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Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix is an adaptation of the fifth book in J.K. Rowling's bestselling Harry Potter series. In the story, the Ministry of Magic keeps trying to discredit Harry when he says that the evil Lord Voldemort is attacked. Harry, Ron, and Hermione learn about the Order of the Phoenix, which had first come to be during Lord Voldemort's first reign of terror. Delores Umbridge, the undersecretary of the Minister of Magic, becomes the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. As the school year goes on, the Ministry uses Umbridge to gain more and more leverage in how the school is run. This story also introduces a new character named Luna Lovegood.

As I heard about Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix going into production, I wondered how the scriptwriter and director would handle it, since this book is the longest one in the Harry Potter series. When it came close to time for the film to be released to theaters, I read an online article saying the director when into Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix with the intention of making it the shortest film in the Harry Potter series. After reading that statement, I was concerned about how the story would be handled.

I went to see the film in the theater, and was a little disappointed in it by the time it has finished. In my opinion, a lot of crucial elements were cut from the story to keep the film as short as possible. However, by removing many of those elements, it's going to make it harder for the scriptwriter(s) and director(s) of the final three Harry Potter films to make those final films. For example, Dobby the House Elf was removed from this film (Neville finds the Room of Requirement instead of Dobby telling Harry and his friends about it). Also, the part about the Order of the Phoenix cleaning Number Twelve Grimmauld Place and finding the locket was cut (and the locket becomes important later). We also don't get to see the return of Rita Skeeter. I was also disappointed not to see the visit to St. Mungo's, and getting to see Neville's parents. I also wish the section about the career advice (particularly Harry's session) was included, so we could see Professor McGonagall and Umbridge get into a shouting match.

Of the five Harry Potter films I have seen, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix is my least favorite. Perhaps if the director has focused more on telling the story instead of how long the film was running, perhaps Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix would have been a better film.

Learn more about this author, Lesley Aeschliman.
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