Wow. No Dumbledore, precious little Snape, no Hogwarts, no quidditch (thankfully), no Gate Nine and Three-Quarters. Was this a Harry Potter movie?
Yep. And how.
It’s been awhile since I finished the last book (2-3 years, maybe?), so there were several “Oh, yeah” moments during the film. I’d totally forgotten about Mad-Eye Moody coordinating Harry’s initial escape, for instance. And the reappearance of Kreacher. Details kept me hopping. It was like a big quiz for the Potter faithful. Remember this? Remember that?
Still, what captivated me was the distance the three young lead actors have covered over the last decade. Gone are the sheepish glances, the goofy, slappy repartee between Ron and Hermione. Things are serious now, and everyone means business because the future of the wizarding — and Muggle — world hangs in the balance. The three musketeers have much more to worry about than whether or not they’ll advance to the next year at school. In fact, they’re all three dropouts now. (Interesting twist on a story initially meant for pre-teens.)
For the first time in the film series, I felt pressing drama; real acting by the three leads. It was fun to watch. The writers also managed to deftly reinforce prior situations and details (in fact, Harry himself has to have things explained to him twice at times), so everyone’s on the same page early on. The ending point was brilliantly thought out. I can only imagine the crowds at the next opening.
There’s also a prescience that pervades the movie, and that gave me some periods of sadness. The end draws near, and I don’t want it to come. But I’ve already decided that when the series comes out as a set, I’m going to buy it to show my grandchildren. It will be kept on the same shelf as the Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, and Godfather series: a classic collection indeed.
I do look forward to the next film, though, when my favorite character (Severus Snape) plays a much larger role. I miss his pretty face.
On the Rat-O-Meter scale of five cheeses, I give Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part I:
See, I thought I was the only Snape fan around here. XD
Have you heard the rumors? There could be an eighth book.
I would be super excited if there was an eighth book
I heart Snape!
Thats a high rating. Nice review Fink, I feel like I need to see it now. I wasn’t a big fan of the last few films but it sounds like this one gets things back on track.
I’m pretty sure Rowling said no more books for sure after briefly hinting there could be. Though she’ll probably get bored and do one anyway. Wheres that encyclopedia we were promised?
I heard the same thing: that she’d considered doing another Potter story, but then thought better of it. I’m no novelist, but what else could be done with that particular storyline? Maybe Harry’s not done, but I’d think the whole Hogwarts thing is history. Quien sabe, though, right?
(end of books spoiler) Well she could move on and write stories about Harry’s kids. Or she could go back and do a novel from when Dumbledore had to defeat Grindelwald during WWII. Idk. Half of the fun in reading the books were in the revelations about things that had happened in the past and since we know most of the histories of all the characters now it seems like she wouldn’t have as much to work with.