First of all, I was definitely pleased with this adaptation. I think the decision to split the book into two films was the right one, and if I had more faith in the attention span of my fellow human beings I would suggest that it should have been done from Goblet of Fire onwards.
Secondly, NEEDS MOAR SNAPE AND BELLATRIX. If I didn't know how important they are in the second half of the book, I would feel a little short-changed. The few scenes they did get were excellent though.
I thought all the scenes in Malfoy Manor were done well, actually. A happy Voldemort is a scary Voldemort. I thought the tone was just at the right level of creepy, and the actors did an incredible job. Jason Isaacs was brilliant at showing us all how Lucius Malfoy is gradually falling apart. And while I'm on the subject of Death Eaters, I just have to say one thing: Why are they all either hideous or 'get-in-my-bed-now' attractive? I shouldn't be getting all flustered watching Harry Potter.
I do have one genuine problem with the way they're portrayed though, and that's the costuming. I really do love these villains (and not necessarily in that way) and I love the way they're dressed - if I could dress like Bellatrix every day, I would - but I find it quite hard to reconcile that with my own life in some ways. I'm quite gothy in the way I dress, and many of my male friends have long hair. With the addition of the Snatchers wearing leather coats and Scabior's rockstar-pirate get-up, I feel like there's now a bit too much of a 'people who look weird will hurt you' vibe. So many metalheads, goths and general black-clad types get hassle every day because people assume we're Nazis or school shooters for wearing the things we do. I'd prefer it if it wasn't encouraged. I don't want people to assume my boyfriend and I are racists because the two of us have long dark hair and wear stompy boots.
On the plus side, the cinematography and soundtrack were beautiful, as usual.
The Trio have improved so much too. Rupert Grint was always good when given the chance to shine, but in this film Daniel Radcliffe and Emma Watson finally seemed like they were Harry and Hermione instead of just playing pretend. The improvement is huge, and this leads me onto the controversial moment in the film. The dancing sequence, where Harry tries to cheer Hermione up after Ron leaves, was hilariously awkward. As much as I giggled though, I think it was genuinely meant to be clumsy and horrible. The actors did a great job there, and this time I'm fairly sure it was deliberate. We all know Harry and Hermione are hopeless at anything social - that it's Ron holding the group together because of his experience interacting with all those other Weasleys - and to actually see that becoming totally natural for the actors was great.
I wasn't so keen on the announcement of Moody's death; it felt rushed to me, like people didn't really care about him, rather than just being abrupt.
As for the locket scene... Merlin's beard, that was awful. Acting? Great. I love Rupert Grint forever. Special effects? Meh. I understand that it wasn't meant to look exactly real, but the effects made Emma Watson look completely alien. It was creepy, and not in the way I wanted it to be. I thought it should have been more realistic in order for it to be believable that Ron would be so disturbed.
Gosh, I'm complaining a lot. I shouldn't be though, because this really is the best adaptation so far. I spent much of the film with my mouth hanging open, thinking about how shiny it all was, and I didn't cringe every time Daniel Radcliffe opened his mouth. Honestly, I can hardly wait for Part II. I don't know how I can hold on for the next nearly-eight-months, even though I know exactly what's going to happen and that I will spend the whole thing crying even harder than I do when the Doctor regenerates.
Augh, seriously. I feel like this review is kind of mean, but I really did like it. Please believe me! I'm British, I can't help but complain ;)
