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5 Plot Point Breakdown: Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004)

By Pam Glazier · November 1, 2011

Screenplay Genre: Adventure / Family / Fantasy

Movie Time: 141 minutes

1. INCITING INCIDENT

Mr. Weasley (Mark Williams) warns Harry (Daniel Radcliffe) that Sirius Black (Gary Oldman) has escaped from Azkaban (wizard prison) and that Sirius blames Harry for Voldermort’s loss of power. Weasley asks Harry not to go looking for him. (00:17:45)

2. LOCK IN (End of Act One)

In Harry’s first divination lesson, the class is learning to read tea leaves. Professor Trelawny takes Harry’s cup but throws it away from herself in horror after just a glance. Harry has “The Grim.” The grim takes the form of a giant spectral dog. It is one of the darkest omens—an omen of death. (00:29:29)

3. FIRST CULMINATION (Midpoint)

Harry finds out that Sirius Black is the one who betrayed his parents to Voldermort, causing their deaths, and now he’s back to finish the job with Harry. And what’s worse, Sirius Black is Harry’s godfather. Harry tells Hermione (Emma Watson) and Ron (Rupert Grint) that he hopes Sirius does find him because he wants to kill him. (01:04:02)

4. MAIN CULMINATION (End of Act Two)

Sirius Black corners Harry and his friends, but it is revealed that Sirius was actually after Ron’s rat Scabbers who is actually Petter Pettigrew (Timothy Spall), the one who betrayed Harry’s parents twelve years ago. He’s been hiding as a rat ever since while Sirius took the blame. Sirius loves Harry just as he loved Harry’s parents. (01:30:28)

5. THIRD ACT TWIST

Pettigrew escapes, Buckbeak is executed, and Sirius Black is captured. All hope is lost… until Professor Dumbledore (Michael Gambon) tells Hermione to use the time-turner that she was given to get to all her classes to go back in time and save the day. She and Harry retrace their steps, righting the wrongs of the previous three hours as best they can. In the end, Sirius escapes the clutches of the terrible Azkaban dementors by flying away on Buckbeak. (01:42:19)


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