if this is a bit of a ramble, it is because i just got finished watching the movie and my thoughts are unorganized at the moment.

goblet of fire is a great return to series after prisoner of azkaban, a film i was slightly disappointed in. it manages to recapture the pure, fun adventure of the first film while maintaining the darker tone that begins to creep into the series in this chapter of the story.

the screenplay dives into the story with a headlong recklessness and gets through a nice sized chunk of the introductory portion of the story in the first thirty minutes. fans of the book will know that goblet is the first book to move from 'great story that could be read in a long afternoon' territory into 'great story that, in book form, could be used as foundational material in a nice sized two story tudor in the suburbs' territory. i have read order of the phoenix and listened to half blood prince, as well as reading other books in the interim, so i cannot say what was cut (was luna in this book? or the next?) but my memory of the story does not differ radically from the story presented on screen. and the direction is sure and steady, trusting that the audience has seen the other films and does not need to be eased into the potter world.

all in all, a great film and well worth that $1.00us that i spent at the cheap theatre to see it. i hope they hurry with the next two movies, and ms rowling hurries with the last book, as i am getting antsy for the conclusion.