Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows review (Spoilers ONLY behind the cuts)
ABOUT SPOILERS: This post starts out with a general, spoiler-free review. I have tried very hard to put anything that might be considered a spoiler underneath an LJ-cut ( click here if you don't see the cuts). I've even used fake LJ-cuts below so I don't give away where the film ends. However, if you consider discussions of the film sets,
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I've found in previous films that Emma Watson had a bit of a wooden acting style in many scenes, and that she often came across as a bit forced or over-done. She lacked subtlety and natural behavior on many occasions. Case in point: Goblet of Fire when she's lecturing the twins about the age line. That scene was painful to watch.
However, she's apparently learned a lot from her recent acting experiences, as I was really amazed by her performance here. For example, the scene where she obliviates her parents played out slowly, with Watson taking her time to express very restrained emotions with little movements and blank expressions which said far more than an overly dramatic bawling-fest would've. The scene opens with her standing in her bedroom, glancing about as if she's saying goodbye to it (much as Harry is doing at the same time on Privet Drive, where he also takes the time to go down to the cupboard under the stairs to look around for a moment, giving us the film-version of the book-scene where he goes through his trunk, reliving his memories.). When she goes downstairs to curse her parents, it is the quiet restraint she shows that best expresses her agony. It reminded me the way I had to move very slowly and carefully when I was in major pain after childbirth. Her pain makes her every movement feel very deliberate, as if she were forcing herself to put one foot in front of the other as she prepares to do the deed. And then when she leaves her house, there's a determined purpose to her stride again which says a lot about her state of mind.
And you make some good points about Harry not stepping up as much till after the Silver Doe. I do remember, now that you mention it, how Harry falters for a bit initially in this book. I still think they over-played Hermione's strengths somewhat as the most powerful of the trio, but if they balance that out in the next movie by showing Harry resuming command, so to speak, just as was done in the book, then it would certainly balance out. In fact, your theory makes more and more sense to me as I'm thinking it through. Nice call!
Btw, my husband was commenting last night about what stood out to him most in the kissing scene with Ginny: the casual nature of her request that he zip her up. It wasn't done as if this were some shocking bedroom seduction. She asks him very casually, while standing in the kitchen, as if it's no big deal between the two of them. And he doesn't respond in a freaked-out, panicky way as a teenage boy might if it were the first time to do such a thing. He responds as if it was a very normal, natural part of their relationship. My hubby observed that this was a big part of why the scene worked so well for this audience: because it lacked any dominant seductive tone, it didn't make us uncomfortable for our kids to see it. And yet, for those of us who have been in serious relationships, it's not hard to recognize the implications of Harry and Ginny appearing that comfortable with such a request.
Bottom line, though, is that it really was great what a natural, sweet chemistry existed between Harry and Ginny in this scene. The two of them really clicked in an Of-COURSE-they-belong-together kind of way that lacked any of the awkwardness present in the scenes with Harry and Cho in the OotP film.
You'll have to let me know what you think after you see this in a few weeks!
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The way I see it, there just isn't as much time for Hermione to take center stage in the next movie.
I'm really looking forward to Harry's walk in the forest. It sounds like Yates (who says he doesn't like battles) really wanted to focus on the highly emotional scenes. After re-reading DH, I now see Harry's sacrificial walk as being the peak moment of emotion in the novel with the final showdown with Voldemort being the falling action. I wonder if that's what Yates will try to play up? (with howls from the fans for cutting thier favorite bits from the battle scene)
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I hadn't heard the quote from Yates about not liking battle scenes, but in thinking through these 3 movies of his, I can definitely see that he does seem to focus more on the emotional moments. That actually explains some of my irritations with him.
By the way, have you read how JKR was originally asked to play Lily Potter in the Mirror of Erised scene in the first movie? She turned it down at the time, saying that she wasn't an actor and she was sure she'd mess it up. That statement makes a lot more sense now, knowing that she realized the actress cast as Lily would have the Priori Incantatem scene in GoF and the extremely significant walk through the forest in DH.
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And that's not including the insanity and rabid nature of the fans. Remember when they screwed up the Riddle tombstone in GoF and had to go back and fix it in post-production? Or when Yates and the substitute teacher screenwriter had Harry carving this into his hand:
...much to the vocal dismay of the fans? Another expensive post-production fix for them. :)
It would be interesting to see the early budget forecasts that were made for these films when they first bought the rights off JKR. I wonder how far off their expectations were?
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When a promo shot of Harry in front of the gravestone was released, the fans yelled so loudly about both mistakes, that the studio went back and fixed both errors digitally in post-production.
Here's a news article that elaborates on what happened, but beware as the site has pop-up ads. Grrrrr....
http://www.canmag.com/news/4/3/2082
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