Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1 - Discuss and Grade

[RoJoHen]

Well, again, I'm going to reserve final judgment until I see it again. I thought HPB was boring as hell the first time I saw it, but it's now one of my favorites because I realize there was a lot more going on in those quiet moments. Perhaps "The Deathly Hallows" was the same.

In general, I tend to like movies more the second time I see them anyway. The first viewing gives me the plot. The second viewing allows me to pay more attention to everything else going on. If my Harry Potter movie history tells me anything, it's that I will like this one a lot more once I see it again.

 

[ATimson]

Yeah. What's up with those? From what I've seen, they didn't even add any new scenes to The Prisoner of Azkaban or The Goblet of Fire. At least, the running time listed on the back didn't change. What gives?

The directors were both given the chance to revisit the films for the Ultimate Editions, but were satisfied with the theatrical releases.

 

[danellis]

Of possible relevance to the whole Ginny discussion earlier: I happen to be rewatching Philosopher's Stone and noticed that Ginny and Lily kinda look semi-similar. I'm sure Freud would make something of that.

dJE

 

[Roshi]

What's with Harry and the piece of broken mirror? Is it the mirror seen in the Room of Requirements?

 

[OdoWanKenobi]

^No, it's a shard of the mirror that Sirius gave him.

 

[CaptainCanada]

What's with Harry and the piece of broken mirror? Is it the mirror seen in the Room of Requirements?

It's a shard of a communication mirror that Sirius gave him in Order of the Phoenix, the book; the film version of Order didn't include that part. Who has the other piece of the mirror is revealed toward the end of the book, so I assume they'll explain its existence then, but it's one of those elements that seems a little odd due to the split.

 

[Roshi]

oh, ok then. Thanks both of you!

 

[cultcross]

It's a perfect example, actually, of something left out of the films and later regretted!

Generally, they have managed to get around things (like Harry meeting Bill, already werewolf-mauled, for the first time in DH when in the books that injury was as a result of the events at the end of film 6 - in the book there was an actual point to Draco letting the Death Eaters in, you see) but sometimes things they left out come back to haunt them. Dumbledore's ring has had none of the backstory to it explained, so that's going to seem like a remarkably huge coincidence next film.

There was also a change to the Room of Requirement scene where they hide the Half Blood Prince's book which will make one particular scene in Part II a bit tricky to explain. And I know they're doing the scene, too, because they bothered recasting Crabbe just for that.

 

[Shazam!]

It's a perfect example, actually, of something left out of the films and later regretted!

In fairness, wasn't Deathly Hallows (the book) released around the same time of the film so they couldn't really have known how significant the mirror would be.

 

[cultcross]

It's a perfect example, actually, of something left out of the films and later regretted!

In fairness, wasn't Deathly Hallows (the book) released around the same time of the film so they couldn't really have known how significant the mirror would be.

Well yeah, that was my point. I doubt they'd have left it out if they'd had DH to work from. The problem was, from the POV of making self contained films, the mirror doesn't go anywhere in the 5th part - they'd introduce it, then never use it, then pull it out again for film 7 with a 'THIS IS IMPORTANT!' flourish. So a little bit no-win for them on that particular example.

 

[Shazam!]

It's a shame they couldn't have roped Gary Oldman in for a flashback and used jiggery pokery to for a younger Harry.

 

[C_Miller]

I think there's a fundamental problem with starting the movies before the books had been finished. In a perfect world, the first movie would have been released the same summer as the seventh book. That really would have extended PotterMania and I think the stories may have told better in the long run.

 

[CaptainCanada]

It's a shame they couldn't have roped Gary Oldman in for a flashback and used jiggery pokery to for a younger Harry.

Spoiler: Deathly Hallows, Part 2

Gary Oldman is in Deathly Hallows, Part 2, for the scene where Harry summons the shades of James, Lily, Remus and Sirius prior to going to die.

 

[Gaith]

The problem was, from the POV of making self contained films, the mirror doesn't go anywhere in the 5th part - they'd introduce it, then never use it, then pull it out again for film 7 with a 'THIS IS IMPORTANT!' flourish. So a little bit no-win for them on that particular example.

Another interpretation: the problem was/is that the series got progressively more reliant on more magical objects, so instead of letting the three heroes take center stage, the big finish once more involves who accidentally happens to be holding which object. A more character-driven Part 7 wouldn't necessarily have that same problem.

 

[Admiral Buzzkill]

That horcrux had a death wish.

"Here's an idea - piss off the redheaded kid with the sword!"

I haven't read the books - haven't seen the last several HP movies - and had no trouble following this one. I liked the direction and the mood.

Watson is the best thing about these flicks, though. And Grint resolutely refuses to learn to speak intelligibly. I like him.

 

[The Nth Doctor]

And I know they're doing the scene, too, because they bothered recasting Crabbe just for that.

Actually, they're giving the scene to Goyle instead.

 

[Snaploud]

I enjoyed the movie, but that "running in the woods" scene was just cringe-worthy. Those jump-cuts were painful to watch. The director should know better.

 

[RoJoHen]

I enjoyed the movie, but that "running in the woods" scene was just cringe-worthy. Those jump-cuts were painful to watch. The director should know better.

I was more bothered by the overuse of "fade to black" at the end of a scene. There's got to be a better way to transition from one scene to the next.

 

[Skywalker]

Personally, I liked the cliffhanger at the end. I've read the books, so I know what's going to happen, but if I hadn't read the books I probably would have been like, "Aw, snap, it's on now!"

 

[Mike Farley]

It's a perfect example, actually, of something left out of the films and later regretted!

In fairness, wasn't Deathly Hallows (the book) released around the same time of the film so they couldn't really have known how significant the mirror would be.

At one point (but maybe not anymore?) they were consulting with Rowling so they would know what bits were okay to excise. Maybe they came up with a workaround that she approved.