Sneak peek at Potter thrills local 'muggles'

Potter-mania has hit Utah for the third time.

Dressed up as their favorite wizards, children and adults alike drifted out of the promotional screening of "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban" Monday night feeling like the movie series has outdone itself — again.

Perhaps because of the rough blow Hermione delivers with her fist, she had a lot of fans in the crowd at Megaplex 12 at the Gateway. Among them was 11-year-old Kolbie Astle from Holladay. She believes she is a lot like the character, who is one of Harry's best friends.

"I liked this one because it stayed closer to the book than any of the other movies," Astle said. "Plus the third book was my favorite."

Astle has read the entire series of books five times. She plans to see the movie again and again, just like the other two movies, which are now available on DVD.

Like several of his fellow moviegoers, Dustin Adamson is a big Harry Potter fan. His wife surprised him with the much-coveted tickets.

"It's something that you read and you watch, and it takes you away from reality," he said. "I like something that takes me somewhere else."

Adamson has read all of the books three times and really enjoyed the movie, probably more than the two previous ones, he said.

"It was very good. The graphics were really good. The character development is coming along, especially with the new characters," he said.

"Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban" will open to the public June 4.

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E-mail: wleonard@desnews.com