Dolores Umbridge

Handsome Bob

I'm re-reading The Order of the Phoenix and something has become quite clear to me; though the film adaptation does an admirable job in portraying Dolores Umbridge, it doesn't touch the book. She's such a horrible, horrible little woman and I never had emotion stirred in me reading a book before, but I can't help but shout in glee when she finally gets what is coming to her.

It's too bad that the film didn't really push the envelope in portraying the true evil within Dolores Umbridge because she could of gone down as one of the classic screen villains.

allandanyways

Defintley. Imelda Staunton could have tried much harder, she just made Umbridge really irritating, which seems to be her forte (has anyone seen her in Freedom Writers where she's that really annoying teacher? Umbridge with an American accent basically), but never with the seething, pure horrible evil that Umbridge seems to possess. In early reading of the Order of the Phoenix, I actually thought she was a Death Eater tbh, she seemed that mental and evil.

She reminded me of some sort of really sweet candy in the film, irritating and overly sweet, bit headachy after a while when she should have been like cyanide or something...

Handsome Bob

allandanyways wrote: »

Defintley. Imelda Staunton could have tried much harder, she just made Umbridge really irritating, which seems to be her forte (has anyone seen her in Freedom Writers where she's that really annoying teacher? Umbridge with an American accent basically), but never with the seething, pure horrible evil that Umbridge seems to possess. In early reading of the Order of the Phoenix, I actually thought she was a Death Eater tbh, she seemed that mental and evil.

She reminded me of some sort of really sweet candy in the film, irritating and overly sweet, bit headachy after a while when she should have been like cyanide or something...

Exactly, she has all of the annoying traits of Umbridge but none of the sinisterness. For example when she is observing Hagrid doing his class there are blatant racist undertones there. Just because Hagrid is half giant she is patronising him and talking slowly and in broken English, as if he wouldn't be able to understand her otherwise.

I definitely thought she was on the wrong side, then again I thought the same of Fudge. Turns out that they were both just power hungry fascists. :P

Yddil

And she's such a fantastic character to play around with too... im just rereading deathly hallows and the lads are just going into the ministry to get the real hotcrux from here. i mean, she's not as evil in this book, but it brings back that feeling of reading bk5... she was horrifying!!!

Such a great baddie!!!

Rineanna

LZ5by5 wrote: »

I never had emotion stirred in me reading a book before, but I can't help but shout in glee when she finally gets what is coming to her.

She made my blood boil with anger, something few characters in books have done.

I was always hoping Prof McGonagall would take her down in a one-on-one catfight/duel. :P