The film 'Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban' is based on the novel of the same name by the author J. K. Rowling. It is the third in the Harry Potter series of seven instalments, and corresponds with the third academic year at 'Hogwarts' the magical school. Harry Potter is the famous young wizard at the centre of the story.
It opens at the Dursleys' home where Harry Potter (Daniel Radcliffe) lives and is staying, as usual, during the summer holidays. Uncle Vernon's (Richard Griffiths) sister Marge (Pam Ferris) comes to visit and treats Harry with general contempt. She viciously insults him and his parents, angering Harry who unwittingly uses his innate magical powers to cause her to inflate, and float off, out of the Dursleys' house and into the twilight. Harry flees the Dursleys' home, furious. At first he walks with determination but soon grinds to a stop as he realises he hasn't anywhere to go. He sits down at the edge of the road with his trunk. His surroundings stir as the wind picks up and a street lamp flickers above him. A jet black dog emerges from the bushes opposite, growling at him and he raises his wand. At that instant however, the eccentric Knight Bus, for lost witches or wizards, makes a sharp appearance and escorts Harry on a wacky journey to the wizards' pub 'The Leaky Cauldron.' While there, Harry learns that Sirius Black (Gary Oldman), an alleged supporter of Lord Voldemort, the dark wizard, has escaped from Azkaban prison. Harry must meet the Minister of Magic Cornelius Fudge (Robert Hardy) and he fears expulsion from Hogwarts for his using of under-age magic out of school. However, the matter is surprisingly dropped as "...the Ministry doesn't send students to Azkaban for blowing up their aunts." While at The Leaky Cauldron Harry also reconvenes with his two best friends, Ron Weasley (Rupert Grint) and Hermione Grainger (Emma Watson), and the rest of the Weasley family. Mr. Arthur Weasley (Mark Williams) pulls Harry to one side to warn him about Sirius Black. He suggests that Harry needs to be cautious of Sirius Black due his allegiance with Voldemort. He believes that Harry is the only thing which stands in the way of Voldemort returning to power and that it is on this premise that Sirius Black has escaped from Azkaban. To find and kill Harry Potter.
Harry, Ron and Hermione enter their fourth year at Hogwarts. After having a strange dream of the Dark Lord and his Death Eaters, Harry Potter awakes at the Weasleys' house where they shortly depart for the 422nd Quidditch World Cup. After the match, the camp is attacked by Death Eaters. The three later arrive at Hogwarts, where they find that the magical school will be hosting a legendary event called the Triwizard Tournament, in which one wizard each from two rival schools and Hogwarts will compete in three dangerous tasks.
When the schools of Beauxbatons and Durmstrang, the rival schools, arrive, the rules are announced. Meanwhile, Alastor "Mad Eye" Moody arrives at Hogwarts at the request of Dumbledore to be the new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher. Moody is a very eccentric man, noted for his paranoia and his wildly roaming "mad eye". People over seventeen who are interested must insert their name into the Goblet of Fire, and those chosen will be the Champions of their respective school. Three champions names come out of the Goblet of Fire, Cedric Diggory from Hogwarts, Viktor Krum from Durmstrang
and Fleur Delacour from Beauxbatons, and then the goblet unexpectedly produces a fourth, Harry Potter, although he is an under-age fourth year who never entered. Although Harry insists that he did not enter his name, his selection prompts a certain amount of jealousy and suspicion on part of his fellow students - including Ron, who believes that Harry is attempting to make himself the centre of attention again. This causes a brief period of resentment and estrangement between the two friends (including Ron swearing, telling Harry to piss off!), which is soon healed, however. Dumbledore tells Alastor to keep an eye on Harr
y, without him knowing it.
The Tournament begins with the first event, in which the four champions must each battle a dragon to retrieve a golden egg. Upon using the Accio spell to summon his broom, he flies out of the arena. The dragon breaks free of its chain and chases Harry through the Hogwarts grounds, where it runs into a stone bridge and falls dead. Harry gets the egg, which, when opened, will reveal a clue about the second task. When Harry opens it, though, only a horrible screeching is heard. They are soon informed of the Yule Ball, a Christmas ball held during the Triwizard Tournament. Ron and Harry find it hard to get dates to the ball, but finally get the Patil twins to join them, while Hermione goes with Viktor Krum, stunning everyone with her suddenly beautiful appearance at the ball. Ron is so jealously enraged at seeing Hermione with Krum (formerly his idol) that he attacks her and accuses her of "fraternizing with the enemy". The ensuing argument leaves Hermione in tears (in the film version only).
Harry Potter and his cousin Dudley Dursley are attacked by two Dementors, but Harry manages to drive the Dementors off with a Patronus charm. Shortly thereafter, the Ministry of Magic detect the act of underage wizardry and attempt to have Harry expelled from Hogwarts immediately, but this is modified to a trial later in the summer. After experiencing horrible nightmares depicting the evil Lord Voldemort's return, Harry is awoken by the arrival of an advance guard of wizards who escort him to the headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix, a secret organization founded by Dumbledore. It is only now that Harry discovers that under the Ministry's influence the newspaper The Daily Prophet has launched a smear campaign against anyone who claims that Voldemort has returned, leaving Harry feeling isolated and betrayed by the Wizarding community. Harry and the other members of the Order fly to 12 Grimmauld Place, the home of Sirius Black, where they meet with Sirius, Remus, Ron, Hermione and others. Later, Ron and Hermione express concern about Harry's situation with the Ministry.
Harry and Arthur Weasley head to the court where Harry's trial will take place, briefly spotting Lucius Malfoy speaking with the minister on their way. With the help of Dumbledore and Harry's neighbour, Mrs Figg, Harry is cleared of all charges at the Ministry and is allowed to return to Hogwarts. However, during Harry, Ron and Hermione's fifth year at Hogwarts School, the Minister for Magic Cornelius Fudge appoints a new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher, Dolores Umbridge, a Senior Ministry official who refuses to teach practical magic to her students, as the Ministry fears Dumbledore will organize his own personal wizard army. One day during class, Harry is punished for claiming that Cedric Diggory was killed by Voldemort, which according to the Ministry's official policy is a lie. In Umbridge's office, Harry is forced to write "I must not tell lies" repeatedly as punishment. However, the sentence is magically imprinted on his hand instead, causing scarring. Meanwhile, as Umbridge's control over the school increases, Ron and Hermione aid Harry in forming a secret defence group, calling themselves "Dumbledore's Army" or DA for short. Harry, Ron and Hermione start teaching at Hogwarts, training students in defensive spells to become part of the Army. Draco Malfoy and other Slytherin students are then recruited by Umbridge to try to uncover the secretive group, creating the Inquisitorial Squad. Meanwhile, Harry officially begins a relationship with Cho, as they kiss one day after training. In an attempt to tighten her oppressive grip on Hogwarts, Umbridge dismisses Professor Sybill Trelawney and tries to have her banished from Hogwarts, which is only prevented after Dumbledore's intervention.
