love

Author Topic: The Harry Potter Marathon  (Read 58807 times)

Bondo

  • Objectively Awesome
  • ******
  • Posts: 23082
Re: The Harry Potter Marathon
« Reply #380 on: July 15, 2011, 04:17:35 AM »
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

I took this in as a combined Part I and Part II. Rewatching the first half reminded me of just how great it is. It truly is the pinnacle of the series. The themes, the acting/cast, the design, it was all just meshing perfectly and it seems like every scene is deeply laced with emotion. If I'm breaking them up for the purpose of my top-100 list, Part I is gonna be in my top-50. It is just really stunning. As we move into the second half, there were definite chinks in the armor. To quote the hamster, people critiqued the first part as being all build-up and no action but part II was more like all action and no build-up. There are a few points that slow the second half down nicely to consider some emotion but they didn't generally work for me quite as well.

The Gringots vault scene changed one thing that made it kind of lose its tension. I think the Snape memories got watered down by too much exposition that seemed intended on making sure even the weakest link was following along. Neville was great with some added material but they did seem to drag out the snake bit a little longer than necessary (and longer than the book does). The epilogue was getting mocking laughter out of the crowd, the attempt to age up the characters was a major failure. All these little things just give it a slightly less special aura about it. Part II would probably fall third or fourth overall if I were to rank it separately.

Still, the Harry Potter series should go down as featuring some of the best art direction, visual effects and cinematography of all time. The second half definitely has a chance to showcase a lot of this. The cast has grown so comfortable in their parts that they are basically spot on, and the new additions just further making this the greatest ensemble put into one spot.

Bondo

  • Objectively Awesome
  • ******
  • Posts: 23082
Re: The Harry Potter Marathon
« Reply #381 on: July 15, 2011, 12:53:18 PM »
Oh, another thing I noticed...they were trying to get a lot of mileage out of Emma Watson's cleavage, especially when she was in her Bellatrix outfit. It is curious where the camera is placed when they fall inside Gringots. Not complaining, just saying it seemed to be a conscious decision.

Corndog

  • Objectively Awesome
  • ******
  • Posts: 17025
  • Oo-da-lolly, Oo-da-lolly, golly what a day!
    • Corndog Chats
Re: The Harry Potter Marathon
« Reply #382 on: July 18, 2011, 11:06:34 PM »
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2

To this point the world of Harry Potter is well known to everyone around the world, even to those who have never read the books or seen the movies, even those that are tired of hearing about the series. To many it started with the great books by J.K. Rowling, and I was one of them. However, I did not start reading the books until the third one came out, previously siding on the fence of being sick of how popular it was. But when I picked those books for the first time I was hooked for over a decade. And then the movies began to come out and I was equally transfixed by the marvelous visual telling of this instant classic tale. Sadly, the series has to come to a close some time, and for the literature side it was a few years ago, though it remains to be seen if Rowling will continue the series in any way. For the films, that day came on July 15, but with such a remarkable series, it will live on forever.

This eighth and final film in the series is actually a continuation of the previous film, so we pick up our three young heroes, Harry (Daniel Radcliffe), Ron (Rupert Grint) and Hermione (Emma Watson), on the trail of finding the remaining horcruxes of Voldemort (Ralph Finnes). These horcruxes must be found and destroyed before the evil wizard can be brought down in the epic finale. The team encounters countless close calls on their way to the "Battle of Hogwarts" which concludes the series with the entire cast of characters coming together for one last time on screen.

Perhaps the most remarkable aspect of the film series has been its casting, which starts with the three main actors. They have grown so much over the series and it is great to have seen them mature right in front of our eyes. None of them perhaps truly shine in this installment, but they are so comfortable in their roles as Harry, Ron and Hermione at this point that you hardly notice that they are acting. At this point they truly are these characters. But past that is the astounding supporting cast which is cock full of English acting legends, and each actor, and in fact each character, is given their moment in this concluding chapter, which I found to be a very nice touch. Alan Rickman (Snape) and Ralph Finnes (Voldemort) are the standouts in this particular film, but enough cannot be said for what the entire veteran cast brought to the entire series.

 And Rickman is really important in this installment because Snape is such an important part of the story, which is adapted quite well once again by Steve Kloves. Much like the first part of The Deathly Hallows, the film appears to be pretty faithful to the book. Whatever changes or adjustments have, to this point, become almost background noise, for the filmmaking team under the direction of David Yates has become so great at creating the world of Harry Potter and making great films that whichever choices they seem to make, they always seem to be great choices, even when it differs from the source material.

The technical aspects, as always, are also astounding. The special effects, which have been somewhat of a calling card for the series, are top notch once again, taking full advantage of the many magical settings of the film as well as the epic battles and action scenes that are prevalent throughout the final chapter. The cinematography, which has become a common thread in the Yates directed films, is strong once again as director of photography Eduardo Serra captures the world in all its beauty, complete with interesting angles and framing choices. Alexandre Desplat, who has been one of Hollywood's hot composers of late, returns again for the score of this film and continues his hot streak, composing a blazing score for the film full of action, with the ability to be emotionally touching at the right points as well. And as the previous composers before him, his work is more subtle and complimentary than the great work of John Williams earlier in the series.

The film moves at a breakneck pace and really has little expository scenes, but this late in the series it almost feels like there shouldn't be. Because this is the latter half of the book, the entire film is pretty much 3rd act material, which means it is edge of your seat action from start to finish with little time to breath, but I cannot think of a better way to conclude the series. There is no way this is a stand alone film. Anyone that sees this film without seeing any of the others would be lost and would probably hate the film, but that simple fact almost makes this film that much better.

The previous films in the series have done such a great job of setting up and developing all these characters that this film not only gets away with being all 3rd act with little exposition, but it excels at it. For that reason I cannot imagine a better way to have ended the series. Everyone gets their due and their moment to shine. I would not call this the best of the series, though now that the series has concluded I am sure to resort to my style of ranking the books: why rank them, the entire series is great and magical. Harry Potter is a gift which was first given by J.K. Rowling, and since been regifted by Chris Columbus, Alfonso Cuaron, Mike Newell, and finally the wonderful David Yates. It will be ever present in the history of cinema as perhaps the most successful franchise both financially and artistically, but more importantly it will be in my personal collection for the rest of my life to enjoy and share with as many people as possible.
"Time is the speed at which the past decays."

Bill Thompson

  • Objectively Awesome
  • ******
  • Posts: 17561
  • DOOM!!!!
    • Bill's Movie Emporium
Re: The Harry Potter Marathon
« Reply #383 on: July 19, 2011, 09:42:43 AM »
Good luck to you. You're a better fan than I- no way I could make it.

For anyone interested, here's a link to part one of a four podcast series I'm participating in with Josh (moviebuff28) for the Sound on Sight blog covering the Harry Potter films. Each will be about an hour and cover two films.

http://www.soundonsight.org/sound-on-sight-radio-the-b-sides-harry-potter-and-the-sorcerers-stone-harry-potter-and-the-chamber-of-secrets/

I just listened to the first episode, well I still have ten minutes to go but close enough. I thought you and the other host were just fine, but I have to say I had a rough time with the episode. Your opinions were well thought out and well presented, but I pretty much disagreed with them wholesale. I thought both of you were way too harsh on the first two films, I especially didn't get the "they are a separate trilogy" argument brought up by your co-host. The first two films are representing the world as seen through the eyes of these children, it's only as they grow up that the serious moments become truly serious and the over the top world of an adolescent fades away into the young adult and then teenage world of the later films. Like I said, good job on the whole, but I can't say I agree most of what you guys said.

Katebo

  • Elite Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 1399
  • Shiny!
    • Sound on Sight TV
Re: The Harry Potter Marathon
« Reply #384 on: July 19, 2011, 12:51:38 PM »
It's cool- I think most people disagree with my opinion on the first two. Looking around at all the retrospectives around, I'm definitely in the minority. If you keep listening to the series, the reviews get significantly less negative (overall).

Speaking of, the final installment of the Sound on Sight B-Sides Harry Potter series is up. This time Josh (moviebuff28) and I talk with David Bax of Battleship Pretension and Previously On and discuss the final two films, as well as a brief overview of the series as a whole.

http://www.soundonsight.org/sound-on-sight-radio-the-b-sides-%E2%80%93-%E2%80%98harry-potter-and-the-deathly-hallows/

Lobby

  • Elite Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 2762
    • The Velvet Café
Re: The Harry Potter Marathon
« Reply #385 on: July 20, 2011, 03:41:53 AM »

the single moment from Deathly Hallows Part 2 that will resonate with me the longest has to be Snape's tears, loaded with history and memory and pain, collected by Harry, who is in turn showing compassion for the first time to a man he has hated for nearly 7 years. It's a wonderful decision by Yates.

I agree wholeheartedly. *Sniff*. The beautiful dancing scene will also remain in my memory. Such a beautiful and necessary break from action pace.
http://thevelvetcafe.wordpress.com/  - where I think aloud about movies

Sam the Cinema Snob

  • Objectively Awesome
  • ******
  • Posts: 26795
Re: The Harry Potter Marathon
« Reply #386 on: July 21, 2011, 11:17:01 AM »
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2

Steve Kloves manages mischief.

1SO

  • FAB
  • Objectively Awesome
  • ******
  • Posts: 36128
  • Marathon Man
Re: The Harry Potter Marathon
« Reply #387 on: July 21, 2011, 08:26:31 PM »
Michael Goldenberg did such a fantastic job with Order of the Phoenix, I wish he would have stayed on. Instead, Goldenberg was the 4th writer on Green Lantern. Kloves is far from the worst possible writer for the series - that would be David Koepp and/or Akiva Goldsman - but he should have been dismissed with Chris Columbus. The more I learn about Prisoner of Azkaban, the more it feels like Cuaron was saddled with Kloves, who was not up to the task of giving Cuaron the visual screenplay the director wanted.

smirnoff

  • Objectively Awesome
  • ******
  • Posts: 26251
    • smirnoff's Top 100
Re: The Harry Potter Marathon
« Reply #388 on: March 29, 2020, 02:04:43 PM »
Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone   -   6/10

Ronald Bilius Weasly almost single-wandedly puts this film on his broom and lifts it into the realm of watchability. For starters he's the only one to successfully generate any humour. I don't care how many times Seamus blows himself up, it's never funny. But there's Ron, right out of the gate, flexing those natural comedy chops. The scene when all of the first years are attempting to summon their brooms up off of the ground, and Ron's broom flies up and hits him in the face, is one of the only real laughs in this film (and a big one at that). Getting mileage out of a stupid moment of slapstick is worth at least 50 points. Then on the dramatic side, there's Ron again, the central figure in one of the best scenes of the film.

Wizard's Chess. This shot is A+.

Design awards to whoever worked on this scene. I mean, those pawns are a piece of art. There's a "what are they" quality to them, like the Wheelers in Return to Oz or something. Are they men or something stranger? The whole set is stunning to be honest. As a kid this is what playing Battle Chess on an old PC felt like. Epic stuff. Ron making the sacrifice is good moment for the character, but the relationship up to that point in the movie isn't really sufficiently developed to give it the impact it could have had. This is where the book has an inherent advantage. If you've read to that point, then you've spent several more hours reaching it than you have in the movie. The feelings are deeper.
 
If there's one general shortcoming of this film it's that it doesn't more quickly manage to endear me to the characters. I'm on board for it. I know it's going to get there. I know I'm going to revel in every line Snape speaks. I know I'm going to laugh at McGonnagal's reactions. I know I'm going to treasure every moment with Dumbledore (as played by Richard Harris specifically). But with this first film those things are not quite happening. It's a lot of sowing seeds and not a lot of harvest. That's okay.

I have a love hate relationship with the score of this film. The themes are terrific and I can't imagine better. When they're given space to run they are a real delight. But this film is FAR FAR too short-leashed with its music. Not only scene to scene, but literally moment to moment. The score is jerked about with every action. It's pulled ten different directions in the space of a minute. Every on screen occurance seems to dictate a response from the music, as if this were a Warner Brothers cartoon. This takes a toll on the seriousness with which you view the events and limits how much you can feel.

Alright, it's time to pull the band-aid off. Lets talk about Quidditch.

Of all the games where you put a ball in a hole Quidditch is undoubtedly the worst. I mean I like sports about as much as the next guy, in spite of the fact that they don't actually matter, but Quidditch somehow takes sport's inherent pointlessness and builds it into the rules. 6 players on each side busy themselves over scrap points while 2 players compete in the only part of the game that matters.

The way the crowd cheers hysterically for someone sending a quaffle through a ring is a puzzle I've yet to solve. I can't decide whether it should lower my opinion of the magic community in general, or if they're just the most patronizing crowd in sports.

It's not just me saying the points don't matter.

In an area this big...


This is literally the size of the scoreboard.

Someone lay an engorgement charm on that thing already!

Eh yo, Hermoine! Can you tell us the score?


Also, the fact that the scoreboard allows for single digits in a game where the fewest points that can be scored is 10 is further evidence on side the Quidditch crowds being extremely patronizing.


Also, can we talk about Rolanda Hooch for a second? You know... the person supposed to be keeping order in this game? Good god, I've seen WWE matches with more attentive referees. Forget the snitch, you should get a 150 pts if you can spot Hooch. I can't find her in a single frame, meanwhile lifeless bodies of players are piling up on the ground.

Oh here she comes, now that the game is over.

Standard issue welding goggles. Always a great choice when refereeing a match.

Maybe we should get the eagle-eyed Professor Trelawney in here too.

It's really the players who should be wearing eyewear. The most unrealistic thing about quidditch is that the players' eyes aren't watering the entire time they're flying around.

In conclusion, the film lays a decent groundwork. Not a standalone success... I couldn't watch it in isolation like I could dropping in on The Two Towers say, but I'll give it a pass for now. With the exception of the Quidditch stuff, it is watchable and has a few charming moments. It is perhaps Hogwarts itself, seeing it come to life, that is the most special part about this film.
« Last Edit: March 29, 2020, 03:44:48 PM by smirnoff »

Teproc

  • Elite Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 3529
Re: The Harry Potter Marathon
« Reply #389 on: March 29, 2020, 02:07:52 PM »
Harry Potter 1 and 2 were the two moments in history when Rupert Grint was a better actor than Emma Watson and Daniel Radcliffe. He'll always have that.
Legend: All-Time Favorite | Great  |  Very Good  |  Good  |  Poor  |  Bad

Letterbox'd