Harry Potter And The Prisoner Of Azkaban
****1/2
The third film in the Harry Potter series is the first one made by a new director, Alfonso Cuaron.  Unlike the previous two films, he doesn't include practically every scene in the book but still presents a cohesive and entertaining film which does justice to its parent novel.  This change in approach is very successful as it breathes new life into a series which was in danger of showing diminishing returns and prevents the film from being very long.  The acting is excellent throughout with Michael Gambon moving effortlessly into Richard Harris' shoes as Dumbledore. Among the "newcomers", David Thewlis is also particularly good as Professor Lupin. The Prisoner of Azkaban is a superb film - probably the best in the Harry Potter series so far.
Released:  2004
Seen by me: 11.6.04 (with Naomi and Amy)

History Boys
****

History Boys is a film adaptation of an Alan Bennett play about eight boys spending an extra term at school for their Oxbridge exams in the early 80s.  It stars the same young men who have successfully played the boys on stage over the last couple of years as well as fine performances by Richard Griffiths, Frances De La Tour, Clive Merrison and Stephen Campbell Moore.  The boys start their term being taught by the eccentric, camp academic Hector (Griffiths) though the dour, practical headmaster (Merrison) replaces some of his lessons with rookie recruit Irwin (Moore) to give the boys some edge and help them think outside the box.  The contrast, conflict and respect between the two generations is cleverly portrayed, as is the gradual development of the individual personalities of the eight students.
All well written and beautifully developed then yet nothing like my secondary education even though the boys are only supposed to be a handful of years older than me.  The undercurrent of homosexuality, ubiquitous use of surnames and flamboyant flouting of academic prowess were not part of my school experience though maybe these facets were more prevalent in single sex Grammar Schools a few years earlier.
Although The History Boys was written as a play and is probably most effective on stage, the film adaptation is memorable and thought-provoking with some fine dialogue and excellent performances.  Well worth seeing.
Released:  2006
Seen by me:  14.10.06 (with Naomi)

Hitch
***
Comedy starring Will Smith as a "date doctor” which looks a little into the issues and politics of the dating game. 
Hitch was not particularly memorable afterwards and not really my sort of film though I’m sure it’s fine within its genre of commercialised modern comedies.
Released:  2005 
Seen by me:  15.4.06 (with Naomi)

Hitchhikers Guide To The Galaxy
***
Disappointing version of Douglas Adams’ famous book though it was always destined to be an anti-climax for most people in their mid 30s upwards.  The trouble is that we all grew up with the cult radio and TV versions in the early 80s and though the film tries hard, Hitchhikers was always essentially a very British period piece.  Furthermore I’m afraid that Martin Freeman is not versatile enough to play the human “everyman” Arthur Dent though the other lead characters – Mos Def as Ford Prefect, Sam Rockwell as Zaphod Beeblebrox and Zooey Deschanel as Trillian are good.  Hitchhikers has an interesting new ending and is worth seeing for those who haven’t seen it before.  Prepare for disappointment if you have though…
Released:  2005
Seen by me:  21.5.05 (with Naomi, Tracy and Nick)

Hot Fuzz
****
Fast moving comedy by the team which brought us Shaun Of The Dead, Hot Fuzz stars Simon Pegg as an ambitious policeman unwittingly transferred from London to a weird small town in the West Country.  It is a funny and clever post-modern comedy yet one, perhaps tellingly, which I cannot remember much about when I finally got round to writing this review several months later…
Released:  2007
Seen by me:  13.10.07 – with Naomi