Years ago, I borrowed all the first 4 books of the Harry Potter series out of a courtesy from a good friend, and read it without ever feel the urgency to watch its movie version. Not just in the theatres, but also on its DVD formats or as aired by the TV networks. I must say that I am not really into it. Dunno why.
Perhaps because I strongly think that JK Rowling, the author of the HP series, being raised as a native English, must have been, umm... “very inspired” by another well-known fantasy epics made on her era, i.e. “the Lord of the Ring”, by Prof JRR Tolkien and another one made by Tolkien’s best friend for life, “the Chronicles of Narnia”, by the great Prof CS Lewis; both were long time best friends and taught at the well respected University of Oxford.
Be noted that both stories developed the wide use of witchcraft and wizardry, strange beasts and monsters, and another world not very far away from ours, but yet as different as it can be. The fact that Ms Rowling initiated the series when she broke and wrote it on a tissue paper was also did not help much. Not to mention if we critize the so many similarity found between the series and the legendary epics; either on the names, the character, the places, the magic spells, and the costumes. Being released long after those first 2 (two) epics, we could easily grow our suspicions toward her.*grin
Another thing is, because I always wonder what the heck we are doing here by obeying what Hollywood dictate us to do. To praise the “un-positive” characters all over the world of injustice and inconsistence. We already saw the hip of the legendary imaginative robber Robin Hood, the coolness of the heartless pirates (yet another robber!), the power of the dark side (witches, vampires, etc), and so on. Whilst on another side, we were choked by the immortal fights between good and evil, the black-white difference between the Heroes versus the Villains, and the ultimate power and winnings of that “World Cop” (or should we say, “cowboys”?). The happy endings that become the rights of the protagonist casts.
I stopped reading the series since the 4th book (HP & the Goblet of Fire), it was my last. And I treated this as my rights to spell my objection. As a (potential) customer, I believe I have my rights to do so. It doesnt matter. It was too dark, has some strong violence scenes, and thus I do not think that this 4th book was suitable enough for kids and children all over the world. Perhaps they should raise its legal age limitations to “teens”. I also realized that some religious organizations banned the series from being read by their students or followers.
I know some of my good friends who are in facts also good Christians have their strong objection against the series. They even managed to make a distance between the books and their kids, with some religious reasoning. Few of them mentioned that their own previous schools (either Catholic or Christian foundations) have banned the series from their library shelves. Quite information, I must say. Nevertheless, I (tried to) understand their motive, and can hardly opposed it. For I share almost the same concern myself.
Maybe it’s just too much in the sake of the freedom of information, but maybe it would be useful for ages to come. Well, who knows? Whose gonna bear the upcoming price but the children themselves? And their parents and relatives? And the society in a whole? Who’s gonna find out? Not me, of course.
It is our choice then whether we would like to take an active action, or just take it for granted, and be a passive absorber of the uniformized global culture and civilizations. Of consumerism. That they made us in need of things that we actually would not need to do or to have it. That we afraid for being left behind by this gigantic commercial mess called as modern and cosmopolitan living. We cannot stand to be called as out of date, ndeso, "katro", anti-social, or any other else labeled to those who’s said no to the main stream. Or as they put it on “Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (movie)”, to freely classify those whose not fall into your category, as Looney.
Well, after all, I watched “Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (movie)” on the theater on last Wednesday. Why? Simply because a friend asked me out to accompany her. In addition, because another one told me to do so because she wants to read my review about it (narcistist.com!:p) Because I had some spare time after attended a meeting with Pertamina at the Oil Center tower, just oppositely situated in front of EX, on the MH Thamrin boulevard. And I planned to see it again with my Dad and my brother because they asked for it.
Therefore, I maybe ended up watching the movie more often than everyone else watches. At least more than what I intended to do. Ha-ha..
Jakarta, Friday,
070720 – 03.09 am
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PS:
Have you read my review about its newest movie?
Read here: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (movie)
