Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows part 1: The Beginning of

Satisfactory Finale

By: Hanadia Pasca Yurista

Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows is not a run of the mill series, but
something which has been intricately planned for from almost the very beginning.
With the last few films crafting the level of suspense into a crescendo, where
each film augments the impending doom and gloom culminating in the finale
seen in The Half Blood Prince, things get a lot worst here from the start, where
The Deathly Hallows begins with a grim reminder from the Minister of Magic,
before we see Voldemort (Ralph Fiennes) and his ghastly lieutenants plot to take
over both realms Muggle or not in quite Fascist terms.

Yes you read that right, and what I thought was quite the brilliant stroke of genius
to transmit that level of fear and dread into the Potter world through something
quite familiar in our world, where there's a takeover of ministries and the
installation of past villains who are puppets of the regime, the continued
discrimination and probable extermination of the ordinary, non magical Muggles
and even the half-breeds against those who are of pure magical blood, and a
curious scene where a disguised Potter head inside the undergrounds of the
Ministry only to see propaganda being created by the masses in creepy,
clockwork like fashion.

Everything is doom and gloom with copious amounts of shades, shadows, black
and grey (save for Hermione's red dress in one scene), where our heroic trio are
quite clueless without their guardian headmaster Dumbledore (Michael Gambon)
always ready to pull some strings from behind the scenes. His absence is largely
felt, and they are left mostly to their own devices and smarts to try and figure out
a way to get to the remaining Horcruxes and to destroy them. They become the
hunted with little allies to rely on, where betrayal seem the norm, almost from
within their own circle of trust as well where a major subplot continues to dwell on
the suggested romantic/platonic dynamics between Hermione with Harry and
Ron, the former sharing a curious dance sequence while on the run, and the
latter, well having his worst fear confront his lack of courage to tell Hermione just
how he feels for her, well, from how many films ago.

So the verdict is whether The Deathly Hallows warranted two films. My answer is
a resounding, definite yes, because there's so much going on in the story, of the
relationships and friendships forged over the years, of the closure both good and
bad that has to come to the myriad of characters introduced (J.K. Rowling
doesn't show a lot of mercy by the way), and not to mention the inherent quest
that Harry, Ron and Hermione chose to embark on that has gone beyond just the
survival of Harry Potter, and what's more, introduces to us what those Deathly
Hallows actually are, which goes just beyond the destruction of the Horcuxes.
Danger lurks at every corner and the narrative spins at breakneck speed,
harrowing most times with the frequent close shaves the rookies encounter
against their enemies who are growing more powerful by the minute. All of those
details in the book are quite impossible to be mimicked to the movie. Harry Potter
and the Half Blood Prince at this point was a disappointment, but this movie
embraces the vital points of the book that brings the relief and satisfaction to
Harry Potter’s fans.

While the previous films have boasted special effects extravaganzas be it little
things to pepper the scene or large battles between wizards and witches, this is
kept surprisingly muted in the film since it's swaying on one end of the spectrum
with Evil gaining an upper hand, and most of the effects not already something
seen before in the earlier Potter films. But what ultimately leads this film into
being the more powerful one, is the strength of the story and how it leads you
along the way, building anticipation as we root for positive outcomes as much as
possible, with slight comedy punctuating appropriate moments to lift the spirits.

Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint and Emma Watson all share that perfect
camaraderie that's been built over the years, it's no wonder that they add that
convincing depth and natural realism to their friendship, with an audience that
has largely grew up with them as well. There's no ensemble cast like the one
assembled for the Potter franchise, though most of them - Ralph Fiennes, Alan
Rickman, Helena Bonham Carter, Bill Nighy, Tom Felton and a long list more -
come and go too frequent and too soon, but one hopes the evil Death Eaters do
get their spotlight by the time the second installment rolls over.

Chris Columbus may have begun the film franchise and made it a large welcome
for the young (especially) and old to embrace J.K Rowling's magical world, but I
am of the opinion that David Yates inherited the franchise at the right point from
The Order of the Phoenix where things required a consistent hand rather than a
rotating director's chair, and developed the franchise into what it is today in quite
unassuming terms. Credit also has to go to Steve Kloves who has adapted from
Rowling's books (save for the point where Yates came onboard), knowing what
best to adapt into the film, and what to leave behind, steering clear of the more
cutesy tales and plunging us headlong into Voldemort's return and ascension to
power.

You know that this will end in a cliffhanger, and what a cliffhanger it is, whetting
your appetite to devour Part 2 as soon as it's released, just so to witness how the
film franchise of our generation will fittingly conclude. However, I can't wait, and
I'm sure the hundreds of thousands of fans around the world cannot wait for the
next part too.
Directed by
David Yates

Writing credits
(WGA)
Steve Kloves (screenplay)

J.K. Rowling (novel "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows")

Produced by
David Barron .... producer
David Heyman .... producer
Tim Lewis .... co-producer
Lionel Wigram .... executive producer

Original Music by
Alexandre Desplat

Cinematography by
Eduardo Serra

Film Editing by
Mark Day

Casting by
Fiona Weir

Production Design by
Stuart Craig
Production Management
Bill Daly .... post production executive
Simon Emanuel .... production manager