In addition to the two main mysteries, there were two more smaller ohrown into the loop. One was Harry seeing a dead man named Peter Pettigrew moving through the castle using a magical map, while the other was the disappearance of Ron's pet rat, Scabbers. While most people didn't think too much of it, Benji knew how important little details could be in [Harry Potter] films.

  There articur se that had cheers of joy going around the crowd of viewers, and that was when Hermione punched Dra the face—a se Benji could uand because he hated that 'foul, evil, loathsome little cockroach,' as Hermione called him.

  But all the cheers died down in the following se, when the Golden Trio visits Hagrid right before Buckbeak's execution, and then wit from afar. Hermione breaks down as she hugs Ron, and Harry hugs her from behind. A marvelous piece of ag from the three actors as they came together as friends.

  That tender moment is cut short when the film suddenly starts pying on steroids. The moment, Ron is bitten by his rat, who had been found earlier by Hagrid. As Ron chases after him, so do Harry and Hermione. Ron is kidnapped by a ferocious-looking bck dog and dragged away underh the Whomping Willow. The same tree tio attack Harry and Hermione viciously, only for them to escape after aing sequence where they outmahe tree and nd themselves in the Shrieking Shack.

  There is a lot of alliteration in names, now that Benji thought about it—'Whomping Willow,' 'Shrieking Shack,' 'Peter Pettigrew,' 'Marauder's Map,' and so on.

  In the Shrieking Shack, one of the coolest things happened. When the dog is revealed to be the murderer, Sirius Bck, Ron, who has an injured leg, stands up on it after a lot of struggle, covers Harry protectively with his body, and says, "If you want to kill Harry, you'll have to kill us too!"

  "Ron is so cool!" Ashley gushed beside Benji.

  While he didn't ent on it because the film was going on, he agreed with Ashley's se wholeheartedly. He also wanted a friend like that in his life. A friend who would do anything to protect you. A friend like Ron. He had many friends, but none were as close to him as Ron was to Harry.

  As if not uanding how good of a moment that was, Harry pushes past Ron, making him fall ba the ground before attag Sirius Bck, a wanted mass-murdering prison escapee, head-on. Before he actually do anything, Remus Lupin es on the se and disarms Harry. Theer betrayal happened when he hugged Sirius like they were long-lost brothers.

  "Holy shit!" Someone yelled in the crowd.

  The few moments happened so quickly, with the arrival of Snape, him being attacked by Harry, and Lupin being outed as a werewolf, until the big reveal of the night—Scabbers eter Pettigrew all along.

  There were multiple gasps of surprise in the hall when the small rat grew up to be a full-sized pudgy man.

  Everyone decides to haigrew over to the authorities. Harry and Sirius have a tender family moment together. Everything seemed to be going perfectly well until Hermione poi the full moon, which began Lupin's transformation. That was the biggest clusterfu the night's events. Sirius is irying to save the kids, and as Harry goes to him, they are attacked by dementors, only to be saved by a silver stag that repelled the dementors.

  Sirius is senteo death, while Ron is fio his bed.

  As if that wasn't enough excitement for the night, Harry and Hermione are visited by Dumbledore, who says some cryptic bullshit to Hermione—something she uands and that blows everyone's mind once more. She had a time-traveling mae with her the whole time! And she was using it to study? What a bookworm!

  They go ba time and save Buckbeak first. Benji had a stupid griched on his face upon the realization that the beast wouldn't be killed. When they escape, Harry tells Hermione what he saw st.

  "I saw my dad, Hermione. I know for sure that it was him because he had a stag Patronus. You 't fake a Patronus which repelled all those dementors."

  When, at the right time, James Potter didn't appear, Harry abandoned all inhibitions and stepped forth before casting the spell on his own.

  "Expecto Patronum!" His shout created an intense white light, followed by a shinihereal silver stag that pranced around the clearing, shooing all the dementors away.

  Then Harry and Hermione help Sirius escape the prison he was bei in while on Hrounds. Harry and Sirius have a toug father-son moment before the older man escapes on Buckbeak. Harry and Hermione run back towards the hospital wing, where Ron was resting after his injury.

  Benji sighed in relief at that perfect closure of the film. There were a few more ses, like Lupin quitting the job, or Harry receiving a new broom as a gift, but they weren't that important. The main flicts had all been resolved, and perfectly. This was ihe best [Harry Potter] film up till now.

  Usually, at this point, people would stand and start to leave, but sihis remiere, no one did so and patiently waited for the credits to roll out pletely. It was a little b, but Benji persevered. Whe of the credits were done, and he was about to get up to cp for the filmmakers, something amazing happened. A se started pying. Not just any se—it was a trailer of sorts from [The Goblet of Fire]. Not a plete trailer, but it tains ss of shots from the film, like the se where Harry is standing in front of a dragon, is swimming uer, or is running beside another boy between two hedges. I one, he was casting some heavy-duty spell that emitted red light, but right before it could be shown who the oppo was, the s cut to bck, and a text appeared on it.

  "Harry Potter and friends will return to Hogwarts year."

  Aww, snap! It will take a full year for the part? Benji didn't like that at all. The exg things like fighting a dragon or uer battles were already thrilling enough for him. As much as he wao pin about that, he couldn't fet that this remiere, and for aremely well-made film—the best of the series so far. So he stood up along with his fellow viewers and cpped loudly freat movie. He wasn't alone iheater; everyone did it for the cast and the crew, especially the director, who skillfully transformed [Harry Potter] from a kid franchise to something bigger aer.

  "Thank you, everyone," Steve Kloves, Troy's adoptive father and the producer of [Harry Potter], took the stage and bowed before the audiehank you for this warm reception to our movie. Now I'd like to call on stage the director and the cast members of the film, without whom this couldn't have been possible at all. Starting with Alfonso Cuaron…"

  (Break)

  It was a long-ass publicity schedule that ended in Los Angeles. Usually, I would go home after publicity, but since I had to begin w on [Brick], I decided to end my tour in LA. I truly missed my home ba London. Some people don't uand the value and fort that one's own home provides. In my opinion, travel is a little overrated, especially when it means promoting your film in multiple tries. For the film, after New York, I went on aensive European tour, followed by Australia, a, and finishing with Japan. The tter was my favorite experieo date. The craze and hero worship they have for [Harry Potter] in general, and me in particur, is unpreted and a little scary. The only reason the Japanese colle for the film wasn't the highest in the world is that their popution is only a third of the USA.

  I decided to end the tour with a bang in Los Angeles, on a retively new show that will bee very famous, aually infamous for its toxic work enviro.

  "Please wele the greatest star of his age in the world—Troy Armitage!" Ellen Degeneres announced loudly as I walked over to the set while waving at the loudly cheering audie was weird being ba Los Angeles after that i, but with five security guards exclusively on my detail, I knew I was safe.

  I hugged Ellen warmly before saying, "Thanks for having me here."

  "It's great to have you here," Ellen beamed at me. "It's your first time here on the show; how do you feel?"

  "I feel great!" I smiled wider. "Everyone is so lovely here."

  "That we are," Ellen said teasingly. "So, why don't you tell this lovely dy about yirlfriend?"

  Of course, she had to go there. We hadn't discussed anything of the sort in the questions that my PR team handed me over pre-interview.

  "What girlfriend?" I lied through my teeth, feigning fusion. "I'm the most single guy ever."

  "Why?" Ellen asked in surprise. "You are rich, handsome, and a great actor. And you're single? What's wrong with you?"

  I ughed along with the audie that joke.

  "I want to wait for the right girl," I said with a sagely fidence.

  "Seriously though," Ellen tinued uerred. "Girls must be throwing themselves at you. Don't tell me no girl has ever asked you out?"

  Some people just don't get the hint. I tried to be creative.

  "Well," I ined my head sideways, "There was this girl in Japan when I romoting my film, but I wouldly call it aski."

  Ellen sounded eager to know the full story so she egged me on, "What happened?"

  I got ready to narrate the ihat still amuses me to this day. "I was at this Japanese school retly to promote the film and I had to go use the loo. On my way back, this girl was standing there in the hallway and dropped her books on the floor after seeing me. So I picked up the books and hahem to her. As soon as our hands touched, she fainted. Literally. They had to call an ambunce for her."

  Ellen and her audiearted ughing uproariously at the story.

  "I bet she won't fet this i ever in her life," Ellen said iween her ughter before ging the topic. "Any other crazy fan iion you may have had?"

  I had a distinct feeling that she wanted me to talk about that crazy stalker Gia to boost her ratings, but I wouldn't give in that easily. Before every interview of mine for this movie, the reporters and talk show hosts were made to sign a tract that they wouldn't ask about the home invasion. But if I talked about it on my own, then it wouldn't matter. Ellen was clearly trying to circumvent that agreement ily.

  "Well there was this irl earing a towel," I said with a pin face.

  "Oh?" Ellen said a little dejectedly. "What did she do?"

  "It was in New York, we were doing press a day after the premiere of [Prisoner of Azkaban]," I began. "It was freezing cold, and this girl was wearing only a Harry Potter towel from what we could see. And she was holding a sign that read, 'No one es between me and my Harry.'"

  I couldn't trol my snickers as I recalled that i. The audience agreed with me because they also ughed wholeheartedly at that story. Some people are just crazy, like Ellen for thinking I would break that easily with minimal prodding. I had tons more such stories where those two came from.

  "I hope she didn't catch a cold," Ellen quipped before turning to important matters. "[Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban] is releasing this week. Tell us something about the film."

  "It's the third year at Hogwarts for Harry, Hermione, and Ron," I began with my rehearsed speech. "The movie gets a little darker as pared to the sed one because it has soul-sug dark creatures, prison-escapee murderers, and a lot of great revetions. It's a thrill ride from the first miill the very st."

  "Of course it is," Ellen nodded sagely before turning to the audience. "I have seen the film, and it is so good. It is releasing in a theater near you. Watch it before all shows are booked out. Give it up for Troy Armitage everyone."

  I smiled and waved at the croent crazy again. I looked at Ellen again, who was smiling equally wildly

  (Break)

  [Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban] was released worldwide on November 5, 2003. Everyone khat the film would be a big hit, so no one dared release any other film besides it. It helped that Warner Bros had chosen a Wednesday to release the film. It opened on tens of thousands of ss around the world to huge ercial and critical success. On the review aggregator website, Rotten Tomatoes, it gained a rating of 96%, the highest of the series so far, with an average score of 8.4/10. It also got a score of 86 oacritid an 'A+' from emaScore. It was the only film series in history to have three straight A+ emaScore.

  "While Alfonso Cuaron has perhaps made one of the greatest fantasy films of all time, one has to give credit to Chris bus for the casting decisioook for the first film. The casting of Harry, Ron, and Hermione will be looked back upon as some of the greatest casting choices of the decade. Troy Armitage, who was already an accimed actor before [Harry Potter], tio show everyohat it is not just the kid roles he do well, but plex adult emotions as well. Emma Watson, oher hand, is growing into a beautiful young dy with a mean streak. She domihe sed half of the film with her presehe biggest surprise of the lot is undoubtedly Jamie Bell, who steals every se he is i as ic relief or as a ceous hero who stands beside his friend. He has grown tremendously as an actor i two films. Simirly, the adult actors also tio show their mettle. If there was an Oscar for Best Casting, I know which movie it would go to.

  Not just that, the visual effects, the music, the produ desighing is so perfectly desighat you would fet that you are watg a movie and that Hogwarts is not a real pce. The Buckbeak aor ses are very ving.

  But the best part of the film is undoubtedly its emotional themes. Every emotion of Harry hits you hard, partly because of Troy's superb ag and partly because of the perfect execution by Alfonso ark my words: This film will be studied even years ter in film schools."

  ~Nicole Stephens, The Washington Post

  This was just one such example but critics were unanimously praising the superior dire and camera work pared to the first two films. The use of long, uninterrupted takes was also noted by many. All these reviews, along with great audieicipation for the film, had created a huge buzz, reflected in its opening week colle.

  In its five-day opening weekend, the film collected a whopping 153 million in North America alohis amount was further bolstered by the opening weekend colle in the UK, which amouo ￡33.9 million, including the previews. Not to mention the equally superb colle the film had in the rest of the world. Japan came out to be the sed-highest-grossiory after North America. It was strao see that the Japanese box office colle had even exceeded that of the home try of [Harry Potter].

  After the clusion of the initial box office run, [Prisoner of Azkaban] collected 336 million in North America, 172 million in Japan, 77 million in the UK, and 404 million in the rest of the world, bringing the total colle of the film to a whopping 989 million. It was the lowest colle of the three films released to date and the only film not to gross a billion dolrs, but still more than profitable enough to keep the franchise running smoothly.

  [Master and ahe Far Side of the World], the film released during that period, flopped badly, not even rec its produ budget of 150m, let alohe massive marketing costs associated with it.

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