[Snowflake]

I'm finding the discussion fascinating. While I have not seen the film yet, to me it makes no real difference since I am very familiar with the books. GoF, in particular was my favorite of the books in the series for some time (meaning the spoilers here won't affect my view of the film)

I, too, lamented the passing of Richard Harris. In other work, I have long admired Michael Gambon. His portrayal as Dumbledore could not be farther from what I envision from the books. I found myself wishing that someone such as Jim Broadbent could be coerced into replacing him as Dumbledore. This is a flaw that will continue to irk me with each remaining film.

While I have never thought of the books as fine literature, I enjoy them. I tried for years to read the Tolkein books, without success, could never get "in" to them. Loved the films, however. The Potter novels suck me in and, frankly, any book that encourages and makes kids enthusiastic about reading is a great thing to me.

Hopefully I will see HP & the GoF this coming weekend and if I have anything else to add to the good discussion, I will.

Donna