Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

As we rejoin Harry and his posse, they’ve entered their fifth year at the school and things are getting progressively worse, as the Ministry of Magic continues to make its insidious way into the curriculum through the person of one Dolores Umbridge. Also on the agenda is Voldemort’s continued efforts to snuff Harry. After Harry is given a workout in a kangaroo court, accused of being a minor in control of magic, he is coerced into training a select group of fellow students in the art of defensive magic. Not much else to report here, because in itself, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix comes across as a sort of marking-time in the series, putting pieces into place before moving inexorably toward the imminent conclusion. Which is not saying that the film is bad or ill-structured or, even worse, boring. While in places the pacing seems a bit lethargic, as a whole the film is compelling without actually bringing anything new to the table (aside from a few new characters being put into place).