It's almost over. Harry, Ron and Hermione have chosen to not return to Hogwarts for their final year, instead beginning a quest to find and destroy Voldemort's 5 remaining horcruxes. Voldemort himself is becoming as dangerous and powerful as we was before his fateful encounter with Harry, with numerous followers, including Harry's old rival Draco Malfoy. Everything's about to change, and the fate of the world- wizarding and Muggle- hangs in the balance.
To say that the film adaptation of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, J.K. Rowling's seventh final book in her ludicrously popular series, has been widely anticipated would be a gross understatement. No matter the quality of the film itself, it is undeniably the movie event of this year and the next. Which brings me to the first point: Warner Bros.' decision to split Hallows into two films. Supposedly, this is so that the story may be told in full, without any of the cuts that were needed to trim the lengths of Harry's previous adventures. And, as a "bonus" (and, it should be obvious, the real reason for the split), WB's massive cash cow franchise can be milked for just one more installment before they're forced to find something else. Was the split necessary? In my opinion, no; while a single film would undoubtedly need to be much longer than its predecessors, the decision has made Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows feel like exactly what it is: half a film.
The first six Potter films (and books) all had a brilliant 3-act setup: the first explains what's happened so far, and sets up for what's to come, the second reveals the main plot details and the "mystery of the week" (so to speak), and the third is the climax and satisfying conclusion. Part 1 doesn't have that. By the "to be continued" mark, it can't help but feel like it's still nothing more than a setup for the epic conclusion (which was already set up in last year's Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince). There could have easily been a good 20 to 30 minutes shaved off of the running time of this film, and probably the next, which could have given us a long but palatable 3 1/2 hour long single film. But, I guess there's no point in contemplating what could (should) have been. Let's get to the good stuff!
The three leads- Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, and Emma Watson- have grown up with these characters even more than its fans have, and by now, they are Harry, Ron, and Hermione. Simply put, if any of these actors had been replaced at some point in the franchise (a prospect that many fans once feared), the whole series would have been ruined. Harry is conflicted, vulnerable, and unsure of himself or his destiny as "the chosen one". Ron is jealous, gloomy, and feels ignored, resulting in frequent spats with his best friends (he even abandons them for a short spell), though there are still shades of the goofy comic relief of past stories. Hermione is the most confident of the three, always being super-prepared for any circumstance and, as before, highly knowledgeable on the wizarding world and very inquisitive on what she doesn't know. And yet, one gets the sense that she's crushing herself under her own weight; her facial expressions never lose a frightened, nervous edge, and she seems unsure even when she is undoubtedly correct. Though Harry is the chosen one and title character, one could say that Hermione is the true protagonist, as she's the one who makes the decisions, brings the supplies, and is given the most sympathy (the first scene in the film is of her erasing herself from her parents' minds, in case the Death Eaters come for them), and her relationship with Harry is the whole centerpiece of the story. They are as close as two friends could be, each complimenting the other, and giving the much-needed companionship that two young people on an impossible search would need. They are so close, in fact, that poor Ron (whose relationship with Hermione has been set up since the first film) mistakes it for romantic attraction, ultimately leading to his leaving them halfway through (or 1/4 of the way through, depending on how you look at it).
Of course, good actors are nothing without a good crew, and Deathly Hallows has a good crew, as well. Director David Yates is the first (and obviously only) director to have more than two Potter films under his belt, and as a result, he knows exactly what makes the stories tick; and as always, good old Steve Kloves has returned to adapt Rowling's book to a screenplay, and just like the actors, his writing fits the characters like a glove. One aspect that does fall short, unfortunately, is the score, by Alexandre Desplat. It's my humble opinion that none of the Potter films' composers have been able to match the majesty of the legendary John Williams' work on the first three films, and Desplat is no exception. Half the time, the score isn't even there; a chase scene about 3/4ths of the way through the film should have at least some semblance of an exciting, frightening tune to pump the audience up, but instead there is nothing. Desplat's past work includes Fantastic Mr. Fox and New Moon- two scores which I greatly enjoyed- but I'm not impressed with what he's done here. Perhaps most distressingly, Williams' instantly-recognizable "Hedwig's Theme" (or as it's universally known as, "the Harry Potter theme") is completely missing. Hopefully, July's Part 2 will include it, because it simply doesn't feel complete without it.
Well, despite its faults, Deathly Hallows (Part 1) is a fitting setup for the conclusion this summer, and hopefully it can be re-evaluated once both parts are available on DVD/Blu-Ray, and they can be watched as they were meant to be watched: together.
Abra-cadabra! This gets.... wait, no. Flipilliro! No... gritardy? Uh, I need to brush up on my knowledge of Harry Potter spells. Deathly Hallows gets an
Awesome!
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