Remember the first time you saw Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone? The twinkling candles floating above the Great Hall, the cozy Christmas at Hogwarts—it’s a bundle of nostalgia that still feels like stepping into a real-life fairy tale. Well, we’ve Chris Columbus to thank for this magical world that felt timeless and enchanting.
But then came Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban—a complete game-changer. Alfonso Cuarón shook things up with darker tones and moodier lighting and set the tone for the upcoming movies that were meant to be dark and heartbreaking. But sadly, no one could replicate the grim tone set by Cuarón, which led to the series gradually losing its whimsical charm and getting stuck in what felt like a never-ending thunderstorm.
Alfonso Cuarón set the stage for Harry Potter’s grim transition
After Chris Columbus’ childlike whimsical Harry Potter movies, when Alfonso Cuarón took over the franchise, he didn’t just helm a sequel—he cast a spell that forever changed the franchise. After Cuarón took over the director’s chair for Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, the franchise evolved.
While Chris Columbus’ Hogwarts had warm, golden hues, Alfonso Cuarón’s movie transitioned into stormy skies, and eerie shadows, with Hogwarts feeling less like a Christmas card and more like a haunted castle. But here’s the thing—Cuarón didn’t strip away the magic. Hogwarts still felt familiar to fans.
Despite the darker aesthetic, Prisoner of Azkaban still maintained that whimsical, fairy-tale feel. The Hogwarts Express steaming through the rain felt moody and magical. The floating candy in Honeydukes was still enchanting. The Marauder’s Map, the moving Whomping Willow, and even Hagrid’s hippogriff flight felt like pieces of a storybook come to life.
Alfonso Cuarón brilliantly balanced the film between wonder and darkness, setting the stage for the heavier themes of the later films. But here’s the problem: the directors who followed him saw the darkness but forgot the wonder.
Alfonso Cuarón’s unachievable standards ruined the franchise
Although Alfonso Cuarón set the stage for the Harry Potter franchise to evolve with its darker tones while simultaneously maintaining its magical charm, the directors who came after him seemingly found this to be an unachievable standard. Therefore, instead of expanding on the Wizarding World’s rich, whimsical charm, they plunged headfirst into the grim.
It turned into a classic case of “be careful what you wish for”. While Alfonso Cuarón’s Prisoner of Azkaban was a game-changer, his vision seemed too good for the franchise to keep up. It’s almost like he set the bar high—blending fantasy with realism in a way that felt effortless—that no other director could follow through his beautifully balanced blueprint.
Let’s face it—David Yates, who directed the last four movies, took “dark and serious” a little too seriously. Suddenly, everyone at Hogwarts looked like they hadn’t seen sunlight in years. After Prisoner of Azkaban gave us fun little scenes with the Monster Book of Monsters and a secret getaway to Hogsmeade, the later films seemingly ditched these details, focusing only on the doom and gloom.
Alfonso Cuarón’s vision was meant to evolve with the story, but instead, the franchise got stuck trying to mimic his style without understanding it. Therefore, by the time we got to Half-Blood Prince, Hogwarts looked like it belonged in a post-apocalyptic wasteland rather than a school of magic. And for many fans, that shift drained the very magic that made Harry Potter so special in the first place.
Harry Potter films are currently available to watch on Max.
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