Review: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows Part One (Mild Spoilers)

The biggest story about the first half of the final film of the Harry Potter franchise thusfar is the fact that it was originally going to be retro-fitted into 3D but Warner Bros. felt they didn't have the time to do the 3D job justice so we have to watch the film in glorious 2D. While watching the film I couldn't help but think if 3D would've enhanced it at all and apart from a scene involving the magic world's Axis of Evil early on, everything else was fairly subdued. Without giving anything away the primary plot of Harry Potter sees the titular bespectacled hero teaming up with bessie mates Ron and Hermoine to try and destory all the remaining Horcruxes that are giving the mega-evil Lord Voldemort all his power. This means that the trio are bunking off and not re-entering Hogwarts to complete their final year instead going on what is basically a magic-enhanced road movie through Shafestbury Avenue, The Forest of Dean and various other external venues. While on the road the main relationship between the three is explored as is the mysteries revolving around the Horcruxes and some more of Harry finding out just how essential he is to restoring the wizzarding world.

After reading a couple of reviews I was going in expecting to be utterly bored by parts of the film. However once Harry and pals had left to go on the round I was fully emerged in the world and the pitfalls along the way. My favourite scenes had to be the afformentioned ones that take place outside as the external locations add to Harry's woes thanks to the natural elements inflicting themselves on him and his friends. Although they are going through a lot of plot for me I thought story-wise the film was at its best when exploring the relationship between the three central characters as we've seen them grow up and now they are fully-fledged adults. The sixth film dealt too much with all the teeny relationship stuff however the sensitive portrayal of the Ron and Hermoine love-story is great as the friendship between Harry and Hermoine the former through a scene in which Hermoine tries to teach Ron how to play piano and the latter in which Hermoine and Harry dance together in order to cheer themselves up. There is also a nice scene in a graveyard during Christmas Eve when Harry sees his parents' gravestones for the first time. In terms of the three actors - Daniel Radcliffe seems to have matured as an actor although he does still seem to be delivering some of his lines like he was in a Shakespeare adaptation while Emma Watson has toned Hermoine down and delivers, by Harry Potter standards, a fairly subtle performance. But it is Rupert Grint, as Ron, who has grown the most, once known for pulling a face and going 'bloody 'ell Harry' he is now portraying a young man unlucky and love and jealous of his friend but learning to control these insticts.

For the fans of the big magical sequences there aren't many save one in the Ministry of Magic and the other in the Malfoy house. However the special effects have been used in other ways, there is a particularly nice sequence in which Hermoine narrates the Story of the Three Brothers which is accompanied by stark animations of the tale. The film does retain most of the humour that we've come to love from the franchise, but the laughs don't seem as forced this time and are mostly natural. One thing that I really noticed this time as well was JoAlexandre Desplat's score which, due to the tone, was a lot more haunting than it has been in previous Potter films. The obviuos flaw is that the story has been split into two parts which means that a lot of much-loved characters don't really get a chance to do anything. There's hardly any Alan Rickman, no Maggie Smith and only a little bit of Robbie Coltraine. There's also a lot of bits of 'popping up' from characters from previous films most notably Imelda Staunton's Dolores Umbridge, this is by no fault of the film as it is intergral for the story but I just felt it interrupted the pace of the film. However there are two small performances from actors new to the franchise Rhys Ifans gives a typically barmy turn as Luna's father Xenophilipous Lovegood while Peter Mullan is truly terrifying as the villainous Yaxley. The story does stop halfway but I think it is done in a way that Part One can stand on its feet as a sepearte film.

Overall this is a film that is starkly different than all the other Harry Potter films thusfar. There is no Hogwarts and not as much action as there has been previously. For me I thought that made a completely different and compelling tale but I know some will find that boring. I guess you'll just have to go and see it for yourself.