Ranking the Harry Potter Movies from Worst to Best

COMMENTARY | The Harry Potter movies have been hailed as the greatest collection of films in recent memory. That is due to how all eight movies had positive reviews, which no franchise has ever done. With the massive raves for Deathly Hallows Part 2, most everyone believes they saved the best chapter for last. But how did the installments rank before the grand finale?

7. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone

Most everyone ranks the first two films at the bottom, thanks partly to pre-existing backlash against director Chris Columbus. Compared to what this series would become, the opening is more like child's play, if only by default.

6. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

The same goes for the second movie, although the first signs of improvement were on display. But Columbus still had the same old tone and approach, as the series clearly needed new hands to thrive.

5. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1

Part 1 is more appreciated now thanks to how Part 2 paid it off. Yet it is still criticized for its slow pace, particularly in the woods. But it still gets off to a soaring start before then, and does recover at the end, using Dobby the Elf in a more tolerable way than Chamber of Secrets did.

4. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

Like Deathly Hallows Part 1, this is more of an exposition chapter at times, although the action and tragedy of the last act picks it up. Yet it has more key steps for Harry growing up, sheds more chilling light on Voldemort, and brings Draco Malfoy back into action in surprising ways.

3. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

After the series got new life with Prisoner of Azkaban, Goblet of Fire proved the new adult themes and darker action were no fluke. Thanks to Voldemort and Harry's first showdown at the end, this may be the ideal film to watch before their final showdown this weekend.

2. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Technically, Order of the Phoenix is the worst movie, according to Rotten Tomatoes. But that makes it the most underrated, as it established director David Yates' takeover, made little old lady Dolores Umbridge more frightening than Voldemort, and had Harry confront his inner Voldemort once and for all.

1. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

This film's place as the best film is now threatened by Deathly Hallows Part 2. Yet it is still the movie that changed the series, as Alfonso Cuaron provided a more visionary take just in time. It was also the first to really focus on Harry's inner struggle as he delved deeper into the loss of his family, yet regained some of it anyway. Now, eight years later, Harry is fully ready to find the whole truth about himself and rise against Voldemort one last time.

Sources

Rotten Tomatoes- "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2"