Its the only entry madewithoutSteve Kloves, their chief screenwriter, with his deep compatibility with the material.

Columbuss Wizarding World films are fantasy pictures and childrens movies.

Whimsey and cuteness are tasted in nearly every bite.

Harry at a cemetery looking to his right in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

Image via Warner Bros. Pictures

They arefantastic, but this relative artistic conservatism leaves them with an air one might describe as serviceable.

Not even Universal Pictures was pulling that off.

Luckily, he is adapting a novel that understood its own assignment.

harry potter and the goblet of fire

Image via Warner Bros.

She was not writingor so it appearedwith the beats or runtime of a mainstream movie in mind.

That was the screenwriters job, along with Newel.

Perhaps it didnt seem that way at the time, with names likeGuillermo del Torobeing thrown about.

Harry Potter casts a Patronus charm in ‘Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban’

Image via Warner Bros.

There are two sequences crucial to pulling this off.

The Trio then take us to the Quidditch World Cup.

Men in pointed hoods and billowing robes on a hostile march, launching hostile spells.

harry-potter-portkey

Image via Warner Bros.

The Dark Mark of Lord Voldemort emblazoned in the sky above the now desolate Quidditch World Cup campsite.

Its a look that would bealtered going forward, but one that nonetheless sears itself in audience memory.

One look and we know exactly what kind of witches and wizards stand under those robes.

harry potter triwizard cup

Image via Warner Bros.

The second sequence comes at the very end of the picture.

Each challenge in the competition puts the participants in mortal peril, in a somehow fun way.

Its a moment that would be sweet if the audience didnt palpably sense the dread in the air.

harry-and-ron-harry-potter-goblet of fire

It turns out the goblet is another portkey.

Where theyre taken is a graveyard that would look at home in a Tim Burton movie.

Just like that, the partys over.

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

He engages in a bit ofBondvillain theatrics, a prelude to a duel ofStar Warsproportions.