‘Goblet’ is wizardry at its finest

“Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire” is a tour de force of filmmaking and storytelling. It is escapism in the best sense of the word, keeping the viewer in a state of wonder and awe for 2 1/2 hours. As Harry himself declares upon entering a 6-foot pup tent to find an interior with all the comforts of a mid-sized home, “I love magic.” After seeing this film, so will you.

What impresses first and foremost is the magnificent artistry of the film spearheaded by production designer Stuart Craig. So many of author J.K. Rowling’s imaginative devices are carefully conceptualized and crafted. For instance, we get to see how a Portkey works, how fierce a Hungarian Horntail dragon is, and how tall Madame Maxime is. We also see how splendid the Durmstrang ship and the Beauxbatons chariot are, how gillyweed affects a human, how Sirius Black appears in the fire, how glorious the Quidditch World Cup arena is, and so many other magical things. An IMAX viewing is recommended.

The actors are directed a little differently in this installment by director Mike Newell (“Four Weddings and a Funeral”). Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, and Emma Watson (Harry, Ron and Hermione, respectively) are as winning as ever though their “teenage angst” seems exaggerated. Professor Dumbledore (Michael Gambon) is decidedly more serious and less kindly, almost mean. (Richard Harris never would have played him that way.) Miranda Richardson is a dead-on Rita Skeeter and Ralph Fiennes is incredibly creepy as Lord Voldemort.

The real treat in this film is Brendan Gleeson as Mad-Eye Moody. He’s passionate and spooky and all-together spellbinding (pun intended).

Book readers might nitpick about all the things that were left out of the movie -- the Blast-Ended Skrewts, more on the omnioculars and the bewitching veelas, the whole S.P.E.W. storyline, more adventures in the Triwizard Tournament tasks -- but the movie would have been five hours long.

There are times, especially in the first half-hour, that the film seems butchered by the editor giving rise to concern that people new to Harry Potter won’t be able to follow.

I asked some folks who hadn’t read the book and they said they followed it just fine.

All in all, this movie is one for the ages. It is emotionally charged, visually beautiful and thrilling from beginning to end.

REEL FACTOID

Due to the younger cast members of “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire” being in their teens and sprouting acne, a digital “spot removing” technique (which had previously been used for such TV shows as “Desperate Housewives”) was applied in post-production to clear up some of the more severe skin problems, since make-up tested poorly for close-up shots in particular.

* LISA DUPUY has seen every Harry Potter movie and read every book at least once.

20051130hm1x8okf(LA)Lisa Dupuy20051130iqoorukn(LA)Daniel Radcliffe as Harry Potter and Emma Watson as Hermione Granger in Warner Bros. Pictures’ fantasy “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.”20051130iqoorjkn(LA)Daniel Radcliffe as Harry Potter in Warner Bros. Pictures’ fantasy “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.”