rendered “Harry Plotter”) and subject to cold stares and whispers at school. Back in Harry’s early days at Hogwarts, Severus Snape (Alan Rickman), Harry’s foil and reluctant ally, sneered at the boy’s “celebrity.” But in this episode, the boy — if you can still call him that — encounters the darker side of fame.

Some of his schoolmates doubt his account of the death of Cedric Diggory, who was killed by Voldemort at the end of the previous film, “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.” Dumbledore, Harry’s chief patron and protector over the years, seems to be keeping his distance, which leaves Harry feeling abandoned and betrayed. And more acutely, the pressures of being a designated hero — and possibly martyr — have begun to weigh on Harry, to isolate him from friends and to come between him and the possibility of a normal teenage life.

He does, at least, experience a first kiss with Cho Chang (Katie Leung), but that turns out to be a brief and equivocal moment of bliss. Whereas “Goblet of Fire” plunged Harry and his pals into the murky waters of awakening adolescent sexuality (or at least got their toes wet), “Order of the Phoenix” tackles the emotional storms that can buffet young people on their way to adulthood. Mr. Radcliffe, maturing as an actor in perfect time with his character, emphasizes Harry’s anger and self-pity. Mr. Yates frequently places him alone on one side of the frame, with Ron and Hermione (Rupert Grint and Emma Watson), his loyal but increasingly estranged friends, together on the other.

But this is not an Ingmar Bergman film, though perhaps Mr. Bergman can be coaxed into service for the film version of “Deathly Hallows,” the final book of the series. “Order of the Phoenix” has its grim, bleak elements, but it is also, after all, an installment in a mighty multimedia entertainment franchise. And like its predecessors, it manages to succeed as a piece of entertainment without quite fulfilling its potential as a movie. Perhaps by design, the films never quite live up to the books. This one proves to be absorbing but not transporting, a collection of interesting moments rather than a fully integrated dramatic experience. This may just be a consequence of the necessary open-endedness of the narrative, or of an understandable desire not to alienate “Potter” readers by taking too many cinematic chances.

Although “Order of the Phoenix” is not a great movie, it is a pretty good one, in part because it does not strain to overwhelm the audience with noise and sensation. There are some wonderful special-effects-aided set pieces — notably an early broomstick flight over London — and some that are less so. People waving wands at one another, even accompanied by bright lights and scary sounds, does not quite sate this moviegoer’s appetite for action. But the production design (by Stuart Craig) and the cinematography (by Slawomir Idziak) are frequently astonishing in their aptness and sophistication. The interiors of the Ministry of Magic offer a witty, nightmarish vision of wizardly bureaucracy, while Harry’s angst and loneliness register in Mr. Idziak’s cold, washed-out shades of blue.

The scariest color in his palette, however, turns out to be pink. That is the color favored by Dolores Umbridge (Ms. Staunton), whose cheery English-auntie demeanor masks a ruthlessly autocratic temperament. She posts proclamations on the Hogwarts walls, subjects violators to painful punishments and substitutes book learning for practical magic. Her purpose is to institute Minister Fudge’s head-in-the-sand policy with respect to the Voldemort threat, and she does a heck of a job.

Ms. Staunton joins an astonishing ensemble of serious actors who, in the best British tradition, refuse to condescend to the material, earning their paychecks and the gratitude of the grown-ups in the audience. Mr. Rickman has turned Snape (whose animus against Harry is partly explained here) into one of the most intriguingly ambiguous characters in modern movies, and it is always a treat to see the likes of Emma Thompson, David Thewlis and Gary Oldman, however briefly.

Even better, the Potter enterprise has become a breeding ground for the next generation of British acting talent. Mr. Radcliffe has already spread his wings (and dropped his pants) on the London stage, and cultural pessimists of my generation can take comfort in knowing that while our parents may have witnessed Malcolm McDowell and Julie Christie in their prime, our children will see Mr. Grint and Ms. Watson in theirs. “Order of the Phoenix” also introduces Evanna Lynch, a pale, wide-eyed 15-year-old nonprofessional from Ireland who, having read the book, decided that no one else could play Luna Lovegood, the weirdest witch at Hogwarts. It seems Ms. Lynch was right. She’s spellbinding."

--nytimes.com

London — DEEP below the Whitehall governmental district here, in the glistening greenish-black tiled bowels of the Ministry of Magic, Ralph Fiennes' lithe, snakelike Lord Voldemort and Michael Gambon's white-bearded Dumbledore are going at it like Ali and Frazier in Manila.

As these two great wizards parry and thrust their dueling wands, shooting out spells and, for now, imaginary rivers of fire that will meet and crash together like sparking electrical currents, off-camera wind machines blast and tug at their robes. Cowering to one side, Daniel Radcliffe's terrified, ashen-faced Harry Potter recoils from the pyrotechnics exploding above his head, smaller, tributary spells that rat-a-tat-tat the walls like machine-gun fire.

"Its a very intense scene," says Radcliffe in filming the sequence, part of the climax to "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix," which premieres July 11. "Harry's so out of his depth, he's emotionally pretty much destroyed by this point and given up all hope."

After Voldemort's return at the end of the last movie, the stakes have, clearly, increased exponentially for the bespectacled young wizard, who, in this fifth film in J.K. Rowling's magical saga, has to deal not only with sundry attempts on his life and the loss of someone very close to him but also his first kiss.

"In the past, Harry's been terrific at bounding out and dealing with death-defying incidents without breaking sweat, really," says the series' fourth director, Britain's David Yates, between setups at Leavesden Studios, Hertfordshire, where all the Potter films have been shot. "I thought it would be interesting to make him feel a little bit more fragile, a bit more vulnerable. That heightens the emotional stakes because you know he can be killed." Part of that change of emphasis was to treat magic as a vital, dangerous force. "To make people realize how powerful and dangerous magic could be."

Plot-wise this fifth installment sees the wizarding establishment in denial regarding Voldemort's reappearance, leaving the eponymous Order — which includes Harry's godfather, Sirius Black (Gary Oldman), and former teacher-werewolf Remus Lupin (David Thewlis) — to defend our young hero against the forces of darkness. Among Voldemort's leather-clad agents of evil: Jason Isaacs' Lucius Malfoy and Black's demented, just-out-of-Azkaban cousin Bellatrix Lestrange (Helena Bonham Carter).

When the minister of magic, Cornelius Fudge (Timothy West), dispatches his authoritarian minion in pink, Delores Umbridge (Imelda Staunton), to cleanse Hogwarts of its liberal tendencies and so unseat Dumbledore as headmaster, a handful of rebellious pupils band together to create Dumbledore's Army to try to save both their school and its head.

Although "Order" is only Yates' second feature after the little-seen "The Tichborne Claimant," his small-screen résumé includes the critically acclaimed "State of Play" (a U.S. remake starring Brad Pitt is in the works) and Emmy Award-winning "The Girl in the Café." Producer David Heyman says Warner Bros. was supportive of his directorial choice, given the success of a previous leftfield pick, Alfonso Cuáron, on the third movie. "It has given the studio more confidence in working with directors who may not have had their big studio success," Heyman says. "Alfonso was a very bold choice at the time. David was bold too, no question."

And since the majority of Yates' work has revealed a deep political bent, Heyman felt he was ideal for this, the most overtly political book of the series. "He was perfect for this," says Emma Watson, who plays Harry's friend Hermione Granger, as she sits in her trailer eating chocolate. "I don't know if he could have directed any of the other ones. This was his story to tell."

Indeed. In addition to the usual adventure, magic and monsters, this film also deals with political repression, child abuse, fundamentalism, fascism, global terrorism and racism — not your typical summer blockbuster fare but themes that, plainly, appealed to Yates. Don't go thinking it's too, well, political, though. "There's no question there are political aspects to this story," says Heyman, who nevertheless is keen to stress that it's politics with a small "p." "I don't want to give the impression it's a political film. It's an entertainment."

Radcliffe is in no doubt as to the subtext. "We're the French Resistance," he explains of Dumbledore's Army, "and Voldemort and the Death Eaters are the Nazis. Obviously, in a magical context." Not that his analogies end there. "Harry's like a Vietnam veteran," he says. "He's seen awful things and come back into a society that's rejected him. That's the main parallel I've been drawing on." Fudge, meanwhile, he equates to Britain's prime minister, Tony Blair.

"Dan's absolutely right," says Yates several months later in his Soho office. "What Fudge does is he spins everything all the time. He's a great manipulator of information, and there is a bit of Blair about Fudge."



'FINDING TRUTH'

ON set, the gentle, softly spoken Yates is such an inconspicuous presence he's easy to overlook. "He's quiet, thoughtful, sensitive," says Watson.

"Mike [Newell, director of 'Goblet of Fire'] would sit in his chair and yell at us, or stand up and just be very loud and British. Whereas David will think for a bit, he'll come over, speak a few words, keep it to a minimum. The thing that always comes up with David is finding truth in the characters, truth in the performance, make it real."

It's the mantra by which Yates has steered this massive ship, be it relation to magic or finding the emotional truth in his characters. The film begins in "the shadow of bereavement," so he had Radcliffe meet with a bereavement counselor before shooting ("She told us about policemen who shovel people up off the motorway when they've had a car accident and what they have to go through," Yates says) and drafted a choreographer to establish a grammar of wand fighting. "So rather than just point the wand, there's a language in place, to make it feel as real as we could."

By all accounts, Yates has also managed to wrestle the best performance from Radcliffe thus far.

"I'm ready to be pushed and challenged," says Radcliffe, who this year made his London stage debut in "Equus" to good reviews. "The other directors could have pushed and challenged, and did, but I wasn't ready. With David, I think I'm at a stage where I can more competently give him what he wants out of a scene and with more detail."

Working with the cream of the British acting establishment across the films has certainly been beneficial. During one particularly emotional scene in this installment, Radcliffe recalls Oldman saying to him: " 'Dan, do you mind if I do something sort of physical with you before we start?' I was like, 'No, no,' assuming he meant giving me a hug. He came up to me and grabbed me and shook me really, really hard. As he went away, he kept eye contact. And tears started to form up. I had no idea how it happened, but it worked."

Radcliffe has already committed to play Harry for the final two films in the series. For Yates too this isn't the end, having signed on for the next: "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince." "I know Alfonso and Mike, when they came out, they were kind of shredded, but I've come out feeling invigorated," Yates says. "And I don't think I'm quite done with this world yet. These can be great films about childhood. The next one's full of sexual politics, and the kids are getting better as actors, and I want to push them even more. This one's quite lyrical and intense. The next one is more fun."

He grins. "I've had more fun in the last two years than I've had making anything. The whole thing's slightly addictive. It's difficult to let go."

--http://www.calendarlive.com/movies/cl-ca-harry6may06,0,350463.story?coll=cl-movies

"BURBANK, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint and Emma Watson will reprise the roles they have made their own: teen wizards Harry Potter, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger, respectively, in Warner Bros. Pictures' "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" and "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows," the final two motion picture adaptations of J.K. Rowling's best-selling book series. The announcement was made today by Jeff Robinov, President of Production, Warner Bros. Pictures.

In making the announcement, Robinov said, "When Daniel, Rupert and Emma were first cast as Harry, Ron and Hermione, we knew they were not only talented, but had a very special chemistry. Through the years, and in each of the 'Harry Potter' films, we have watched them grow into extraordinary young adults, as well as remarkable actors. It would be inconceivable to imagine anyone else in the roles with which they have become so identified, so we are thrilled and proud that Daniel, Rupert and Emma have chosen to complete the arc of their characters in the final two films."

Both "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" and "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" are being produced by David Heyman, who has produced all of the Harry Potter films to date and was instrumental in bringing the franchise to the screen, beginning with the first blockbuster, "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone." David Barron, who served as an executive producer on "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets" and "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire" and is a producer on the upcoming "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix," will also be producing the final two installments of the franchise.

Producer David Heyman said, "One of the highlights of this journey has been to witness Dan, Rupert and Emma blossom from children into young adults. They have emerged as consummate professionals who are dedicated to honing their craft and striving for excellence. And yet, throughout, they have retained their enthusiasm and spirit, and they remain, to this day, the same wonderful, kind and generous individuals I met all those years ago."

Daniel Radcliffe remarked, "Playing the role of Harry Potter has been an immense privilege, and I look forward to completing the series. I feel a huge sense of loyalty to the character of Harry and the fans who have supported these films over the years. During filming, I have learnt so much, made lots of friends and met people who have changed my life. I am indebted to J K Rowling, Warner Bros. and David Heyman for giving me this fantastic opportunity."

Emma Watson stated, "I could never let Hermione go--she is my hero! I love her too much and love what playing her has meant to me. I am excited and honoured to be finishing what I started and playing her in all seven of the films."

Rupert Grint offered, "Ron Weasley has become a big part of my life and not just because we've both got ginger hair! I've been so proud to play him and loved every second of being part of this world. I'm really looking forward to filming the last two films and being back with my 'Weasley family' and, of course, to seeing my good friends Emma and Dan. Thank you to everyone for being so supportive over the years; we couldn't have done it without you."

" source: http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/070323/20070323005648.html?.v=1

"Warner Independent Pictures, the company behind the small film December Boys (starring Dan Radcliffe), has updated their website with a projected release date of August 2007. They also provide this description of the film:

Based on the classic Michael Noonan novel, "December Boys" is a story of four orphan teenagers growing up behind the closed doors of a catholic convent in outback Australia. For years the boys watch younger kids leave with their newly adopted parents and have come to the realization their time may never come."

www.mugglenet.com

The dates have been written in stone... Harry Potter and the Order of the Pheonix will be released in theatres on JULY 11, 2006 in the U.S. and France. 

In Australia  and in the U.K. it will be released on JULY 12, 2007 

(I'm considering it a birthday present from Warner Bros and JKR. Lol.)

Hopefully I'll remember to post the birthdays in the news section when the days come!

"

January
1st - Verne Troyer (Griphook)
4th - Jim Norton (Mr. Mason)
9th - Imelda Staunton (Professor Umbridge)
22nd - John Hurt (Mr. Olivander)
24th - Terence Bayler (The Bloody Baron)
27th - Richard Bremmer (Voice of Voldemort)
28th - Lee Ingleby (Stan Shunpike)

Febuary
3rd - Warwick Davis (Professor Flitwick)
8th - John Williams (Composer)
8th - Roger Lloyd-Pack (Barty Crouch Senior)
17th - Bonnie Wright (Ginny Weasley)
21st - Alan Rickman (Professor Snape)
22nd - Julie Walters (Mrs. Weasley)
25th - James and Oliver Phelps (Fred and George Weasley)

March
3rd - Miranda Richardson (Rita Skeeter)
13th - Harry Melling (Dudley Dursley)
13th - Robert Pattinson (Cedric Diggory)
15th - Sean Biggerstaff (Oliver Wood)
20th - David Thewlis (Professor Lupin)
21st - Gary Oldman (Sirius Black)
22nd - Leilah Sutherland (Alicia Spinnet)
27th - Julian Glover (Voice of Aragog)
27th - Adrian Rawlins James Potter
30th - Robbie Coltrane (Hagrid)

April
12th - Katie Leung (Cho Chang)
14th - Julie Christie (Madam Rosmerta)
15th - Emma Watson (Hermione Granger)
15th - Emma Thompson (Professor Trelawny)
20th - Leslie Phillips (Voice of the Sorting Hat)

May
4th - Eric Sykes (Frank Bryce)
7th - Robbie Jarvis (Young James Potter)
13th - Zoe Wanamaker (Madame Hooch)
17th - Paul Whitehouse (Sir Cadogan)
18th - Miriam Margolyes (Professor Sprout)
19th - Geraldine Somerville (Lily Potter)
26th - Helena Bonham Carter (Bellatrix Lestrange)

June
6th - Jason Isaacs (Lucius Malfoy)
20th - Pedja Bjelac (Igor Karkaroff)
20th - Shefali Chowdhury (Parvati Patil)
26th - Tolga Safer (Karkoraff's Aide)
27th - Matthew Lewis (Neville Longbottom)
30th - Predrag Bjelac (Igor Karkoraff)

July
2nd - Edward Randell (Justin Finch-Fletchley)
10th - Fiona Shaw (Petunia Dursley)
10th - Jeff Rawle (Amos Diggory)
21st - Jamie Waylette (Vincent Crabbe)
23rd - Daniel Radcliffe (Harry Potter)
30th - Frances de la Tour (Madame Maxime)
31st - Richard Griffiths (Uncle Vernon)

August
16th - Evanna Lynch (Luna Lovegood)
24th - Rupert Grint (Ron Weasley)
25th - Angelica Mandy (Gabrielle Delacour)
29th - Lenny Henry (Shrunken Head)

September
7th - Hugh Mitchell (Colin Creevey)
7th - Toby Jones (Voice of Dobby)
10th - Chris Columbus (director)
18th - Elizabeth Spriggs (The Fat Lady)
22nd - Tom Felton (Draco Malfoy)

October
1st - Richard Harris (Albus Dumbledore)
3rd - Christian Coulson (Tom Marvolo Riddle)
4th - Will Theakston (Terence Higgs)
8th - Ian Hart (Professor Quirrell)
11th - Dawn French (The Fat Lady)
19th - Michael Gambon (Albus Dumbledore)
20th - Veronica Clifford (Mrs. Mason)
20th - George Harris (Kingsley Shacklebolt)
27th - John Cleese (Nearly Headless Nick)
27th - John Cleese (Marcus Flint)
28th - Devon Murray (Seamus Finnigan)
29th - Robert Hardy (Cornelius Fudge)

November
8th - Chris Rankin (Percy Weasley)
9th - Brendan Gleeson (Mad-Eye Moody)
28th - Alfonso Cuaron (POA director)
30th - Clemence Poesy (Fleur Delacour)

December
2nd - Alfred Enoch (Dean Thomas)
4th - Gemma Jones (Madam Pomfrey)
22nd - Ralph Fiennes (Lord Voldemort)
24th - Shirley Henderson (Moaning Myrtle)
28th - Maggie Smith (Professor McGonagall) "

source: www.mugglenet.com

P.S. This does not include Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, and Emma Watson (and if you don't know who they are, shame on you! [They play Harry, Ron and Hermione.] )