'Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince' director David Yates dishes on his dark film
Daniel Radcliffe and Michael Gambon in "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince"
For an interview with Draco Malfoy actor Tom Felton, go here.
David Yates, the director of “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince,” has a lot of sympathy for one of the film’s stars.
Rupert Grint, who portrays the flame-haired Potter pal Ron Weasley, spent hours on his broom while filming tricky scenes of Quidditch, the wizard sport.
“Poor Rupert Grint had to sit on this broom with a bicycle seat that seriously damaged his chances of having children in later life,” Yates laughed. “And he did it so patiently and so gracefully.”
Dark times
Games aside, “Half-Blood Prince,” the sixth installment of the blockbuster
series premiering Wednesday at midnight, continues the story of Harry Potter, an orphaned teen who struggles in an ever-darkening magical world.
Despite all of the violence and death in the film — a key player dies — “Half-Blood Prince” still got a PG rating.
“We were surprised it was PG, frankly, because there’s some fairly intense scary bits,” Yates said. “Even grown-ups come out of the movie and say, ‘That bit was quite scary.’”
Love match
While dark overtones are prevalent in “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince,” the film is nicely balanced with some humorous budding romances among the teen students.
In this film, Ron gets a girlfriend and Harry, played by Daniel Radcliffe, and Ginny Weasley, portrayed by Bonnie Wright, get a little amorous, which can be a bit awkward.
“The one thing I would say is the romance element between the characters are very tricky for the cast because they’ve all grown up together. They’re like brothers and sisters [so] snogging (kissing) your sister or your brother when you’re doing a snog scene … ,” Yates said.
New kid in the mix
Each of the “Harry Potters” features a host of famous British actors, from Alan Rickman to Michael Gambon. Coming aboard in “Half-Blood Prince” is Jim Broadbent, playing the new potions professor Horace Slughorn.
Best known for roles that range from the eccentric, with his turn as Harold Ziegler in “Moulin Rouge!” to his dramatic work, such as his Oscar-winning performance in “Iris,” Broadbent brings both of those aspects together for his scene-stealing performance.
“The thing about Jim is, he’s quite vivid as an actor,” Yates said. “He takes risks, tries things that are really fun. In ‘Harry Potter,’ that world is always quite heightened, slightly larger than life, yet he always gives it a real core of truth. I love working with him.”
SIDEBAR: New faces in 'The Half Blood Prince'
Here’s a rundown of the new characters to the “Harry Potter” series.
Lavender Brown: Played by Jessie Cave, Brown is the overly amorous girlfriend of Ron Weasley.
Cormac McLaggen: Played by Freddie Stroma, the bombastic McClaggen has his eyes on fellow Gryffindor Hermione Granger.
Narcissa Malfoy: Played by Helen McCrory, Malfoy is the wife of Lucius Malfoy, the mother of Draco Malfoy and the sister of Bellatrix Lestrange.
Horace Slughorn: Played by Jim Broadbent, Slughorn is a once-renowned professor at Hogwarts who is brought back into the fold by Professor Albus Dumbledore. He prides himself on having taught famous magicians, and the appeal of teaching Harry Potter is alluring to him. He also has some ties to a young Tom Riddle, the boy who becomes Voldemort.
A screenshot from the "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" video game.
SIDEBAR: A quick look at the new ‘Harry Potter’ video game
Thanks to the Wiimote, gamers can now take control of Harry Potter’s magic wand and face off directly against all foes. The video game adaptation of “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince” is in stores now, and for anyone who likes the films, this game is a must buy.
With a flick of the wrist, gamers can cast spells, fly through a Quidditch game and mix potions. The game offers a linear story that follows the movie’s plotline, as well as dueling and other challenges. The game is also available on most console and portable systems, as well as for Macs and PCs.
