Harry Potter (Daniel Radcliffe) and his wizard friends Ron Weasley (Rupert Grint) and Hermione Granger (Emma Watson) are back for year six of their Hogwarts education. And despite only vague memories of what transpired in the book, it didn’t take long to remember that this was the one with all the “snogging,” or, in other words, the year of sucking face. A pattern very quickly emerges in Half-Blood Prince: see something sinister, snog, fight off evil forces, snog, go on a dangerous quest, snog. Perhaps it’s because the kids are using too much horned-toad in their potions, but no amount of impending doom dampens their hormones!

When not obsessing over the opposite sex, the gang tries to balance schoolwork and the menace that is Voldemort and his Death-Eaters. The inspiration for the title – the mystery of who was the Half-Blood Prince – is given only the briefest of time on screen. The heavily annotated potions book that Harry carries throughout the film, so central to the novel, is often no more than a passing reference just before it’s needed in the story.

To read the rest of Tim’s review, hop on over to Metro Weekly, where his article is currently running.