Thursday 18 November 2010

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part One

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part One
Starring: Rupert Grint, Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson
Director: David Yates
Warner Bros. Pictures

In Cinemas from Friday 19th November
Review by Kelly Prior

In Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1, Harry and his two best friends Ron and Hermione face the biggest challenge of their young lives to date. Guided only by mysterious items left to them by Albus Dumbledore, they must track down and destroy Voldemort’s remaining Horcruxes. We learned in Harry Potter and The Half-Blood Prince that a Horcrux is made by placing pieces of your soul into everyday items to prolong your life. Therefore, the kids know that they will never defeat Voldemort unless they can destroy all the pieces of his soul.

After a brief stay in The Burrow for a Weasley wedding, the trio go on the run. The Ministry of Magic, and even our beloved Hogwarts, have been taken over by Lord Voldemort’s Death Eaters. With new “Pure Blood Only” laws, and a price on Harry’s head, Snatchers are in full pursuit. Friendships and loyalties are put to the test as the three find themselves alone in the world, cut off from family and missing old friends. Harry knows one thing; ultimately, it will be him that faces Lord Voldemort. He is the Chosen One, The Boy Who Lived...

There is a new mystery unravelling this time round; the mystery of the Deathly Hallows. The combination of these three magical items could mean the answers to life and death, depending on whether Voldemort gets to them before Harry does. The question is; are the Deathly Hallows merely taken from an old fairytale...or are the legends true?

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 is the much anticipated first instalment of the two-part final to the Harry Potter films. Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ll know that these films are based on the highly successful books by J. K. Rowling. No spoilers here, but yes, the ending was a bit annoying. Let’s face it, we were always going to be disappointed by the end, because having read ...Deathly Hallows as one book, we crave more and more of our favourite scenes, and desperately want the closure of seeing the ending of the book. However, as Harry Potter fans would have gone mad had ...Deathly Hallows only been a two and a half hour movie, this was the only way Warner Bros. could do it without pissing the fans off. So, when you see this film, don’t be too quick to judge the ending; just remember, the rest will be coming next year!

The opening sequence of Part 1 will have you in tears. In fact, this film is an emotional rollercoaster ride, so bring plenty of tissues. There is just the right level of romance here, and David Yates yet again gets the group dynamic of the trio spot on. For every scene filled with heart ache and tears, Yeats also gives us one filled with laughter. The twins are hilarious, and Mad-Eye Moody is comic relief for the parents, but now there’s another comic character threatening to take the funny crown. Mundungus Fletcher is a wheeler dealer, a Jack the Lad, who has, in his own words, been “coerced” into helping the Order of the Phoenix. Yates and his team manage to fit in as many much loved characters from the books as possible, in order to satisfy the hungry fans. So look out for some of your favourite characters, like Neville Longbottom and Luna Lovegood.

However, be warned that this film is set on location all over Britain and we never do get to see Hogwarts. This is not just another fantastical, magical adventure at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, but something a lot more sinister. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1, although not quite as dark and psychological as ...Half-Blood Prince, is definitely the most tense and most challenging film yet. You will hold your breath, you will jump a dozen times, and you will not take your eyes off that screen until the credits roll. The story of the three brothers and the Deathly Hallows is told incredibly well, in a gothic, Tim Burton style cartoon. The special effects are superb and the actors have finally fully matured to perfection, with no cringe-worthy moments like Emma Watson’s psycho laugh in ...Order of the Phoenix.

Now, you knew it wasn’t going to be all good, so here it goes Harry Potter fans. The bad bits. There is a considerable lack of Alan Rickman as Severus Snape. When we see him he’s incredible, but there’s just not enough of him. It is really disappointing because we’re used to him always having a great deal of screen time. Now, Jason Isaacs’ portrayal of the incredibly unstable Lucius Malfoy’s was amazing, but his son Draco Malfoy was a real let down. After Tom Felton’s superb acting in ...Half-Blood Prince, we expected to see more, even better. But it’s just not there. All I can say is that I hope we get it back in time for the showdown in Part 2.

Overall, this film was great. There are a few inaccuracies and a lot of stuff is left out from the book, but let’s be honest, it’s got to be done, otherwise ...Deathly Hallows would be in twenty parts instead of two. This film is much more for adults than it is for children, which is really great for Harry Potter fans who have grown up with the books, but not so great for the little children who love Harry Potter in a more innocent way.

The Emotionally Fourteen Rating:
Violence:
Yes, and some nice bloody bits, too.
Sex/Nudity: Yes, actually. Shocking, right?
Swearing: Some good British swearing; “Piss”, “Arse”, etc.
Summary: This film will please everyone, but needs to be rated in three different ways:
Harry Potter Fans: Almost perfect! 9/10
“Who the hell is Harry Potter?”: An enjoyable fantasy film. 7/10
E14 readers: Awesome film with a great cast, but not as epic as we’d hoped. 8/10




THE SNOWMAN & FATHER CHRISTMAS GIVEAWAY!

There's no denying it now! It's late November which means that, in the immortal words of E14ie Blake Harmer "Christmas is as close as it's going to get!". So, what better way to get into the festive spirit than with these two classic movies released on DVD this week from Universal.

The Snowman is the classic tale of David Bowie being abducted by an animated snowman who takes him on a hedonistic binge of motorcycle racing, transvestism, drinking and partying, whilst the much underrated Father Christmas (starring Mel Smith of Christmassy Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree With Kim Wilde fame) features the jolly old man in the big red suit at his least jolly.

To celebrate the release of these classic movies on DVD, we've got two copies of each to give away! For your chance of winning, send your name and full postal address to raymondbriggsgiveaway@yahoo.co.uk before midday on Thursday 25th November. The first four names out of the hat will win a copy each!

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