A Superb and Stunning Chapter

Rating: Null/10 (4 December 2010)

The Harry Potter series is one of the most faithful I have ever seen, and each film brings something new. Whenever a new film comes out, there is always a certain criticism that a book fan will mention because of certain information or details left out of the film adaptation. Being the final book in the famous wizard series, this would always be the hardest book to adapt, so I was very relieved when it was announced that it would be split into two parts. Some might see this as an attempt to cash in money, but I honestly do not believe it was for that reason. The filmmakers care about this story, and being the finale, they care about adding in character development before the big action-packed finale. So after seeing Part 1, I have the obligation not just to judge it as a film adaptation but also as a film.
The opening of the film is perfect for the type of tone it is trying to set. Showing us each of the home lives of the three leads and just how difficult the future will be is a hard fact to behold. The action scenes in the film are pretty impressive, but not overly done and they do not take you out of the real story. David Yates and Steve Kloves have set Part 1 as a character film with action in it, not the other way around. And so it is with the rest of the film. Last Year's Half-Blood Prince proved to me that Yates was the best director that this series ever had. He understands mood and the challenges that the three leads are going through. Part 1 is able to capitalize on that.
Each new Harry Potter film is deemed as 'darker' than the previous, and that may be true, but it is not just about how sinister things on screen appear to be. The magical world is at a time where danger lurks around everywhere. We certainly are able to see this on screen, but the real power and the real confrontation as to just how dangerous the world is right now is brought by the quiet moments in the film. Many have said that the middle section of the film, when the three leads begin their camp out, is what weakens the pace. I was surprised by how much this was not true when I watched it. If anything, this section is much needed. It is also powerful because the three leads are able to hold their own very well. Over the years, they have matured and grown as actors, and at this point no one else could do what they are doing. There are certain scenes in the film that, while definitely subtle, are completely powerful and strengthen the characters and express the way they are feeling in a sense of loss. An example is the dance scene between Harry and Hermione, which I thought was perfectly acted by both, especially Watson.
Emma Watson has been the most inconsistent throughout the series. She was good as a little kid in the first two, good as a growing teen in the 3rd film, over-dramatic in Goblet of Fire, OK in Order of the Phoenix, and it wasn't until Half-Blood Prince when you could see she was really starting to shine. Well, here she does. While Radcliffe and Grint are very good, there is something electrifying about Watson. People have raved a lot about her performance, and while at times one is cautious not to overpraise a performance, she deserves it. She does not have scenes where in script it would seem as if she has to do something incredible. This is what makes her stand-out in this film. Starting from her first scene in the film, in a very sad and tragic scene in her home, we see her pain and her sadness over to what she has to do. She only has two words that she speaks in this scene, but her facial expressions say it all. She conveys the same powerful subtle expressions throughout the film. There is also another scene involving her and Helena Bonham Carter that she has been praised about, and this was a disappointment. Not that Watson wasn't great, because she certainly was, much more than what was probably required from her, but the scene only lingered on her for short seconds and then it cut away. We could hear Watson's incredible suffering, but I just wish it could have lingered more on her, to feel even more of what she and others like her really have to go through. Watson is incredibly effective and subtle in this film, and for the first time, she gave the best performance in a Harry Potter film, a feat that none of the three leads have ever achieved.
A real stand-out of the last HP film, Half Blood Prince, was the cinematography, and while I am not sure whether Part 1 was better shot than that one, it was still pretty impressive. Of course, that is no surprise. The music score also stood-out for me. While it is true that it is not as loud, or even as recurring, as the scores of the last Harry Potter films as in it is not present in a lot of the film, it was still effective. I really hope it gets some nominations. Ultimately, the film was everything I could hope for, and not any major flaws really appeared. The ending I also thought was a good way to end Part 1, contrary to the opinions of most. This was a very effective, carefully paced, and superb beginning to the end.