Genre: Fantasy | Adventure
Director: David Yates
Writer: Steve Kloves | J.K. Rowling
Cast: Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, Emma Watson, Michael Gambon, Bill Nighy, Alan Rickman, Ralph Fiennes, Helena Bonham Carter, Jason Isaacs, Tom Felton, James Phelps, Oliver Phelps, Rhys Ifans
MPAA Rating: PG-13
Summary:
Harry, Ron and Hermione set out on their perilous mission to track down and destroy the secret to Voldemort’s immortality and destruction — the Horcruxes. On their own, without the guidance of their professors or the protection of Professor Dumbledore, the three friends must now rely on one another more than ever. But there are Dark Forces in their midst that threaten to tear them apart. Meanwhile, the wizarding world has become a dangerous place for all enemies of the Dark Lord. The long-feared war has begun and Voldemort’s Death Eaters seize control of the Ministry of Magic and even Hogwarts, terrorizing and arresting anyone who might oppose them. But the one prize they still seek is the one most valuable to Voldemort: Harry Potter. The Chosen One has become the hunted one as the Death Eaters search for Harry with orders to bring him to Voldemort…alive. Harry’s only hope is to find the Horcruxes before Voldemort finds him. But as he searches for clues, he uncovers an old and almost forgotten tale — the legend of the Deathly Hallows. And if the legend turns out to be true, it could give Voldemort the ultimate power he seeks.
Runtime: 146 min
“These are dark times, There is no denying.” – Rufus Scrimgeour
We’ve come a long way from that first shot of the boy in the cupboard under the stairs at 4 Privet Drive. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 starts off quite somber, continues to be quite somber and grows very, very dark. There are a few moments of comic relief, mostly supplied by the always hilarious Weasley Twins, Fred and George (played brilliantly by James Phelps and Oliver Phelps). This is far and away the most intense, emotionally charged, and perilous of the series. It’s definitely not a movie for very young children, and the PG-13 rating is justified.
Throughout the previous films, there had seemed to always be a sense that if things got too extreme for our boy wizard, Dumbledore or Hagrid could show up in the nick of time and rescue the students of Hogwarts. Harry, Ron and Hermione are now sequestered from their closest and most trustworthy friends during their travels to hunt for the Horcruxes outside the safe and secure walls of Hogwarts, and that sense of protection is a thing of the past. Even though they are free from the confines of the School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, which gives them a much more grand landscape for the story, our heroes are now also fugitives on the run, being hunted themselves by Lord Voldemort (Ralph Fiennes) and his Death Eaters. Knowing that they are constantly being hunted gives you a sense of peril throughout the film that their enemies are closing in on them, and their possible capture is imminent.
Make no mistake, this is no Sorcerer’s Stone or Chamber of Secrets, you will find few, if any truly joyful or smile inducing moments in this film. The tension and pure sense of doom throughout the vast majority of the film is as thick as the fog that settles over Malfoy Manor. Unlike previous Potter films, a general sense of loss and misery are ever-present and there are also a few deaths in the film, which don’t help lighten the story. The deaths are truly heartbreaking (as not to spoil it, I won’t share details) but, even knowing that one of them in particular was coming well ahead of seeing the film, I had either gotten something in my left eye at that exact moment in the film, or that was an actual tear running down my cheek. Truly heartbreaking.
Don’t get me wrong, it’s not like people are sobbing or going through full-scale depression throughout the film, it is still chock-full of action, there are still moments of love and expressions of camaraderie that give you hope as well but, director David Yates has done an impressive job of leaving a feeling of impending doom and bad karma hanging in the air over even those most positive moments in the film, and it serves the story well.
There are a few quiet and introspective moments for our characters within the movie, and while it does slow down the pace a bit, it also serves to build tension. One thing I wished they had done during some of the slower moments would have been to spend more time with the other characters so that we could have seen what they were doing while our trio was on their mission. What was Neville Longbottom (Matthew Lewis) doing?, where was Luna Lovegood (Evanna Lynch) during their hunt for the Horcruxes?. Actually, we do find out what Luna has gone through (after the fact) but, I don’t know why we couldn’t have actually seen it on the screen during some of the slower moments in the film, especially since her story is intersects with Harry, Ron and Hermione’s at one point.
I was really impressed by how far the acting chops of our heroic trio have come over the last nine years. Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint and Emma Watson have always been good actors, and they seem to have brought their own personal maturity into their acting, and simultaneously to the characters that they will forever be identified with. The outstanding acting and the brilliant cinematography by Eduardo Serra really put this film on an entirely different level than past installments, and it’s safe to assume with Part 2 and it’s impending battle, they will likely be pushed even further.
At just over two and a half hours, I’m very glad that they split Deathly Hallows into two films. It would have been a crime if they had attempted to cram the entire finale of the series into one 2 1/2 or 3 hour film. Die-hard Potter fans now have an almost torturous eight month wait until they can see the conclusion of this part of the story, as well as the entire saga. Fans will then have to say what will likely be a very tearful farewell to the era of “The boy who lived“.
I give Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 Four out of Five Stars
