Though different from any of the other films, BRILLIANCE!

Rating: 9/10 (26 November 2010)

As a die-hard HP fan, (meaning I've read every on of the books, some multiple times), I was more than satisfied with the this film. After being slightly disappointed and longing for something after the last couple of films, David Yates has brought the initial "magic" to the movie franchise that I haven't completely felt since the second film, The Chamber of Secrets. The ironic thing, however, is that this film was a MAJOR departure from the first few. As I'm sure any fan has noticed, the movies have gotten increasingly darker and darker, and this was no exception. Because the series has reached its highest point of intensity, this movie is exempt from familiar screen-shots of Hogwarts, jolly trips to Diagon Alley, Quidditch, the Great Hall, and even the familiar, "cute and magical" melodies often heard at the beginning of the films. The Hogwarts "crew," (Neville, Cho, Seamus, Dean, etc.) are only shown once in the whole film, and only for a brief scene in which they chased off Death Eaters. The whole movie chronicled Harry, Ron, and Hermione's search for horcruxes, enlightenment of the tale of the Deathly Hallows, and evasion from the Death Eaters, who are now stronger and more than ever, having taken over the Ministry of Magic.
One thing I really liked about this film is the audience involvement with the Death Eaters as we "sit in" on their meetings and watch intense interaction between the members. I commend the cinematographers and visual effects artists for awesome "action scenes," but I have never been disappointed by the animation in any of the HP films.
One of my biggest complaints is that it definitely seemed to be dragging towards the middle while Harry, Ron, and Hermione camped out at different sites and tried to figure out their next moves in the conquest for the horcruxes. For about 45 minutes, it seemed like the film wasn't going ANYWHERE, but that could probably attributed to the fact that Harry wasn't getting anywhere in his search.
The ending action was satisfactory, but kind of abrupt. As much as I am eager to watch the conclusion to the series, I couldn't be happier that the film was broken up into two parts. It just seems virtually impossible to fit the last book into one film without leaving out crucial elements to the plot. And in this book, even the details that SEEM minor initially are essentially crucial to the end.
The acting was stellar. Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, and Emma Watson have grown, matured, and improved on-screen incredibly over the last ten years and it is especially visible in this film. Helena Bonham Carter as Bellatrix LeStrange was fabulous as usual.
All in all, I loved the film and am impressed with David Yates' adaptation of such a genius storyline!