Without a doubt, the best decision Warner Bros. Pictures ever made about the “Harry Potter” series – besides the choice to take it on in the first place – was to split the seventh book into two films.
Although its runtime is admittedly a bit long at 147 minutes, “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1” is the movie that diehard Harry Potter fans have been waiting for. With the author herself monitoring the screenplay, Warner Bros. delivers a movie that stays almost entirely true to the immensely popular novel series, right down to the dialogue.
“Part 1” is the first half of a two-part saga portraying the seventh and final novel of the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling. An openly hostile wizarding world looms large over Harry, Ron and Hermione, who decide to focus the entirety of their attention on the destruction of Voldemort, as opposed to schoolwork or what they see as other frivolities.
The opening of the movie is perhaps an overly dramatic one that includes Harry staring moodily into a somber gray sky and a pensive Ron outside the Burrow gazing into a distant, hazy twilight. However, the more poignant moments in this scene involving Hermione and her parents embody the powerful effect that director David Yates adds to the film, showing the treacherous future the trio has ahead of them.
One of the most prominent differences between this film and the previous six is the change in setting. Instead of the floating candles, switching staircases and sense of comfort that is the fantasy of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, the entirety of “Part 1” is filmed away from the castle. Although some viewers may miss the familiar surroundings, Yates does a fantastic job portraying the sense of danger created from being on the run, particularly with the “snatchers” waiting to arrest renegades at any moment.
And said danger is literally everywhere. As the three most wanted people in the entire wizarding world, Harry, Ron and Hermione, “Part 1” shows, are unable to trust anyone as they scramble for information about Voldemort. For viewers looking for a true adventure movie, “Part 1” delivers in a major way – most notably with a particularly dramatic turn in the Ministry of Magic.
Despite all the histrionics over the trio’s mission, “Part 1” is simultaneously, and effectively, action-packed and humorous. The love story between Ron and Hermione manages to be both comical and touching enough to endear viewers. While the comic relief may be a bit overdone in a few spots, the movie touches on serious topics – racism, betrayal and death, to name a few – that make it entirely necessary to at least turn “Part 1” into a more child-friendly movie.
But the best thing about the penultimate film in this series? The acting. Even at the most potentially awkward moments – and there are certainly a few of them – the trio manages to successfully deliver their lines, and the more intense moments are very well done, notably by Emma Watson (Hermione) in a scene in Malfoy Manor. Although some of the acting has been a bit shaky in the past (read: Hermione’s eyebrows), the cast members make clear that they put their strongest efforts into their performances as the movie effortlessly flows from awkward budding romance to disturbing torture scenes.
A fantastic film with a suitably chilling end to foreshadow the next movie, “Part 1” will leave viewers distractingly anxious for what should be an epic conclusion to this acclaimed series. To put it shortly: the magic lives on.