Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part I : Movie Review


Here's a rule I'm trying on for size: Any Hollywood movie with a really long name is already completely sure of itself, and feels no need to seduce you with blunt monosyllables. Maybe all that clunky verbiage is in itself calming to a crazed fan-base, as it chews through its restraints in demented desperation; think "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull" or "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King" or "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl." (For every rule there must be an exception, and therewith I give you "Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World," launching pad for a franchise that was not to be.)

That brings us to "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1," which embodies both the title-stretching and episode-stretching tendencies of megabucks movie franchises. The seventh and last volume in J.K. Rowling's series of best-selling fantasy novels has been split in half for Hollywood purposes, making this long, dour, impressive and handsome motion picture the penultimate chapter, largely designed to build up the heavy-duty suspense before the climax is delivered next year. It's difficult to know what to tell you about "HP7.5," as bloggers and Twitter denizens have dubbed it, since the population of the world is largely divided between those who must see it at the earliest opportunity and those who couldn't be dragged by a team of horses.


See www.salon.com for full review

Author : Andrew O'Hehir