--- title: "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" year: 2009 kind: "film" canonical: "https://film.one/film/harry-potter-and-the-half-blood-prince" fi1m_score: 66 critics_score: 64 critics_reviews: 19 published: "2026-09-19T16:15:04.362670+00:00" updated: "2026-09-19T16:15:04.758693+00:00" region: "US" licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2009) Directed by David Yates · 2h 33m · MPA PG · Adventure, Fantasy **Fi1m score: 66** · Critics 64 from 19 reviews *In a sentence:* A school of wizards discovers hormones, and the end of the world politely waits its turn > The sixth Potter is the funniest and best-looking of the series, with Jim Broadbent and Rupert Grint carrying the middle hour. It is also the one in which least happens, and when the story finally arrives it is over in ten minutes. ## Synopsis Harry Potter (Daniel Radcliffe) is beginning his sixth year at Hogwarts as Voldemort’s followers start attacking London in daylight. Before term, Albus Dumbledore (Michael Gambon) collects him from a station café and takes him to a village to coax a retired teacher, Horace Slughorn (Jim Broadbent), back to the school. Dumbledore then sets Harry a private task: get close to Slughorn and draw out a memory he is hiding, one that concerns Voldemort’s own schooldays. Meanwhile Draco Malfoy (Tom Felton) has been given a job of his own and is not saying what. Around them, Ron Weasley (Rupert Grint) tries out for the Quidditch team and acquires an admirer in Lavender Brown (Jessie Cave), Hermione Granger (Emma Watson) is furious about it, and Harry inherits a second-hand potions textbook annotated by someone signing himself the Half-Blood Prince. ## Review The sixth Harry Potter film has a war coming and a school year to get through first, and it is far more interested in the school year. David Yates, back after *Order of the Phoenix*, and Steve Kloves, adapting J.K. Rowling’s novel, have made a teenage comedy of manners with a thriller bolted to the side. The comedy is the best thing the series has done. The thriller is hurried, and the thriller is what the title is about. Bruno Delbonnel has drained the colour out of Hogwarts. Everything is green-grey and lit from windows and candles, so the castle sits in a permanent November afternoon and faces come out of the dark one at a time. It is the handsomest the series has looked and the gloomiest. Stuart Craig gives Slughorn rooms crammed with cushions and framed photographs of pupils who went on to do well, and the potions dungeon a basin of something that smells of whatever you most want. Jany Temime loosens the ties, so the uniforms hang the way they do on sixteen-year-olds, badly and on purpose. The older cast do the heavy lifting. Jim Broadbent plays Horace Slughorn, the potions master Dumbledore lures back to teach, as a man who collects promising children the way others collect stamps, and knows there is something shabby in it. He is funny and then, in a single scene by a fire, not funny at all. Alan Rickman has a handful of lines as Snape and makes each one an event, with pauses you could park in. Tom Felton, given more to do than ever, plays Draco Malfoy as a boy handed a task too big for him who cannot tell anyone, and his scenes alone in a bathroom are the closest the film gets to dread. Michael Gambon’s Dumbledore is gentler than before, and rather good. The children have mostly grown into actors. Rupert Grint is the surprise: his Ron, dazed by a love potion or being kissed against his will by Jessie Cave’s Lavender Brown, is a proper comic performance, all slack jaw and wounded pride. Emma Watson does her best work of the series watching him, and a scene on a staircase in which Hermione says almost nothing is played with real delicacy. We laughed a good deal in the middle hour, and nearly all of it was Grint and Broadbent. Daniel Radcliffe is steadier than he was, and gets one funny scene under a luck potion, but he is playing the one person in the building not allowed a life. Bonnie Wright’s Ginny, who is meant to be the reason he wants one, gets a few short scenes to become it. The plot is the trouble. Dumbledore sets Harry to get close to Slughorn and draw a memory out of him, and the film forgets the job for forty minutes at a stretch. The Half-Blood Prince’s annotated potions book, which gives the film its name, is introduced with a flourish and then left in a bag. Mark Day cuts the school scenes with patience and the story scenes as if late for something, so an attack on the Weasleys’ house at Christmas arrives from nowhere, burns for three minutes and is not mentioned again. Quidditch is back, and stops the film dead. Nicholas Hooper’s score is quiet, mostly strings and a few piano figures, and rarely tells us what to feel, which is a relief until the one moment we needed telling. That moment comes at the end, and we will not describe it. What we can say is that it is the event the film has been walking towards for two hours, staged in Delbonnel’s best light, and we sat through it dry-eyed. We noticed the camera moves, and then felt cross that the film had spent so long on snogging and Quidditch and left itself ten minutes for the thing that mattered. The cave sequence just before, lit by one wand over black water, frightened us far more. Yates’s *Order of the Phoenix* (2007) was rushed and this is not. Alfonso Cuarón’s *Prisoner of Azkaban* (2004) is still the only one of these films that works for someone who has not read the book, and this one does not try. It runs 153 minutes and carries a 12A. Watch it for the middle hour, for Broadbent and Grint and the light, and accept that the story is being saved for the next film. *Fi1m score 66, published 19 September 2026.* ## What the critics say Most critics find this a well-made, more grown-up entry, and the praise clusters in two places. The craft departments get the warmest notices: the cinematography, production design and score are singled out repeatedly, and the Quidditch sequences are widely mentioned as highlights. The other constant is the supporting cast. Jim Broadbent’s Slughorn and Alan Rickman’s Snape are named as standouts across reviews that agree on little else, and David Yates is credited with a calmer, more human film that puts romance and character ahead of spectacle. The split is over whether it works on its own. A large group of mixed reviews call it set-up for the finale: thin on plot, rushed at key moments and long for what it delivers. The young leads divide opinion sharply, and the spread is wide. The New York Times and The New Yorker are the harshest, seeing series fatigue and too much solemnity, while Collider, Den of Geek and The Playlist rank it above every previous entry. ### Reviews we read (19) - **The Telegraph**, Sukhdev Sandhu (4/5): The film stands head and shoulders above the previous five and is terrific entertainment in its own right, with liberated performances from the leads and a genuine emotional tug. It is confident, muscular and comic. [Read](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/films/2016/12/29/harry-potter-half-blood-prince-review/) - **The Guardian**, Xan Brooks (70/100, inferred): The film is a solidly constructed addition to the series with fine effects, though the growing-up juvenile leads expose a weakness in the franchise. Director David Yates handles the cards well despite some ungainliness. [Read](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2009/jul/04/harry-potter-half-blood-prince-review) - **The Hollywood Reporter**, Kirk Honeycutt (70/100, inferred): The review highlights an air of foreboding over Hogwarts as the confrontation with Voldemort looms, with romantic subplots among the students providing some relief amid the darkness. It praises the technical contributions from composer, cinematographer, and designer while noting the hurried pacing and weakened position of the protagonist in the climax. [Read](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-reviews/harry-potter-blood-prince-film-93330/) - **Time Out**, Wally Hammond (3 out of 5 stars): The critic finds it a more human, less frenzied affair focused on romance and character moments rather than action. Praises the director’s restraint and the human details, intimacy, and performances. [Read](https://www.timeout.com/movies/harry-potter-and-the-half-blood-prince-1) - **Variety**, Todd McCarthy (70/100, inferred): Todd McCarthy praises the film as dazzlingly well made and a formidable entry that shifts effectively into life-or-death drama with increased grit and maturity. He highlights David Yates’ confident direction, Steve Kloves’ screenplay, and strong production values while noting a lack of dramatic modulation. [Read](https://variety.com/2009/film/features/harry-potter-and-the-half-blood-prince-1200506934/) - **Empire**, Angie Errigo (60/100, inferred): The film struggles to blend impending doom with teen romance and humour in an overlong story with rushed plot points; standout spectacle from cinematography and production design is memorable, though acting is variable. [Read](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/harry-potter-half-blood-prince-review/) - **Evening Standard** (60/100, inferred): The film is a slick but curiously unemotional effects juggernaut with hollow teen romance; veteran actors like Broadbent and Gambon provide emotional weight, while kinetic Quidditch and gorgeous visuals distract from pacing and length issues. [Read](https://www.standard.co.uk/culture/film/first-review-harry-potter-and-the-halfblood-prince-7415332.html) - **Screen Daily** (60/100, inferred): Even with ample runtime, it struggles to make a consistently thrilling experience, more a series of gentle interludes and set-up. Technically superior and well-made, with strong individual sequences and performances, but may feel awkward in blockbuster season. [Read](https://www.screendaily.com/harry-potter-and-the-half-blood-prince/5003198.article) - **Slant Magazine**, Nick Schager (55/100, inferred): The film is criticized for its thin narrative momentum and perfunctory handling of key events, functioning mainly as a placeholder in the series. It is praised for its focus on the romantic plights of the teen characters and strong supporting performances, particularly Jim Broadbent as Slughorn. [Read](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/harry-potter-and-the-half-blood-prince/) - **Los Angeles Times**, Kenneth Turan (50/100, inferred): Kenneth Turan calls the film well-crafted and consistent with the series’ high standards of fidelity to the source, but notes it can feel hard to endure at times. He singles out Alan Rickman’s Snape as a standout amid the professional execution. [Read](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/la-et-archives-harry-potter-half-blood-prince-review-20170626-story.html) - **The Independent** (50/100, inferred): The film lacks a satisfying standalone plot and feels like setup for the finale, with flat teen romances and Harry sidelined; production design and incidental magic are wondrous, and Quidditch provides highlights. [Read](https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/reviews/harry-potter-and-the-halfblood-prince-david-yates-153-mins-12a-frozen-river-courtney-hunt-97-mins-15-1752168.html) - **The New Yorker**, Anthony Lane (40/100, inferred): Anthony Lane finds the installment overly solemn and weighed down by hormones and dark tones, stripping away the earlier whimsy. He criticizes the heavy stylistic choices and lack of genuine fun while praising isolated moments of wit. [Read](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2009/07/27/gray-skies-2) - **The New York Times**, Manohla Dargis (30/100, inferred): The film shows signs of series fatigue as the young leads struggle to convey depth amid growing stakes. Manohla Dargis notes strong supporting turns, particularly Alan Rickman’s Snape, but finds the central performances lacking in magic. [Read](https://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/15/movies/15harry.html) - **Collider**, Matt Goldberg (A): The film is a masterpiece and the best in the series yet, a perfect balance of plot progression and teenage romance that feels like the calm before the storm. The critic singles out the mature, lived-in performances of the young leads and the technical mastery of the Hogwarts world. [Read](https://collider.com/harry-potter-and-the-half-blood-prince-review/) - **Den of Geek**, Rupert de (4 out of 5): The critic calls it a corker and possibly the best in the series so far, praising its strong character development as the leads mature into young adults and the emotional handling of key story beats. They single out Helena Bonham Carter's sensational performance as Bellatrix Lestrange and note that character-focused storytelling trumps special effects. [Read](https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/harry-potter-and-the-half-blood-prince-review/) - **The Playlist**, Rodrigo Perez (85/100, inferred): Yates delivers an exhilarating return to form and the best entry in the series, with stylish visuals, emotional resonance, and effective condensation of the book's rich plotting. [Read](https://theplaylist.net/review-harry-potter-6-stylis-20090714/) - **Eye for Film**, Robyn Jankel (80/100, inferred): The film is the darkest yet but also the funniest thanks to strong comic performances and visual flair; it delivers satisfying scares, strong casting, and emotional depth while appealing strongly to fans. [Read](http://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/review/harry-potter-and-the-half-blood-prince-film-review-by-robyn-jankel) - **/Film**, David Chen (7/10): The critic finds the film fails to stand fully on its own as an adventure movie due to uneven pacing and excessive or insufficient exposition, though it works well for series fans. [Read](https://www.slashfilm.com/504601/harry-potter-through-fresh-eyes-harry-potter-and-the-half-blood-prince-movie-review/) - **NME**, NME (50/100, inferred): The review describes the film as a lengthy modern blockbuster heavy on CGI spectacle and teenage romance, comparing its focus on sexual awakening and nihilism to an episode of Skins. It praises Jim Broadbent's likeable turn as Slughorn and the stunning opening sequence but criticises the thin plot. [Read](https://www.nme.com/blogs/the-movies-blog/harry-potter-and-the-half-blood-prince-film-review-its-like-skins-with-wizards-46863) ## Details - **Director:** David Yates - **Director:** David Yates - **Screenplay:** Steve Kloves - **Novel:** J.K. Rowling - **Cinematography:** Bruno Delbonnel - **Editor:** Mark Day - **Music:** Nicholas Hooper - **Production design:** Stuart Craig - **Costume design:** Jany Temime - **Producer:** David Heyman, David Barron - **Cast:** Daniel Radcliffe as Harry Potter; Rupert Grint as Ron Weasley; Emma Watson as Hermione Granger; Jim Broadbent as Horace Slughorn; Michael Gambon as Albus Dumbledore; Tom Felton as Draco Malfoy; Alan Rickman as Severus Snape; Bonnie Wright as Ginny Weasley - **Runtime:** 2h 33m - **Certificate (MPA):** PG - **Release (the US):** 15 July 2009 - **Genres:** Adventure, Fantasy - **Budget:** $250 million - **Box office:** $934 million - **Trailer:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q8_Sjb0vG7o ## Where to watch in the US - Peacock: streaming, hd - HBO Max: streaming, uhd - Amazon Prime Video: add-on, uhd - The Roku Channel: add-on, hd - Hulu: add-on, hd - Apple TV: rent $4.99, hd - Amazon Prime Video: rent $4.99, uhd - Amazon Prime Video: buy $9.99, uhd - Apple TV: buy $14.99, hd *Checked 2026-09-19.* Also available in: AE, AR, AT, AU, BE, BG, BR, CA, CH, CL, CO, CZ, DE, DK, EC, EE, ES, FI, FR, GB, GR, HK, HR, HU, ID, IE, IL, IN, IS, IT, JP, KR, LT, MX, MY, NL, NO, NZ, PA, PE, PH, PL, PT, RO, RS, SE, SG, SI, TH, TR, UA, US, VN, ZA. Add `?region=XX` to this URL for another country. ## Awards - Academy Awards 2010: Best Cinematography (nominated) - MTV Movie Award for Best Villain 2010: MTV Movie Award for Best Villain (won) ## If you liked this - *Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban* (2004), Fi1m 82: The one entry that works on its own; Cuarón found weather in Hogwarts. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/harry-potter-and-the-prisoner-of-azkaban.md) - *The History Boys* (2006): Another teacher who collects clever boys, and Bennett is far funnier about it. - *If....* (1968), Fi1m 82: Boarding school as pressure cooker, ending in what the Potter films only threaten. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/if-1968.md) - *Let the Right One In* (2008), Fi1m 88: Adolescence and menace in a Swedish suburb, told with far fewer words. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/let-the-right-one-in.md) - *Spirited Away* (2001), Fi1m 92: A child in a world of rules she must learn fast, drawn rather than rendered. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/spirited-away.md) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/film/harry-potter-and-the-half-blood-prince