J.K. Rowling’s fantasy book series Harry Potter has sold over 450 million copies worldwide, and the films based off of them have made over $7.7 billion. It’s one of the most profitable franchises in history with a devoted fan base who still cling to the series, even though it has ended.
It is safe to say that the movies were wildly successful, but as with any book that is adapted into a film, there are bound to be many inconsistencies. The Harry Potter series started off going mostly by the books, but later, the story lines diverged into very different paths. Specifically, the 5th film Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix traveled so far away from the source material that it’s almost baffling to me.
Now, I didn’t actually read all 7 HP books until after I had seen every movie. So I didn’t realize how the 5th film barely resembled the book until a few years later when I finally read it. I was shocked and also a little angry. Why would the movie leave all this stuff out and change other parts of the story? There still doesn’t seem to be an answer to that question.
Aside from the large and glaring differences in the story that were changed for the movie, there are smaller details that are inconsistent in several of the books respective adaptions. One such detail is the fact that Harry is supposed to have his mother’s eyes. It’s mentioned repeatedly by different characters throughout the books and films and yet, the movie characters do not have the same eye color. The film makers tried, but one of the actors had an allergic reaction to the contact lenses they needed to wear. Sure that’s a valid excuse, but many fans (myself included) are not convinced the problem couldn’t have been dealt with another way.
It may seem like a small thing to care about, but this one thing is actually very important in the context of the story. But what is more aggravating to me, is how several of the films ignore and/or change key elements of characters and their personalities. The funny and strong book character of Ginny Weasley faded into the background when on the film screen. Dudley Dursely who hated Harry for all 7 books and nearly every film finally accepted Harry as someone of worth in a scene that was filmed but not kept in the movie. Why??
These are the things that matter more than Harry’s hair not being messy enough as described in the books (at least Prisoner of Azkaban got it right.) These movies remind us of the unpleasant reality that a book will probably never be perfectly adapted into a film. Although, for Harry Potter fans, it could have been so much worse (like the Percy Jackson films.) We were pretty blessed by some fantastic movies that just beg to be marathoned. There’s something to be said for the people who both read and watch what they love. It gives another dimension to a world you already know, no matter what the series. My advice? Buy the books.
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