HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS PART 2 (2011 - Cert 12A)

I don't think I've even been more confident that a film would live up to my expectations than when I was sat in my reclining chair at the Clapham Picturehouse to watch the big finale to the Harry Potter series. After the first two very child friendly and perhaps a little too innocent Chris Columbus entries, The Philosopher's Stone and The Chamber of Secrets, David Heyman with his team of co-producers and a selection of directors (Alfonso Cuaron, Mike Newell and David Yates), managed to make a series that was both faithful and dedicated to the source material. As a reader of the books I was constantly impressed with how the films managed to grasp the wonder, youth and darkness of J K Rowling's creations so perfectly. There was a real sense that the makers of these films were putting a lot of care into what they were doing, yes they wanted to make a lot of money but they also appeared to be desperate to do the story justice. They were only getting one crack at this, there isn't going to be a reboot, they didn't want to be the people who made a hash out of Potter. The quality of the films along with the continuing story has meant that it has never really felt like a 'franchise', although there's no doubting that it really is, it's more of an epic series that has spanned the last 10 years. This means that there isn't the usual dread that comes with a sequel to a film that you like. When I watched Spiderman 3, I knew deep down that it wasn't going to meet my expectations and the standards set by the previous two. With Part Two of The Deathly Hallows I just knew that this was going to be a brilliant end to a series of films that I love.



Imagine my disappointment when it came to light that The Deathly Hallows Part 2 was, in my opinion, the weakest since The Chamber of Secrets. Disappointment is perhaps a bit too strong a term, I really enjoyed it, but it just struggled to live up to the incredibly high standards set by the Prisoner of Azkaban through to the first Deathly Hallows film.

The decision to split the last book into two films meant that very little plot set up was required in this sitting.  The first film was all setting up, not much happened, it was criticised for being too wordy, but it was a necessity and it added a huge amount of depth to characters that we all thought we already knew so well. In part two we are thrown straight into the action, dragons, Gringotts vault, a roller coaster style bank job, Horcruxes. It's all there and before you know we are back at Hogwarts for the huge final battle, that takes up much of the film, and it has to be said that it is visually superb. The scale was reminiscent of the biggest and best that The Lord of The Rings had to offer, Death Eaters vs the teachers and pupils, giants, huge spiders, suits of armour coming to life, spells being cast, counter spells raining in, Hogwarts crumbling, it's relentless and is great to watch. Huge battle scenes come out every week in mediocre effects movies but there is something extra special about seeing Hogwarts at the centre of it, especially when we've been waiting ten years to see it.

This might be a good moment to mention the 3D. None of the previous incarnations were in 3D, there was a plan to have the first Deathly Hallows film in 3D but they decided that it just wasn't working and they didn't want to compromise their creation. I have to ask whether they stopped to think about whether it was a good idea this time around. This is a dark film, not in the usual Harry Potter sense of the word, but actually dark in terms of colour. There are the occasional flashes of colour through a spell or an explosion, but this is largely set against a black back drop as the battle plays out during the night. The 3D drains the film of what little colour it has and you have to wonder whether there is any point in giving darkness depth, it doesn't exactly leap out of the screen like the penis in piranha or immerse you like the surroundings in Avatar. There were also a couple of instances where the effects let the side down, for example a broomstick chase looked a little on the cheap side, contrasting with the otherwise very accomplished effects.

The cast continues the 'biggest' theme, everyone is in it. I mean everyone. Any character from the Potter universe that hasn't been killed off is in this film. Some have beefed up roles integral to the story like Maggie Smith's Professor McGonagall becoming an action heroine, some have a line or two but others,  such as Jim Broadbent, have nothing more than a couple of seconds of screen time. There is a great deal of pleasure to be taken from all of the characters from all of the films coming together at once, a school reunion of sorts only one where you're pleased to see everyone and not avoiding the smug bloke who is now a TV presenter.

It's much more than just bit parts by all the best British thespians though. There are some very good performances in the film. The main three, Radcliffe. Watson and Grint are perfectly solid, they don't really have a great deal to do other than running around trying to save the day, which is a bit of a shame after the quality and depth of their characters in Part One. Ralph FiennesVoldemort as desperate, almost scared. As the horcruxes fall one by one, I got a very real sense that Voldemort knew that things were unravelling, the closer he gets to his goal, the more the wheels start to fall off. He really isn't in control. It's a great additional dynamic to the usual good vs evil. Matthew Lewis' Neville Longbottom finally gets to the party and has his pivotal role. It was great to see the bumbling fool from the earlier films grow into a hero and there are a couple of stirring speeches from Lewis that got the goosebumps going. What was noticeable about the film to me though was the lack of any real 'goosebump moments', or for that matter, many moments of genuine emotion. It really should have been packed to the rafters with them, the book is after all. The kiss, the deaths of important characters, the reveal of Snape's importance to the whole story - that reveal is probably the best part of the film actually, Harry seeing Snape's memories and his past is the closest I got to a tear and it was brilliantly played by Rickman, as you would expect, and superbly handled by David Yates.

I've thought long and hard about why the grandstand moments didn't feel jaw dropping like I expected them to, perhaps it's because I've read the book and I knew what was coming, although I had read all the books before I'd seen the films and that didn't diminish from the wow factor. I think the reason is, strangely, that the film was too short. Everything felt a bit too brisk. There are a number of changes in direction and plot in the story and the closer you get to the ending, the less time you are allowed to pause for contemplation. Deaths happen and then you are quickly forced to move on, you don't have time to get upset, a set-piece pops up, you want to be impressed but all of a sudden you're following a broomstick through a fiery room and you need to brace yourself for the next big effect. I wanted to be able to appreciate these important moments, as they make the leap from page to screen, but there are just so many of those moments. It's a strange thing to criticise the film for but at only just over a couple of hours I though there could have been another 20 minutes or so just to give us all a chance to actually enjoy what was happening. I thought that was the reason why the last book was split into two wasn't it? To avoid the feeling of everything being shoehorned in. The prime chunks of storyline lobster from the book become tightly packed sardines in the film.

I think this may have all come across a lot more negatively than I have intended. It is a very good film, it does the usual things well, it's funny, it is exciting, it has all the spectacle and scale that I expected, it has great actors doing what they do best, but it just fell short of what I wanted. To say it's the weakest film since Chambers of Secrets isn't to say it's rubbish, it's just that number three through to seven were all amazing. Perhaps my expectations were too high, they were never going to be met, perhaps the 3D ruined it for me, I may re-watch it on DVD and think differently about it (I hope so) and realise that it was the perfect sign off for a film series that really has been one of the greatest achievements by the British film industry.

HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS PART 1 (2010)

In the world of Harry Potter there are two types of people, those who can practice magic (Wizards) and those who don't have the powers (Muggles). This dual society extends to the real world as well. Those who love Potter and his adventures and those who have not fallen under the spell of J K Rowling's creation (or is it really her creation...?).

Having read all the books and seen (and enjoyed) all of the films thus far, I firmly fall within the first category. So with this in mind, there was never any danger of me not seeing this film in it's opening weekend.



Bill Nighy's Minister of Magic sets the the tone of the story, and the film for that matter, in the opening moments. 'There are dark times ahead'. The penultimate film in the series (the final book being split into two halves) is indeed the darkest yet, although I appreciate that this has been said of every sequel in the series so far. I'll do my best to avoid any spoilers, but it picks up where the previous film, The Half-Blood Prince, left off with Voldemort growing stronger and the Death Eaters seizing a firmer grip on power and stepping up their efforts to kill Harry Potter.

Although the story is familiar, this film is very unlike any other in the series so far. Fairly early on in the film, the three main characters, Harry, Hermione and Ron become separated from their protectors and consequently have to fend for themselves. This means that the usual locales of Hogwarts and the like are not seen at all and much of the film is played out in sweeping rural landscapes, beautifully presented by director David Yates (at the helm since film 5) with some earlier scenes taken place in Central London. These alien surroundings give this film a freshness and a maturity.

The action set-pieces are superbly done, including a thrilling chase through the Dartford Tunnel and a great sequence where the Ministry of Magic is infiltrated, to both comedic and exciting dramatic effect. However these set-pieces are not as frequent as in the other films with long stretches without any magic or visual effects. The reason being that at the centre of this film is the three characters and little else: by breaking the final book into two halves, the makers have been given the opportunity to use this episode to build gradually towards the finale and in doing so they can really explore the relationship between Harry, Hermione and Ron. I suspect that younger fans of the series will be disappointed and perhaps lost at the long stretches of contemplative dialogue, but in doing this, Yates and co have made a proper film. A study into teenagers growing up, adult issues of jealousy are explored, coming to terms with death and the horrible occurrences that are taking place. This really is grim stuff. We have spent 6 films with the three of them, put them through all sorts, but we get to know them more in the space of this 146 minute film that all of those put together.

The actors themselves have come a long way since being cute but annoying child actors in the Philosopher's Stone. Daniel Radcliffe is probably the weaker of the three, although he is given the worst dialogue with moany mournful lines that act as exposition. Emma Watson is turning into a very good actress. it remains to be seen whether she will continue with the craft but she plays Hermione with enthusiasm but also a sadness. One scene in particular at the beginning of the film involving her parents is particularly heartbreaking, as well as a very touching scene where Harry and Hermione dance, trying to put all the troubles to the back of their minds.  Rupert Grint is easily the most improved. Gone is the wooden, clunky delivery, he is now polished using facial expressions very proficiently to convey a frustrated teenager, struggling to understand his emotions and just wanting the quiet life. These performances have to be strong as they carry the film for the length of the substantial mid-section.

The full cast really is a who's who of British actors. Ralph Fiennes is fantastic as Voldemort, a real baddie, none of this pantomime nonsense. He really reminded me of Darth Vader with his ruthless blood lust. We are under no illusion that should Voldemort be successful, then the world will be in a lot of trouble. Helena Bonham-Carter also has great fun as the nightmarish Bellatrix Lestrange, the truly psychotic sidekick to Lord Voldemort. Plus it is always a joy to see Alan Rickman as Snape, although you don't get much of him. You can only hope he comes to the fore in the final film.

The darkness is not all about the actors though. The rise of the new Ministry smacks of the rise of fascism and it's propaganda. There are also some very tough scenes to watch that include torture, murder and pure evil. There's blood in this film, more than you would expect, and there are some properly scary moments, particularly for children. It really is not all plain sailing. As we get to the end, there is a moment that really hit me hard, proper tears let me tell you.

Ah the ending....I've heard some people call it a non-ending. The sort of cliff hanger you would have at the end of a tv

I loved this film. It really felt like a proper grown up flick, a character study, almost an art-house film. The film makers, and the cast, have done such a fine job with this film, made it with great care and good intentions, that the decision to spilt the film in two has been proved to be the right one. To have attempted to shoe-horn the final book, in it's entirety, into a 3 hour film would have meant that we would not have been taken with on the quest with Harry, Hermione and Ron and the feeling of dread as the finale approaches would not have had half the impact. This, and the decision to not make it 3D (a change of tact from the studio's original position, which must have resulted in financial loss), clearly proves that Yates and co really want to ensure that these films do the rest of series justice. They only get one shot at this.

As for the Muggles, if you've managed to resist the magic of the films and story so far, I doubt I'll be able to change your minds here. I suppose there really is no saving you.

I saw the film at the Everyman Cinema in Baker Street. First time I've been to this two-screen picture house but I'd thoroughly recommend it. Nice and comfy seats, good snacks and lovely bar to have a drink before and after. A great Central London alternative to the Sin-e-world mulitplexes.