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jenny_wildcatIt was a week ago that I finally saw DH part 1 (I am such a bad, bad fan - but to make up for this, I am re-reading all seven Harry Potter books before I see Part 2 next summer. I should have been doing this already, but life gets in the way).
Anyway, these are my thoughts after they have had seven days to simmer (plus some of my somewhat-coherent note-taking. Yes, I take notes during movies. And TV shows. Because I know I'll be reviewing them later. Stop judging me).
On to the review - cut for length and spoilers -
Now, I'm not the biggest fan of the HP movies - I'm just going to come out and say it now. The main draw of these books is that the story and characterization is so well done and so compelling. But for whatever reason, that got lost in the movies. We can sit here and try to assign blame for this (my vote is on the screenwriter, Steve Kloves, because the one movie he didn't do - Order of the Phoenix - actually handled the story in the way it should have been done as a movie), but the fact is that movies and books are two very different creatures and you have to do different things to tell a story in a movie than in a book.
That being said - there were plenty of cringe-worthy scenes. The Seven Potters scene, for one - I'm glad Fred and George were there with their "We're identical" joke, because that was the funniest part of an otherwise embarrassing scene. Not just because Harry was in varying degrees of undress, but because the other lines (the introduction of Bill and Fleur, the sort-of-exposition of Remus and Tonks' marriage) were so cardboard and rushed. I have this complaint throughout the movie.
While we're talking about poor execution of major plot point - special mention goes to odd lack of explanation of WHY the Minister of Magic is delivering the objects from Dumbledore's will to the Trio. The way it was done in the movie - they could have just been delivered via owl post with Arthur Weasley or somebody reading the will and saved the trouble of casting the Minister - not that I don't like Bill Nighy, but I was left feeling that there was zero point to having Scrimgeour show up at all).
Another example - Anyone know what a Big-Lipped Alligator Moment is? (if not, read the link and then come back) I don't know if this scene is listed at that link, but the little Harry and Hermione dancing in the tent bit fits here. The writers are trying to convince us that Hermione misses Ron (which, the movie-only fan never gets any context for this - EVER!), so let's have Harry come in and try to cheer her up... only to create more fodder for the Harry/Hermione fanbase. Or... just create something that nobody knows (or cares) what the heck it going on. Even without the shipping context, it's still a really strange scene.
Actually, I came to the conclusion that Dan and Emma need Rupert to make the movie Trio work. After Ron left, there was just something so odd about watching Harry and Hermione wander around on their own. Things were less funny and less good (well, as funny and good as things can ever be when you're on the run from Voldemort). Of course, that's how it was in the book, but the book emphasized that Harry and Hermione were downhearted and sad without Ron. The movie just emphasized how awkward things were.
Speaking of awkward - any kind of romance in these movies is not handled very well. I almost felt voyeuristic during the Harry/Ginny kiss. It's not that they kissed, it was the execution of it. Thank the Good Lord above for George Weasley coming in to break up that moment (count on the older brother).
One more thing and I'll quit dumping on the movie (well, maybe) - I can tell that this was filmed with the intention of making it a 3D movie. I'm almost glad that the 3D thing fell through because the whole idea has become kind of gimmicky lately. Actually, really gimmicky. When you bring back heretofore completed franchises like Shrek and Pirates of the Caribbean for really no other reason except to make a 3D movie of it because that's the "cool" thing to do - it's lost its shine. It adds nothing to the story other than to say "Look at meee!! I'm a 3D movie!!" And the rest of us are going.... whyyyyyy? I can forgive less-than-shiny effects if the story is really good. But if all you're making a movie for is to show off your special-effects awesomeness, then the story will just be a rehash of the same old crap and there's really no point in seeing the movie at all - no matter how cool it looks (Imma lookin' at you, James Cameron).
Okay, now for some things I liked - The Tim Burton-y animated sequence for "The Tale of the Three Brothers" was very well placed and very cool. I don't know whose idea that was, but mad props to them. And I giggled when they showed the Elder Wand and it looked remarkably like a certain other wizard's wand we've seen many, many times (I guess that link is mildly spoilery, but only if you haven't been paying attention).
Dobby is back!! Let me say that again folks - DOBBY IS BACK!!! After getting the shaft for four movies, the World's Greatest House-Elf deserves a gif-party in his honor.
I was sooo stinking thrilled to see him - even knowing what's about to come - I can almost forgive the shoddy explanation of where the little guy had been this whole time and why he was choosing now to show up.
Of course.. they were just bringing him back to kill him off... *cue inelegant blubbering*
(This is where I pray that in twenty years they will remake these movies, now that we have the entire story and the writers will know what's actually essential to the overarching plot *cough, ten-minute-long-dragon-chase-scenes, cough, cough* What).
Okay - Voldy and the Death Eaters. Personally, I think the best acting comes from people playing villains (with a few exceptions). I don't know why this is, but I enjoyed watching Voldemort terrorize his little group.
And - may we also have a moment of silence for Lucius' snake-head wand... RIP, Snakey.
Speaking of entertaining villains - things got much more exciting once the Trio got caught by the snatchers. I blame Bellatrix (but in a good way).
Godric's Hollow - Sure, why not? I don't have many nits to pick over this (mostly because Hermione stayed in the background for most of it and let Harry have his moment). But - Holy Cow. Points go to Creepy!Bathilda (but why did Nagini!Bathilda see the Horcrux around Harry's neck? Wouldn't that tip off Voldy to what they were up to? *headdesk*
NEVILLE! ON THE HOGWARTS EXPRESS! SQUEE!! Oh, be still my little fangirl heart, but I can't wait for the Battle of Hogwarts!
Did You See That? - When the Trio is knocking out the Ministry employees in that abandoned street, there was a CCTV sign behind them. Meaning some Muggle camera caught tape of three teenage kids knocking out three adults and dragging them into a random alleyway. So much for flying under the radar (shouldn't Hermione at least know better?)
'kay, one other thing I quite liked - when the Trio get to Grimmauld Place, Harry (or somebody) has the line "We're alone" and then the lighting fades to black. It was a nice little touch, sort of bringing Act I of the movie to a close and then launching into the Act II.
Other nice touches -
- Revisting the Cupboard Under the Stairs (complete with the little action figures from the first movie. Aww... and I thought they didn't care about continuity).
- The Ministry-pamphlet-producing assembly line (Nope, nooo Nazi overtone here...)
- The Ministry has Red Shirts! (Well, actually they wore blue robes, but the principle is the same). As the Trio is discovered fleeing the Ministry, alarms go off and these random guys just show up for... no reason other than to get blasted by the Trio.
And, simply because controversy has been created (thank you Drama Whores of the World), I must address Horcrux!Harry/Hermione. I was actually not disgusted by it. Nope, not one little bit. Actually, I laughed at that scene. One minute Horcrux!Harry and Horcrux!Hermione are fully dressed and evilly taunting Ron (Dan and Emma pull off spectacular performances here - much more compelling than anything heretofore seen. Though, given what we've had to sit through so far, that may or may not be a compliment. Remember what I said about playing villainous characters?) The next moment, Horcrux!Harmony are (ever so awkwardly) naked and trying to devour each others tonsils in the most comical manner possible. Thanks for ruining a perfectly dark and foreboding scene. Sigh... some things should be left to the imagination, I suppose.
Oh, but I do want to say one thing - I weep for What Could Have Been with the Goblet of Fire movie. After seeing DH split into two movies, I shake my fist to the heavens and lament that this was not done before. Admittedly, it worked for Order of the Phoenix, but you didn't have some goofball throwing useless podrace-style dragon chase scenes around Hogwarts in OotP. Goblet of Fire should have been split into two movies - let the record stand.
So, those are my thoughts - pretty mixed, actually. There were some good things here, but the acting was so wooden, especially on the part of the Trio (much more wooden than I remember it being in the other movies - I really have no idea why). The adult actors shine, the special effects are good, but the storytelling style leaves much to be desired. And because story is first and foremost in my mind - ESPECIALLY where Harry Potter is concerned, this is a grievous sin. But... what do you do?
Anyway, these are my thoughts after they have had seven days to simmer (plus some of my somewhat-coherent note-taking. Yes, I take notes during movies. And TV shows. Because I know I'll be reviewing them later. Stop judging me).
On to the review - cut for length and spoilers -
Now, I'm not the biggest fan of the HP movies - I'm just going to come out and say it now. The main draw of these books is that the story and characterization is so well done and so compelling. But for whatever reason, that got lost in the movies. We can sit here and try to assign blame for this (my vote is on the screenwriter, Steve Kloves, because the one movie he didn't do - Order of the Phoenix - actually handled the story in the way it should have been done as a movie), but the fact is that movies and books are two very different creatures and you have to do different things to tell a story in a movie than in a book.
That being said - there were plenty of cringe-worthy scenes. The Seven Potters scene, for one - I'm glad Fred and George were there with their "We're identical" joke, because that was the funniest part of an otherwise embarrassing scene. Not just because Harry was in varying degrees of undress, but because the other lines (the introduction of Bill and Fleur, the sort-of-exposition of Remus and Tonks' marriage) were so cardboard and rushed. I have this complaint throughout the movie.
While we're talking about poor execution of major plot point - special mention goes to odd lack of explanation of WHY the Minister of Magic is delivering the objects from Dumbledore's will to the Trio. The way it was done in the movie - they could have just been delivered via owl post with Arthur Weasley or somebody reading the will and saved the trouble of casting the Minister - not that I don't like Bill Nighy, but I was left feeling that there was zero point to having Scrimgeour show up at all).
Another example - Anyone know what a Big-Lipped Alligator Moment is? (if not, read the link and then come back) I don't know if this scene is listed at that link, but the little Harry and Hermione dancing in the tent bit fits here. The writers are trying to convince us that Hermione misses Ron (which, the movie-only fan never gets any context for this - EVER!), so let's have Harry come in and try to cheer her up... only to create more fodder for the Harry/Hermione fanbase. Or... just create something that nobody knows (or cares) what the heck it going on. Even without the shipping context, it's still a really strange scene.
Actually, I came to the conclusion that Dan and Emma need Rupert to make the movie Trio work. After Ron left, there was just something so odd about watching Harry and Hermione wander around on their own. Things were less funny and less good (well, as funny and good as things can ever be when you're on the run from Voldemort). Of course, that's how it was in the book, but the book emphasized that Harry and Hermione were downhearted and sad without Ron. The movie just emphasized how awkward things were.
Speaking of awkward - any kind of romance in these movies is not handled very well. I almost felt voyeuristic during the Harry/Ginny kiss. It's not that they kissed, it was the execution of it. Thank the Good Lord above for George Weasley coming in to break up that moment (count on the older brother).
One more thing and I'll quit dumping on the movie (well, maybe) - I can tell that this was filmed with the intention of making it a 3D movie. I'm almost glad that the 3D thing fell through because the whole idea has become kind of gimmicky lately. Actually, really gimmicky. When you bring back heretofore completed franchises like Shrek and Pirates of the Caribbean for really no other reason except to make a 3D movie of it because that's the "cool" thing to do - it's lost its shine. It adds nothing to the story other than to say "Look at meee!! I'm a 3D movie!!" And the rest of us are going.... whyyyyyy? I can forgive less-than-shiny effects if the story is really good. But if all you're making a movie for is to show off your special-effects awesomeness, then the story will just be a rehash of the same old crap and there's really no point in seeing the movie at all - no matter how cool it looks (Imma lookin' at you, James Cameron).
Okay, now for some things I liked - The Tim Burton-y animated sequence for "The Tale of the Three Brothers" was very well placed and very cool. I don't know whose idea that was, but mad props to them. And I giggled when they showed the Elder Wand and it looked remarkably like a certain other wizard's wand we've seen many, many times (I guess that link is mildly spoilery, but only if you haven't been paying attention).
Dobby is back!! Let me say that again folks - DOBBY IS BACK!!! After getting the shaft for four movies, the World's Greatest House-Elf deserves a gif-party in his honor.
I was sooo stinking thrilled to see him - even knowing what's about to come - I can almost forgive the shoddy explanation of where the little guy had been this whole time and why he was choosing now to show up.
Of course.. they were just bringing him back to kill him off... *cue inelegant blubbering*
(This is where I pray that in twenty years they will remake these movies, now that we have the entire story and the writers will know what's actually essential to the overarching plot *cough, ten-minute-long-dragon-chase-scenes, cough, cough* What).
Okay - Voldy and the Death Eaters. Personally, I think the best acting comes from people playing villains (with a few exceptions). I don't know why this is, but I enjoyed watching Voldemort terrorize his little group.
And - may we also have a moment of silence for Lucius' snake-head wand... RIP, Snakey.
Speaking of entertaining villains - things got much more exciting once the Trio got caught by the snatchers. I blame Bellatrix (but in a good way).
Godric's Hollow - Sure, why not? I don't have many nits to pick over this (mostly because Hermione stayed in the background for most of it and let Harry have his moment). But - Holy Cow. Points go to Creepy!Bathilda (but why did Nagini!Bathilda see the Horcrux around Harry's neck? Wouldn't that tip off Voldy to what they were up to? *headdesk*
NEVILLE! ON THE HOGWARTS EXPRESS! SQUEE!! Oh, be still my little fangirl heart, but I can't wait for the Battle of Hogwarts!
Did You See That? - When the Trio is knocking out the Ministry employees in that abandoned street, there was a CCTV sign behind them. Meaning some Muggle camera caught tape of three teenage kids knocking out three adults and dragging them into a random alleyway. So much for flying under the radar (shouldn't Hermione at least know better?)
'kay, one other thing I quite liked - when the Trio get to Grimmauld Place, Harry (or somebody) has the line "We're alone" and then the lighting fades to black. It was a nice little touch, sort of bringing Act I of the movie to a close and then launching into the Act II.
Other nice touches -
- Revisting the Cupboard Under the Stairs (complete with the little action figures from the first movie. Aww... and I thought they didn't care about continuity).
- The Ministry-pamphlet-producing assembly line (Nope, nooo Nazi overtone here...)
- The Ministry has Red Shirts! (Well, actually they wore blue robes, but the principle is the same). As the Trio is discovered fleeing the Ministry, alarms go off and these random guys just show up for... no reason other than to get blasted by the Trio.
And, simply because controversy has been created (thank you Drama Whores of the World), I must address Horcrux!Harry/Hermione. I was actually not disgusted by it. Nope, not one little bit. Actually, I laughed at that scene. One minute Horcrux!Harry and Horcrux!Hermione are fully dressed and evilly taunting Ron (Dan and Emma pull off spectacular performances here - much more compelling than anything heretofore seen. Though, given what we've had to sit through so far, that may or may not be a compliment. Remember what I said about playing villainous characters?) The next moment, Horcrux!Harmony are (ever so awkwardly) naked and trying to devour each others tonsils in the most comical manner possible. Thanks for ruining a perfectly dark and foreboding scene. Sigh... some things should be left to the imagination, I suppose.
Oh, but I do want to say one thing - I weep for What Could Have Been with the Goblet of Fire movie. After seeing DH split into two movies, I shake my fist to the heavens and lament that this was not done before. Admittedly, it worked for Order of the Phoenix, but you didn't have some goofball throwing useless podrace-style dragon chase scenes around Hogwarts in OotP. Goblet of Fire should have been split into two movies - let the record stand.
So, those are my thoughts - pretty mixed, actually. There were some good things here, but the acting was so wooden, especially on the part of the Trio (much more wooden than I remember it being in the other movies - I really have no idea why). The adult actors shine, the special effects are good, but the storytelling style leaves much to be desired. And because story is first and foremost in my mind - ESPECIALLY where Harry Potter is concerned, this is a grievous sin. But... what do you do?
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Date: 2011-01-21 07:27 am (UTC)I thought the Will scene was just fine. It is a legal contract, so having someone official like the Minister of Magic seems natural. I couldn’t stand Bill Nighy at the beginning though. “The Ministry . . . remains . . . strong!” Wow, he sounds too much like his Davy Jones character in Pirates of the Caribbean. Cheesy! It made me laugh.
I actually liked the dancing scene, but I agree with you in your review of Half-Blood Prince. I think Kloves can’t let go of Harry/Hermione and it shows in his scripts. Emma was asked about this scene and what it was supposed to mean and she concluded that it was open to interpretation. So I’m going to interpret as a friend trying to cheer up a friend and have a moment of happiness in such a horrible time. And I totally agree with the Rupert needed in the Trio comment. I felt that in the movie too, but I couldn’t put my finger on it till I read this review.
Well, I don’t think ANY kind of romance in the movie was awkward, but that Harry/Ginny kiss definitely was. I think anything between Harry and Ginny romantically in HBP and DH1 is very cringe worthy awkward. I can’t stand it!
Oh. My. GOSH! I loved the Three Brothers animation! I was blown away and totally wasn’t expecting it. I was just thinking someone would tell the story really quick, but this is a big reason why I think this movie goes above and beyond any of the previous movies. The animation was SO well done.
Hurray for Dobby! “Dobby has no Master. Dobby is a free elf!” You go Dobby! I love you. “Harry Potter?” so sad!
If you pray for a remake of all the movies you would be praying for a miracle girl. Do you see anyone willing to take on a ten year movie project? To have a star studded cast and crew of British actors and great producers/directors/composers, etc., etc., etc . . . Yeah, not going to happen.
Bathilda creeps me out every time. So good! I jump every time I see the snake jumping back after Hermione gets the wands. That doesn’t even need to be in 3D to get the effect ^_^.
Neville on the Hogwarts Express is one of my favorite parts! He just ups and calls them losers. So awesome.
Seeing the Cupboard Under the Stairs made me feel nostalgic. That’s where he started and he’s come such a long way. Putting in the action figures was a very good plus. I almost started crying before the Harry Potter title came up. The scene with Hermione’s parents was very sad too.
Horcrux!Harry/Hermione: all I can think of when I’m watching it and “Poor Dan and Emma. They’ve GOT to be feeling unbelievably awkward. It looks like they are biting off each other’s faces.”
Ok, I definitely disagree that GoF should have been split into two movies. I just think they did a crappy job with it. They could have made the dragon sequence much shorter and given more effort to following the actual plot. Just because they did a bad job doesn’t mean it can’t be done right.
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Date: 2011-01-21 02:46 pm (UTC)Well, a girl can hope (even if it's in vain) ^_^
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Date: 2011-01-21 08:15 pm (UTC)