It is truly astonishing to discover what all can happen when you put a promising story that's full of imagination, wonder & endless possibilities into the hands of a master storyteller and watch him/her elevate it to a whole new level. Breaking from the monotony of the previous two chapters, Harry Potter & the Prisoner of Azkaban is the first time we get a genuine taste of how magical, enchanting & mystifying the world of Harry Potter really is and the film as a whole is, in my opinion, the best instalment of the Harry Potter saga.

Based on J.K. Rowling's third novel & covering Potter's adventure during his third year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft & Wizardry, Harry Potter & the Prisoner of Azkaban is…

While the last two films weren't nearly as good as I remembered them being as a kid, I actually forgot just how good this one really was. It's actually excellent.

I think we can all agree that the best thing that happened in the Potter franchise was replacing the director Chris Colombus with Alfonso Cuaron. Kinda interesting how you'd expect a guy like Colombus to make a family film based on previous efforts before this series (like Home Alone) but the guy who made a better film was Cuaron, the last guy you'd expect to see take over a family franchise (he previously made Y tu mamá también, a far from kid-friendly erotic piece). Cuaron brings forth a pulse that…

Where the hell did this movie come from? A masterfully handled Harry Potter entry that's more adult, more intelligent, more complex than most any in the series. An entry so well done it could stand - proudly - alone. Oh Alfonso Cuarón, you beautiful beautiful man you.

I think what's most immediately striking about Azkaban, is the film's visual identity, and just how drastic a departure it is from the previous two films. Colors are muted, transitions are vignetted, contrast is strong, sets are far more organic, and each frame of the film carries a fine grain that adds texture and grit to what's already a visually busy production. Never has Harry Potter's world looked this convincing, or this scary.…

The one Harry Potter film I actually saw when I was a kid, and I got in plenty of trouble for watching it too.

Before now I couldn’t have told you anything about it other than it featured a shapeshifting bus, but after rewatching it, I’ll say that Cuarón was a welcome addition to the series. In terms of direction, and of performances, and probably also of story, easily my favorite of the three I’ve seen so far. I also like Lupin as a character, and I like what David Thewlis does with him.

On a side note, I couldn’t help but notice how old these kids are getting. A few years ago, it was a fairly popular assertion that…