The Harry Potter franchise is one of the most successful in film history for a variety of reasons. One of the main reasons is that the film series was able to keep the quality high despite changing filmmakers as it progressed.Home Alone‘s Chris Columbus launched the franchise with the first two films, while Alfonso Curon’s Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban added more style to the series. Mike Newell stepped in the helm of the fourth picture and then David Yates came in to finish out the saga with the final four films. Warner Bros. produced the Harry Potter films with such thought and care at a high level, and it set the standard for every young adult adaptation that would follow. It also puts a lot of pressure on HBO’s upcoming series that will look to stick even closer to the novels. As the series went on, the Harry Potter films became harder and harder to adapt for film since the length of the novels grew.

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire was the first film to face this hurdle since the novel ran 636 pages. This meant the film adaptation had to ditch the Dursleys, S.P.E.W., and leave out Dobby, among other elements from the lengthy book. Despite the need to leave details out, Goblet of Fire and the rest of the Harry Potter films still honored the source material and successfully told the main storyline of each book. With so many well-made films, it’s hard to single out which stands out from the rest. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban tends to be the one audience crown as the franchisor’s best, while Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows — Part Two gets plenty of love as well for wrapping the entire story up in a tasteful manner. While it’s a competitive group, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire was ultimately the film that stood apart from the rest as the best entry for a few key reasons.

The Triwizard Tournament Changed the Formula

In Goblet of Fire, Harry Potter and Cedric Digory from Hogwarts, Fleur Delacour from Beauxbatons, and Viktor Krum from Durmstrang compete in the Triwizard Tournament.
It’s later revealed Barty Crouch Jr. entered Harry’s name into the Goblet of Fire when he was posing as Mad-Eye Moody, forcing him to compete in the event.

The Harry Potter films tend to follow the same plot formula, with each revolving around the school year at Hogwarts, and Goblet of Fire is no different. However, Goblet of Fire added an exciting new wrinkle with the inclusion of the Triwizard Tournament. This event brought together other magical schools to Hogwarts to compete in the event, which expanded the Wizarding World more than any Harry Potter story.

The Triwizard Tournament is also an exciting addition because it pitted Harry in three challenges that test him more than ever. It also brought to life some of the best action sequences in the entire Harry Potter series, seeing the Boy Who Lived fly away from a dragon, go underwater, and fight mermaids to save friends and find his way out of a dangerous maze. The sequences are incredibly inventive and fun to witness. The Triwizard Tournament also brought the Yule Ball, which heightened the romance in the series more than ever and added plenty of comedic and relatable moments that ground the film. Between the Triwizard Tournament and the Yule Ball, Goblet of Fire made Harry Potter’s fourth year the most memorable during his time at Hogwarts.

Voldemort Finally Returned in the Film

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire featured the first true appearance of Lord Voldemort after he used Harry’s blood to return to his normal form.
Ralph Fiennes only appears briefly in the film as Voldemort but instantly becomes one of the greatest villains in film history.

While the addition of the Triwizard Tournament and the Yule Ball could be enough, that’s not the only reason why Goblet of Fire is the best of the series. The 2005 film is also incredibly significant because it finally introduced the series’ main villain, Lord Voldemort. In the previous three films, Voldemort is set up as the villain of the series but is mostly in the background. Sorcerer’s Stone saw him in a form that took over Professor Quirrell’s body, while Chamber of Secrets features a younger version of the Dark Lord. Prisoner of Azkaban doesn’t deal with the villain much at all, and it’s not until the fourth film that audiences finally get to experience Voldemort and all his evil. The build-up to Voldemort is one of the greatest ways a villain has ever been teased in a franchise and is similar to how the MCU handled Thanos.

With so much teasing and impact made by Voldemort, the Harry Potter films needed to stick the landing with his portrayal. When the film came out in 2005, Voldemort’s appearance was kept under wraps, so when audiences saw the film in theaters, they were as terrified by his appearance as much as Harry was in the final moments of Goblet of Fire. In addition to his appearance, Ralph Fiennes quickly delivered an unforgettable performance as Voldemort and carried the film in its final act, leading to a long-awaited battle between him and Harry. With Voldemort’s return, Goblet of Fire is very much the Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back of the Harry Potter franchise, with the heroes dealing with the death of Cedric Digory, the first major fatality of the series, and the return of Voldemort. These types of stories tend to be the best because they leave the story in a very emotional and vulnerable state. Voldemort’s return was a major moment for the Harry Potter franchise that occurred in Goblet of Fire and one that was strongly executed.

Goblet of Fire Featured an Awesome Twist

Top 5 Harry Potter Films According to Rotten Tomatoes

#5: Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets – 82%

#4: Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince – 83%

#3: Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire – 88%

#2: Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban – 90%

#1: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows — Part Two – 96%

There are a ton of storytelling staples that make the Harry Potter series as enjoyable as it is, but one of the biggest is the variety of twists that put a spell on viewers. Sorcerer’s Stone revealed Professor Quirrell, not Severus Snape, as the one trying to steal the stone, Half-Blood Prince saw Snape kill Dumbledore and Deathly Hallows explained Harry’s connection to Voldemort is because he was one of his Horcruxes. The films are mysteries at their core, and each film handles the genre in different ways with the thrilling revelations that come throughout.

On top of all the other exciting moments that happen in Goblet of Fire, the film capped off with another notable Harry Potter twist. After Harry escaped Voldemort, it’s revealed that Barty Crouch Jr. used Polyjuice Potion to pose as Mad-Eye Moody and set the events of Voldemort’s return into motion. The Mad-Eye Moody twist worked off the brilliant performance from Brendan Gleeson and concluded Goblet of Fire as the most exhilarating installment in the Harry Potter franchise.

There are so many incredible moments from the Harry Potter novels that the films were able to bring to life incredibly. While the Harry Potter films needed to make some changes along the way to make it work for the medium, the result led to one of the best adaptations ever, making it nearly impossible for a film reboot to top it. That’s why Warner Bros. is smart in reinventing the Harry Potter series on television since it will allow missed moments from the books in the films to finally come to life in live-action.

Looking back at the Harry Potter films and all of its strong entries, Goblet of Fire is the best of the bunch because director Mike Newell was able to execute key moments from the novel expertly and raise the stakes of the series. With Voldemort’s return, Goblet of Fire set the stage for the darker stories that follow and featured impactful moments like Cedric’s death very well. Goblet of Fire might’ve been a difficult film to adapt that could’ve easily warranted a two-parter, yet the fourth film still managed to nail the major story beats from the novel and become the best film of the groundbreaking Harry Potter film series.