Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
Nov. 21st, 2010 09:57 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
lizbeeSaw it last night with baggers and indeed. This was especially nifty has baggers had only read the first third of the book, so once the tent was up, she was in totally new territory.
We did make two mistakes, and since I booked the tickets, I'm responsible for both:
1. We saw it at Northlands, suburbialand, in the early evening on a Saturday night...
2. ...in the smaller, cheaper cinema with no leg room, inadequate air conditioning, a worryingly sticky floor and a peculiar smell.
So we were uncomfortable and surrounded by children and teenagers. Including five teenage girls behind us who talked loudly through the whole thing and very badly needed a smack.
The actual movie:
I loved the book,including especially the camping scenes, and I was really happy with this adaptation. Splitting it into two movies was perfect, and although the first half of the book doesn't fit neatly into the traditional three-act movie structure, the pacing was still okay.
One thing -- or three things -- that particularly impressed me were the trio. In fairness, it's been a few movies since DanRad's hilarious emo acting or Emma Watson's eyebrow acting, but this was the first time they all seemed both natural and relaxed. Well, Emma Watson's still brittle, but obviously that really works here, and she relaxed at the right moments.
Curiously, despite the addition of a few things -- OMG HARRY AND HERMIONE PLATONICALLY DANCING TO NICK CAVE. NICK CAVE! NONE OF THE REVIEWS MENTIONED THAT HERMIONE HAD TUNED TO RADIO EMO! -- and the exposition required here and here (much of which, in fairness, was from the book. "Hey, Harry, here's the Trace that's affected you for the last six years but no one bothered to actually name or explain!") this adaptation felt really true to the book, in the best way. Obviously a lot of stuff had to be cut -- the redemption of Kreacher and scenes of domestic harmony at Grimmauld Place don't really translate to film -- but this felt a lot smoother than in previous films.
Also, Ron's visions of Harry/Hermione sexytiems looked an awful lot like Twilight. Yes, I lolled. A lot.
Great things aboutbaggers not having read the whole book: she had no idea that Dobby was going to die. So he turned up, and she was all like, "Yay, Dobby!" and then he died heroically. OH GOD, DOBBY, I HAVE SOMETHING IN MY EYE AGAIN.
Have to say, they've really improved the House Elf design and animation since CoS. Dobby and Kreacher both looked almost real, and Dobby was actually funny this time around. "Not kill, Mistress! Maim, or seriously injure!"
The following people were jolly good, and no one would have expected anything less: Ralph Fiennes, Alan Rickman, Jason Isaacs, Helena Bonham Carter. Although, I don't know what Snape's been doing since HBP, but though he looked gaunt in the face, his hair was amazing.
And Tom Felton was quite good, helped by the fact that he had next to no dialogue.
...right now, my next door neighbour is having a really loud orgasm. And there's an alley, a fence and a brick wall between her house and ours. O_O
Right, a cup of tea later and things have quieted down.
Do I have any more reactions? Um, no? Only, is it time for part 2 yet? And dammit, where did I put my copy of that Nick Cave CD?
(If people are wondering, the song Harry and Hermione dance to is O Children, the final track on The Lyre of Orpheus. Because songs about Orpheus committing suicide are, um, well, no, that does totally fit the mood here. Carry on!)
baggers and indeed. This was especially nifty has baggers had only read the first third of the book, so once the tent was up, she was in totally new territory.We did make two mistakes, and since I booked the tickets, I'm responsible for both:
1. We saw it at Northlands, suburbialand, in the early evening on a Saturday night...
2. ...in the smaller, cheaper cinema with no leg room, inadequate air conditioning, a worryingly sticky floor and a peculiar smell.
So we were uncomfortable and surrounded by children and teenagers. Including five teenage girls behind us who talked loudly through the whole thing and very badly needed a smack.
The actual movie:
I loved the book,
One thing -- or three things -- that particularly impressed me were the trio. In fairness, it's been a few movies since DanRad's hilarious emo acting or Emma Watson's eyebrow acting, but this was the first time they all seemed both natural and relaxed. Well, Emma Watson's still brittle, but obviously that really works here, and she relaxed at the right moments.
Curiously, despite the addition of a few things -- OMG HARRY AND HERMIONE PLATONICALLY DANCING TO NICK CAVE. NICK CAVE! NONE OF THE REVIEWS MENTIONED THAT HERMIONE HAD TUNED TO RADIO EMO! -- and the exposition required here and here (much of which, in fairness, was from the book. "Hey, Harry, here's the Trace that's affected you for the last six years but no one bothered to actually name or explain!") this adaptation felt really true to the book, in the best way. Obviously a lot of stuff had to be cut -- the redemption of Kreacher and scenes of domestic harmony at Grimmauld Place don't really translate to film -- but this felt a lot smoother than in previous films.
Also, Ron's visions of Harry/Hermione sexytiems looked an awful lot like Twilight. Yes, I lolled. A lot.
Great things about
baggers not having read the whole book: she had no idea that Dobby was going to die. So he turned up, and she was all like, "Yay, Dobby!" and then he died heroically. OH GOD, DOBBY, I HAVE SOMETHING IN MY EYE AGAIN.Have to say, they've really improved the House Elf design and animation since CoS. Dobby and Kreacher both looked almost real, and Dobby was actually funny this time around. "Not kill, Mistress! Maim, or seriously injure!"
The following people were jolly good, and no one would have expected anything less: Ralph Fiennes, Alan Rickman, Jason Isaacs, Helena Bonham Carter. Although, I don't know what Snape's been doing since HBP, but though he looked gaunt in the face, his hair was amazing.
And Tom Felton was quite good, helped by the fact that he had next to no dialogue.
...right now, my next door neighbour is having a really loud orgasm. And there's an alley, a fence and a brick wall between her house and ours. O_O
Right, a cup of tea later and things have quieted down.
Do I have any more reactions? Um, no? Only, is it time for part 2 yet? And dammit, where did I put my copy of that Nick Cave CD?
(If people are wondering, the song Harry and Hermione dance to is O Children, the final track on The Lyre of Orpheus. Because songs about Orpheus committing suicide are, um, well, no, that does totally fit the mood here. Carry on!)
no subject
Date: 2010-11-21 01:50 am (UTC)But hey, I loved the film. I just need to see it with fewer children.
no subject
Date: 2010-11-21 03:15 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-11-21 09:43 am (UTC)I was with a lot of parents who'd incorrectly assumed it was for very young children. The four-year-old next to me spent half of the movie asking what was going on, and the other half getting upset about Hedwig and Dobby dying.
Also, Ron's visions of Harry/Hermione sexytiems looked an awful lot like Twilight. Yes, I lolled. A lot.
I just kept thinking "Voldemort's a Harmonian!" Because the whole "What, like Ron's good enough for Hermione? Harry's the Chosen One, so therefore a better prize!" thing is very Harmonian.
(Incidentally, the Radio Emo scene actually made me realize I could see Harry/Hermione when it wasn't being portrayed in badfic. Unlike the fic I've seen, it was an actual moment of "He cares about her and he gets how to make her happy, and they enjoy each other's company". That doesn't equal romantic attraction, and I'm not shipping anything in the fandom, but it was interesting how many hard-core shippers never actually managed moments like that.)
Great things about [personal profile] baggers not having read the whole book: she had no idea that Dobby was going to die. So he turned up, and she was all like, "Yay, Dobby!" and then he died heroically. OH GOD, DOBBY, I HAVE SOMETHING IN MY EYE AGAIN.
Oh, Dobby! That was heartbreaking! That stuff about people discovering freedom tends to get to me anyway (I'm odd - romance rarely does much for me in fiction, but cliches related to justice and liberation just melt me), and I wanted to pick him up and cuddle him forever and make him a statue with the words "Dobby - Free Elf" on it, and tell future generations of house-elves about the great hero Dobby and how he defied the oppressors and saved Harry Potter and brought freedom to them all!
Although, I don't know what Snape's been doing since HBP, but though he looked gaunt in the face, his hair was amazing.
Voldemort tested his loyalty by forcing him to spend a week in a hair salon.
no subject
Date: 2010-11-21 10:06 am (UTC)GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR! It's like people don't even bother to Wiki things, let alone read reviews! Like the woman who took her 8-year-old to a Lady Gaga concert in Sydney, then complained it was too sexual.
I roll my eyes a lot at my parents' habit of monitoring what I watched and read, and occasionally saying, "This episode's not appropriate, we'll let you know when you can watch this show again", but at least they made the effort!
"(Incidentally, the Radio Emo scene actually made me realize I could see Harry/Hermione when it wasn't being portrayed in badfic. Unlike the fic I've seen, it was an actual moment of "He cares about her and he gets how to make her happy, and they enjoy each other's company". That doesn't equal romantic attraction, and I'm not shipping anything in the fandom, but it was interesting how many hard-core shippers never actually managed moments like that.)"
Yes! I'm the same with Zuko/Katara in Avatar; under different circumstances, I could totally see it being a relationship I'd be interested in. And I've always loved the friendship between Harry and Hermione, and been a wee bit put out that people see the need to make it romantic. They already love each other!
"Voldemort tested his loyalty by forcing him to spend a week in a hair salon."
The Dark Lord demands volumiser!
no subject
Date: 2010-11-21 11:57 am (UTC)Yeah. If it had been a ten-year-old, I'd have assumed it was a mature kid, but a four-year-old?
Then again, my parents were letting me watch R-rated movies at five (mostly Monty Python). But they did it at home where they could talk the kids through the confusing stuff without bothering other patrons.
My parents were kind of weird. My dad kept reading The Hobbit to us until we figured it out (at eight, I grabbed a copy from the library and went "This seems familiar"). And I read Macbeth in elementary school because my mom explained that I was like MacDuff with the "not of woman born" thing. I could recite the whole witch speech from memory.
Yes! I'm the same with Zuko/Katara in Avatar; under different circumstances, I could totally see it being a relationship I'd be interested in
Exactly! It was mostly surprising that there was actual potential in there, because I was so used to seeing it so badly presented.
no subject
Date: 2010-11-21 12:54 pm (UTC)...right now, my next door neighbour is having a really loud orgasm. And there's an alley, a fence and a brick wall between her house and ours."
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
however, it may also have been coming from my bedroom. er, by which i mean, the show i am currently watching is full of sex.
no subject
Date: 2010-11-21 02:08 pm (UTC)I thought he was really good in the scene where Charity Burbage is murdered - the mixture of being absolutely horrified, and too terrified to show it was very convincing.
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Date: 2010-11-22 11:06 pm (UTC)I'd only read the book once, when it came out, and didn't get my reread in on time, so there were lots and lots of details that had slipped my mind and I wasn't at all prepared to note any changes made from the book. I'm just as glad to have it that way, though -- I find it's easier to enjoy both the original book and the movie later made from it if I see the movie first and then go back to the book. And in this case, having seen the first half of the story onscreen, I get to go on to reread the rest of the story and not be left hanging.