“Harry Potter” is a series of fantasy novels written by British author J.K. Rowling. The first book was published in 1997, and ever since then the wizard Harry Potter has been winning the hearts of millions of people around the world. The novel series topped the bestseller list, and the whole brand is worth more than 7.7 billion dollars.
What can explain such a huge popularity of novels about the adventures of this little wizard? J.K. Rowling took old English boarding schools as a basis, added a piece of magic – and we got a bestseller. She successfully weaved together a variety of topics that affect every reader. Under the veil of the magical world that entices readers, important and deep issues are hidden. It is a struggle between good and evil, friendship, love, power, politics and, of course, magic. According to J.K. Rowling herself, the main theme of the novels is death. All these topics of Harry Potter series are deeply woven into the story. The books have enjoyed the biggest success among the generation that grew up with Harry. Books are becoming more serious as Harry matures. In the first part he is a little boy who finds out that he is not just Harry, but Harry Potter the wizard. The gray, joyless life in a cupboard under the stairs in his aunt and uncle's house comes to an end. Harry enters the world of witchcraft and wizardry. In this world chocolate frogs jump out of their wrappers, the mail is delivered by owls and magic wands can perform incredible miracles. Gradually he gets older, and life in the wizarding world becomes more dangerous and difficult. Dark times lie ahead.
This novel is interesting for all the readers because every reader can find something to relate to. Rowling created the entire universe. Harry Potter series is not limited to the adventures of Harry and his friends. Rowling also launched "The Tales of Beedle the Bard", which occupy an important niche in the story. She wrote a prequel that describes the events that happened to Harry’s father and his godfather, Sirius Black. She has also published the textbook for the students of Hogwarts "Fantastic beasts and where to find them". In summer 2016, the play "Harry Potter and the cursed child" was written by Rowling co-authored with Jack Thorne and John Tiffany.
The popularity of "Harry Potter" series is so great that the word "muggle" was included to the Oxford English Dictionary. Rowling's magical world is so big and so detailed and thoroughly established, that it became necessary to launch the official website, Harry Potter website – Hogwarts.net. On this site, besides the quest tasks, a variety of extra material and facts from Rowling can be found. Harry Potter is a separate niche of modern culture. People of different ages spend a lot of time playing role games or writing and reading fanfiction on Harry Potter website. In real world these people organize fan meetings. They wear robes and faculty scarves, have magic wands and many other attributes. Harry Potter universe is expanding not only because of the efforts of JK Rowling, but also thanks to the millions of fans.
Film rights to “Harry Potter” belong to Warner Bros., that shot eight films. Like every film adaptation of the book, movies by Warner Bros. are quite different from the original stories. Even Hogwarts is different. The main similarity between the films and the books is that from movie to movie things are getting darker. The first two films were made by Chris Columbus. “The Philosopher's Stone” and “The Chamber of Secrets” are perfect for children, fabulous and the most naive films out of the whole franchise. Alfonso Cuaron made the third film. The heroes have matured and the universe presented on screen has grown up with them. The director of the fourth part, "The Goblet of Fire", was criticized by the audience because of many cut scenes. David Yates started to film "The Order of the Phoenix" and he remained the director until the end of the series. The division of the final part "The Deathly Hallows" into two full-fledged films allowed filming most of the events. Even the last part of Harry Potter is online nowadays.
Despite the fact that J.K. Rowling has sold the rights to Warner Bros. for a modest sum of half a million dollars, she did participate in castings and the shooting process. Her demand was that British actors play all the main roles. Harry Potter movies were made under Rowling’s personal observation.
In the eternal opposition "Book vs. Movie" movies still lose. Because of the constant change of the directing staff it was impossible to create a complete picture. All Harry Potter movies differ from each other in the atmosphere. Not all the directors managed to convey the spirit of magical Britain. In order not to make significant changes in the cast of main characters, who were growing older, the franchise had to shoot at high speed. The main disadvantage of film adaptations of Harry Potter is that not all the events are clear to the spectators who did not read the book. Because of many cut key scenes, some of the events and the motivation of the characters is a mystery for the audience. Harry Potter characters have been changed for the sake of entertainment and the script. Hermione Granger, played by Emma Watson, bears little resemblance to the prototype because of Emma's charm. The character of Ron Weasley (Rupert Grint) is not fully disclosed, compared to a book Ron. In some moments Ron behaves foolishly and enviously, although this is not entirely true. Harry Potter character is not similar to the book variant because Daniel Redcliff grew up faster than Harry. However, some actors fit into their roles brilliantly, for example, Imelda Staunton, who plays Dolores Umbridge.
Despite all the shortcomings, the film was a huge success. The total profit from all the eight franchise films exceeded 7,7 billion. You can argue for a long time what is better - films or books about Harry Potter. There can be the only one decision: to watch all the movies and read all the books. This is easy, because you can watch Harry Potter online and also read online to choose the best Harry potter book. Also, it is better to reread all the sequels, prequels, and special editions. And it’s high time to see a new franchise movie, because "Fantastic beasts and where to find them" recently came to big screens. You can read it and watch the movie to choose what is best - Harry Potter book or movie.
"Open a new chapter in the magical world JK Rowling." This is the slogan of the new film based on the Harry Potter universe. "Fantastic Beasts" is not a prequel or sequel to the events that happened to Harry. It takes place in the same magic universe, 70 years before Harry’s eleventh birthday. The script was written by JK Rowling. The film director is David Yates, who has directed the last four films about the adventures of Harry. Besides the plot, the film has an attractive cast. Johnny Depp plays the role of Gellert Green de Wald. Also starring Ezra Miller, Colin Farrell, Eddie Redmayne, and others. The book “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them” was written in 2001 and most of the funds from the sale of books were spent on charity.
Book events unfold in 1926, in New York. Magic zoologist Newt Salamander arrives there with a magical suitcase. His magical creatures escaped from the suitcase and this can break the relations between wizards and muggles. The film was released on November 8, 2016. Until the end of November, “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them” has grossed $156.2 million in North America. The worldwide total is $473.7 million. “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them” received generally positive reviews from critics. The film has an approval rating of 76% based on 232 reviews, with an average rating of 6.9/10 on Rotten Tomatoes.
