Wednesday, December 1, 2010
Thursday, November 25, 2010
Deathly Hallows review
Here is a movie review from the New York Times of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1, entitled "Time for Young Wizards to Put Away Childish Things"and written by A.O. Scott.
The midnight bookstore parties are all in the past, and, with the opening of the first half of the film adaptation of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows,” an extraordinary pop-culture cycle is on the verge of completion.
“Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone” was published in America in 1998 — a lifetime ago for many young readers, just yesterday for their parents — and that tale and its six sequels now seem like permanent fixtures of the literary landscape. Under the spell of J. K. Rowling’s prose, a great many middle-aged readers were temporarily changed into 10-year-olds. That none of the movies have demonstrated quite the same power makes it easy to underestimate their success. But in the past decade more than a few promising franchises based on popular book series have failed to turn loyal readers into enthusiastic audiences or to bring in legions of new fans. Their fate (think of “Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events” and “The Golden Compass”) suggests that the perennial appeal of “Harry Potter” on screen was hardly a foregone conclusion.
So by now it is beyond doubt that “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1” will attract the passionate, the curious and the nostalgic in large numbers. And they are likely to be pleased. David Yates, who directed the fifth and sixth installments in the series, has shown a knack for capturing and quickening Ms. Rowling’s storytelling rhythm. He has also demonstrated a thorough, uncondescending sympathy for her characters, in particular the central trio of Ron Weasley, Hermione Granger and Harry himself.
In this chapter their adventures have an especially somber and scary coloration, as the three friends are cast out from the protective cocoon of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry into a bleak, perilous grown-up world that tests the independence they have struggled to obtain under the not-always-benevolent eyes of their teachers. Childish things have been put away — this time there is no quidditch, no school uniforms, no schoolboy crushes or classroom pranks — and adult supervision has all but vanished. Albus Dumbledore is dead, and though Hagrid (Robbie Coltrane) and Alastor Mad-Eye Moody (Brendan Gleeson) offer some assistance early on, Harry and his companions must rely on the kindness of house elves, on their own newly mastered wizarding skills and, above all, on one another.
This is not always so easy. The implicit rivalry for Hermione’s favor that has always simmered between Harry (Daniel Radcliffe) and Ron (Rupert Grint) bubbles to the surface, as does Ron’s resentment at being the Chosen One’s sidekick. The burden of chosenness weighs on Harry as well; it is easier for him to accept being singled out for death by Lord Voldemort than to countenance the willingness of his allies and protectors to sacrifice their lives for him. Hermione (Emma Watson), for her part, seems lonelier than ever. She has broken entirely with her Muggle parents, expunging herself from their memories to prevent them from being caught up in an increasingly vicious intrawizard civil war.
For most of this film Voldemort’s forces are very much in the ascendant. The production design is dense with visual allusions to 20th-century totalitarianism, while the battered and dispersed good guys carry some of the romance of guerrilla resistance, taking to the countryside and living rough as they search for weak spots in their enemy’s strategy. They also pop into nonmagical neighborhoods of London, visits that add a jolt of realism to this fantasy. The brilliant composer Alexandre Desplat has constructed a haunting, spooky sonic atmosphere with only an occasional splash of youthful whimsy.
Not that “Deathly Hallows” is grim, exactly. But it is, to an unusual and somewhat risky degree, sadder and slower than the earlier films. It is also much less of a showcase (or bank vault, as the case may be) for the middle and senior generations of British actors. Many of the familiar faces show up — including Ralph Fiennes as Voldemort, Helena Bonham Carter as Bellatrix LeStrange, and, of course, Alan Rickman as Severus Snape — but they move along after a scene or two. So do the two notable newcomers, Bill Nighy as a government official and Rhys Ifans as Xenophilius Lovegood, a wondrously eccentric underground journalist and father to the ethereal (and in this movie, briefly glimpsed) Luna (Evanna Lynch).
The movie, in other words, belongs solidly to Mr. Radcliffe, Mr. Grint and Ms. Watson, who have grown into nimble actors, capable of nuances of feeling that would do their elders proud. One of the great pleasures of this penultimate “Potter” movie is the anticipation of stellar post-“Potter” careers for all three of them.
While there is still one more film to go (Part 2 is scheduled for release in July), this one manages to be both a steppingstone and a reasonably satisfying experience in its own right. Some plot elements are handled with busy, “DaVinci Code”-like mumbo jumbo as the three friends must hunt down not only a bunch of horcruxes, but also the mysterious objects alluded to in the title. The deathly hallows at least provide the occasion for a lovely animated sequence, much as the inevitable preliminary battle scenes allow for episodes of explosive wand work. Even though it ends in the middle, “Deathly Hallows: Part 1” finds notes of anxious suspense and grave emotion to send its characters, and its fans, into the last round. The sorrow you experience may well be a premonition of the imminent end of a long and, for the most part, delightful relationship.
A version of this review appeared in print on November 19, 2010, on page C1 of the New York edition
The defining moments.
Often times, the defining moments of our lives are completely missed when they occur. It's only days, weeks or even years later than we fully understand the impact of that instant; the instant that is forever ingrained in who we are, in our actions, in our thoughts and in our hearts.
For me, the first time I picked up Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone by the incomparable J.K. Rowling was one of those defining moments. Little did I know at the time that that literary work, originally perceived as a children's tale of magic, would become incrusted in the very foundation of my true passion. Rowling's incredible way of developing characters and creating a world, with every intricate detail planned and described perfectly, has driven me deeper into my love of writing.
Last week, the first part of the final installation of the movie franchise of the wizarding world of Harry Potter, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, was released into cinemas worldwide. As this iconic franchise comes to close, I feel sadness, but I know what I have gained from Harry and his friends can never be forget: the power of love, and the magic of literature. To that effect, the Harry Potter series will never truly end. It will constantly define me, every day of my life.
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