Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 1 (PG-13)
Mike:
Scott:
Scott: Tonight we are reviewing Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1. This movie is the first of two parts that cover the last book in the franchise.
What did you think Mike?
Mike: I think this movie is very good, but don’t know if I would go as far as to say it is the best one of the series. Of course if you do say that, then the next movie can always be the best without making you a liar. With that said I suspect that Part 2 will be the best one of the series.
What did you think?
Scott: I liked it. Did I think it was a great movie? No, but I did think it was a good movie. Sitting back I couldn’t tell you which movie was my favorite, but this was one of the better ones.
Mike: The movie is done well enough that you don’t feel like you are only seeing half a story. The movie is very faithful to the book and stops at a logical point in the story.
Scott: The characters are all back with the exception of Dumbledore (Michael Gambon), who was killed in the last movie. We only get glimpses of Hogwarts and all those kids from the earlier movies are now adults. It’s really neat to go back and see how they have grown through the movies.
Mike: The great thing is that when you watch this movie, it feels like Old Home week. It really is like visiting with old friends. These characters and actors have literally grown up in front of us for the last ten years. Since the last movie ended we have all been wondering what is going on with the Harry Potter gang?
Scott: The movie had a good mix of drama, scares and humor. The Weasley twins Fred (James Phelps) and George (Oliver Phelps) are always good for a laugh. On occasion we have some other folks throw in some humor as well.
Mike: The actors have matured and I will admit that this is the best acting of the series by the 3 young actors playing our core group. The rest of the cast, like in the previous film is a who’s who of British talent and the acting is of the high quality we have been used to.
Scott: If you’ve read this last book then you should know what happens in the movie. One of the main things in the early parts of the books is the journey that Harry, Ron and Hermione make. They are on the lookout for the missing Horcruxes, the most important element in stopping Lord Voldemort. Many people were bored by this part of the book. I won’t say I was bored in the movie, but this section did drag quite a bit. If you follow a book though, you sometimes get the bad with the good.
Mike: I agree that the movie seemed to drag at a few points. Honestly, its the same parts that kind of dragged in the book. I was a little surprised that the movie was around 2 and 1/2 hours long when it only covers about half the book.
Scott: Director David Yates also directed Harry Potter and the Order of Phoenix and Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. Unlike those two movies, this movie took a little while to get going. Having not read the books recently, or seen the movies, I had a hard time catching up. There wasn’t always a lot of explanations for what was on screen and that lead to some confusion. If you are directing a series of books, it seems like you should build upon what was in the earlier movies. I don’t think that always happens with this series. Each movie seems to stand on its own, perhaps too much.
Mike: I read the book when it came out, so I didn't remember every detail, but I wasn't really confused. I think someone watching this as their first Harry Potter movie would probably be very lost. Anyone who has seen all the movies, but not read the books should be fine.
Scott: How do I rate it?
I give this a 3.5 out of 5 for fantasy/adventure. I really wish it was all one movie instead of split into two parts, but I can understand why they did it this way. Before we know it this series will be over and we will have to reflect on the series as a whole and this movies place in it. I think it will be one of the better movies, but that may simply be because the young actors are all more experienced.
Mike: I give this a 4 out of 5 overall. I liked it, but I think that once this is put together with Part 2, we will probably have the best movie of the series. After all I think Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows was the best of the series.
