Young love explored in Harry Potter and The Goblet of Fire

Not only does Harry have to contend with the return of his immortal enemy, face death in the Triwizard Tournament and contend with a meddling reporter and a backlash by his peers - he's got to find a date for the Yule Ball dance. But no magic can alleviate the painful awkwardness, shyness and hormonal imbalances that are the hallmarks of teen angst.

"One of the wonderful aspects of this story is the burgeoning interest Harry and his friends have in the opposite sex and the innate awkwardness this brings," producer David Heyman points out. "Director Mike Newell has a wonderful sense of humor and incredibly intuitive comic timing, so watching these teens attempt to communicate with each other is painfully funny."

Harry and his fellow students find themselves transfixed when the exquisite Beauxbatons girls and the impossibly masculine young men of Durmstrang sweep into the Hogwarts halls.

"When the Beauxbatons girls arrive, the Hogwarts boys are in a state of shock," says Newell. "They ooze femininity and render the boys - Ron in particular - speechless."

The pressure to find dates for Hogwarts' Yule Ball also proves too much for Harry and Ron, who finally recognizes a change in his feelings for Hermione. "Much to her surprise, Hermione gets herself a boyfriend in superstar Quidditch player Viktor Krum," says Emma Watson who plays Hermione. "This proves to be a huge shock for Harry and Ron - particularly Ron, who has only just realized that Hermione is a girl!"

"We've always had the sense that there is something growing between Ron and Hermione, although neither are really aware of it," muses Rupert Grint who plays Ron. "In this film, both begin to admit it to themselves. When Hermione turns up at the Yule Ball with Viktor Krum, Ron finally realizes that he has feelings for her."

"Ron is utterly devastated when he sees Hermione on the arm of another man - especially his hero, Viktor Krum," Heyman points out.

Harry experiences a terror unlike any he's accustomed to when he falls for the gentle charms of fellow Hogwarts student Cho Chang. "One of the things I've always liked about Harry is that he is absolutely pathetic when it comes to the whole romance thing," says Daniel Radcliffe who plays Harry. "He has no clue how to behave around girls. He's a character for anyone who has ever felt awkward around girls - which is probably every male in the world."

Harry's struggles to muster the courage to ask Cho to the Ball meet with bittersweet results. "Cho is very fond of Harry and she doesn't want to hurt his feelings, but she's already said yes to Cedric Diggory," says 18-year-old first-time actor Katie Leung, a Scot who won the part of the Ravenclaw Quidditch Seeker when her parents persuaded her to attend an open casting call with 5,000 other hopefuls.

Meanwhile, the arrival of the visiting schools and the commencement of the Triwizard Tournament trigger a change in the dynamics between best friends Harry and Ron. For the first time, Harry and Ron find themselves at odds.

"Ron thinks Harry put his name into the Goblet hoping to be selected for the competition," Grint explains. "He's very angry with Harry and won't speak to him. He's tired of Harry always being the center of attention."

Radcliffe elaborates: "Harry is already trying to cope with the criticism from everyone who believes he engineered his own entry into the competition, but he also fears he knows the real reason he was chosen, and it all proves too much. His fight with Ron exemplifies this."

Opening across the Philippines on November 16, "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire" is distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Entertainment Company.