Harry Potter #1 On 2007's Biggest Flicks

In an age when international-ticket receipts, DVD sales, video games, merchandising and other ancillary markets can transform a box-office dud into a worldwide behemoth, Hollywood has had to rewrite the rules on blockbusters. For one, they had to change their name.

The term for such films is "tent poles" now, and just as well — it describes them better. With their sequels, prequels, spin-offs and adaptations, these films hold up a studio's schedule and protect the rest of its library from disaster.

1. "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix"
"It is time for me to tell you what I should have told you five years ago," Dumbledore tells Harry Potter in "Order of the Phoenix" (see " 'Phoenix' Trailer Reveals A Harry Potter Who's Ready To Fight — And Kiss"). "I am going to tell you everything." And so he does. The real question is whether or not he'll tell us — the explanatory resolutions at the end of Rowling's books have been among the most glaring and obvious omissions from the series' films. And with big characters and plot points that fans reference with capital letters — the Prophesy, the Giant, the Senior Undersecretary, the Death, the Loon, the Order — there's enough here for two movies. After the series' climax in "Goblet of Fire," Harry tries to warn the world of the return of Lord Voldemort to no avail. Fans with a keen eye will be attempting to divine possible plot points for the seventh and final book: "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows." No time-turners allowed — the film opens July 13.

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