Oh my!

With only 4 cruel July days to go, Muggles everywhere are freaking out! Everywhere I turn, it's Harry Potter this and Harry Potter that. Things are quite different than they were just a couple of weeks ago when I posted this. Now, there are all sorts of magical stories in the news.

For starters, the new film, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix cleaned up at the box office over the weekend. Anyone who has read this book knows it is darker and more intense than its predecessors. Actually, things really stopped being "fluffy" at the end of The Goblet of Fire. Let me tell you something, that scene in Goblet where Harry confronts Voldemort and about a dozen death-eaters is probably one of the scariest things I've ever read. But I digress...

In China, there are "Harry Potter knock-offs" floating around. What are they exactly? They are poorly written books that use the characters of J.K. Rowling's epic series and place them in unbelievable scenes. They are counterfeit novellas full of phony plots that in no way at all are affiliated with the real Harry Potter. From what I've heard though, a lot of people over there in China really dig 'em. So I guess they aren't bothered by the whole copyright infringement thing. Me? I'm a purist. I need my books authentic. There's just no substitute.

I'm about halfway through The Half-Blood Prince right now. These kids have really grown up, haven't they? Ron's making out with Lavender Brown but really, he wants to "snogg" with Hermione. It's sooo obvious, Ron! Even Harry sees it! Of course, Hermione seems like she's got the hots for Ron as well. Meanwhile, Harry's wandering eye has landed on Ginny, Ron's younger sister! Uh oh Harry. Don't you know it's "pals before gals?!" I hope this doesn't get out of hand. But ahh ... young love. The heart wants what the heart wants, does it not, my friends?

On an unrelated note, our dear old blogger friend, Sandhya told me about this new fad called "wizard rock". Rather than trying to explain it to you, you can read the NPR article on it by clicking here. It seems pretty wacky and I like it.

That's it for now on the HP front. Wish me luck in my quest to finish book 6 by Saturday.

Peace.

OK, Word-watchers, in an attempt to give you a non-Harry Potter entry before the big day, I thought I would offer you a ginormous riddle. Ready? Here goes. What do crunk, speed dating, DVR, and sudoku have in common?

Answer: They're all words that have been added to Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary. Every year, the editors of the dictionary go through thousands of words to figure out what new words should be added. This year, these bad boys were among the ones that made the cut.

It's pretty awesome when slang becomes official. But it also makes me a little jealous. What about my made-up words? (I have a habit of adding '-ified' to the end of nouns. I also add '-ish' to times--it gives me a couple of minutes leeway.) What, do I have to start campaigning, ala Stephen Colbert? He got 'truthiness' to be recognized last year. I want one of my words to become immortalized in the dictionary! The fame, the glory, the ability to not have to spell-check my work ... yeah, that would be sweet.

So do you agree with any of the entries from this year? Do you have any words that you think should be added to the dictionary? I'll vote for your words if you'll vote for mine ...

Attention, Muggles: Your wait is over. The newest Harry Potter movie, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, is out today. First-time HP director David Yates weighs in on the sure-fire blockbuster.

Word: Were you nervous directing Phoenix knowing what a success the previous films were?

Yates: No, just very excited about the challenge and the opportunity to dive into the world and to make something on a scale I've never been able to explore before. Making films as big as Potter doesn't give you much time to navel-gaze or to worry, you just get on with it--and it has been enormous fun every step of the way.

Word: How true is the movie to the book? How important do you consider following the book when you direct a film?

Yates: I enjoyed the book enormously and compressing it into a screen time of two plus hours proved to be the biggest challenge of all. There are bits it was hard at first to leave out--but I wanted to focus the story as much as possible to serve the medium we were working in. I think we've caught the spirit of the book without compromising the film experience for the audience.

Word: Is Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix similar to any of the other HP movies?

Yates: This one is a bit edgier and grittier than the others--I really wanted to push the performances and the characters, to believe them as much as possible--because it is quite an emotional story and it is essential that the audience engage with and believe the relationships they are seeing on screen. It is inevitable as the characters and the stories grow older so do the films, and I'd certainly say this is the most grown up Potter so far.

Word: What was your favorite part about making this movie?

Yates: Working with Dan [Radcliffe], Rupert [Grint], Emma [Watson] and the rest of the cast, all of whom were great fun to be around. 

Word:  What was the most difficult part about filming this movie?

Yates: The length of time it took to shoot. Most films I've made were shot over a period of weeks, or a couple of months. Order of the Phoenix, because of the size of the story and the level of complexity in visual effects, took almost a year. Keeping focus and perspective is the biggest challenge across that time span, especially when you are shaping how a characters journey unfolds through the story.

Word: Are you going to direct the sixth HP?

Yates: I've had such good fun making this one, it [would be] really difficult giving it up and leaving The Half Blood Prince to someone else. I also had a feeling that there was unfinished business somehow over the two years it took me to make The Order of the Phoenix. I've become completely involved in the world and the characters that Jo [J.K. Rowling] has created, and I wanted to spend more time with them. So yes, I will be doing The Half Blood Prince. Can't wait in fact.

Word: If people could only see one movie this summer, why should they see HP?

Yates: Because it is a terrific ride but goes deeper and darker than the films the audience has already seen.

Yah!

So I finished reading The Order of The Phoenix this past weekend and I'm now into The Half-Blood Prince. And holy cow! Chapter Two - Snape! He's... well, I don't know what. It's weird. Is he really who he says he is now? Ack! Don't tell me! Keep it to yourself! I'll know soon enough, I imagine.

I am so happy I finally got into this craze. It's never too late, right? With 11 days to go before the final installment is released, I'm truly amped about Harry! Boo yah!

More to come, Muggles...