Wild about ‘Harry?

By Elizabeth Lowe
Staff writer

Hadley Twp. – While fans awaited last week’s release of the recent Harry Potter book, one Goodrich student raved over the latest movie.
It won’t be officially released until later this summer, but Oaktree Elementary student Amy Kovalsky got a sneak peek of the movie ‘Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire?, based on the book by J.K. Rowling.
Amy, 8, and her family, who resident in Hadley Township, were enjoying a family getaway when approached by a stranger bearing pamphlets at Chicago’s Navy Pier.
‘At first I thought it was some kind of scam,? said Amy’s mom, Sheri Kovalsky, a Detroit native who became a Potter fan after being introduced to the book series by her son Alex.
Audience members were wanded with metal detectors, and cell phones examined to prevent any photography during the show.
The mid-sized theater at Loews Piper Alley Theatre was about three-quarters full for the viewing, and ‘locked down? to monitor who saw the film.
Because the movie isn’t finished, the Kovalskys had to use their imaginations during ‘green screen? clips with unfinished special effects.
Although the movie targets the 8 to 14-year-old crowd, it was a little scary and somewhat dark for the under-10 crowd, says Amy’s father Jim Kovalsky.
‘Harry had to do a lot of stuff, and you knew it was going to turn out OK, but you think he’s gonna get hurt,? said Amy, who was most fascinated by the evil Lord Voldemort.
‘It was really exciting because I got to see Voldemort for the first time, and it’s not the face you’re expecting. It’s a really nice face.?
After the movie, audience members were polled for their opinions, filling out surveys based on age.
Although the audience wasn’t instructed to keep movie details hushed, the Kovalskys aren’t revealing too many plot details.
‘My friends asked what happened, but I didn’t want to give away too much so I didn’t tell ’em a lot,? said Amy.