HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS PART 2 TWO-DISC SPECIAL EDITION DVD (2011)
SYNOPSIS: In the epic finale, the battle between the good and evil forces of the wizarding world escalates into an all-out war. The stakes have never been higher and no one is safe. But it is Harry who may be called upon to make the ultimate sacrifice as he draws closer to the climactic showdown with Lord Voldemort. It all ends here.
MOVIE REVIEW:
After spanning a decade with seven successful movies, the Harry Potter saga finally came to an end with “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2”.
With Voldemort retrieving the Elder Wand from Dumbledore’s grave at the end of part 1, the trio (that is Harry, Ron and Hermione) decides to break into Gringotts bank suspecting that a Horcrux might be hidden there. Realising that there might be another Horcrux hidden at Hogwarts, the trio make their way to the school only to be confront by Snape with the Death Eaters and the Dark Lord waiting for the big showdown.
The movie wastes no time unravelling the many action pieces after the slower-paced part 1. In fact, the 130 minutes hardly paused for a breather with one battle following another. A Harry Potter movie simply can’t do without magical creatures and a huge dragon appears here giving our protagonists a lift out of danger within the first act. “Deathly Hallows 2” in a way served as a summarisation of the whole franchise from magical creatures, spells, objects, ghostly beings to the wizards. Director David Yates and regular series screenwriter Steve Kloves did a marvellous job reminding the audience what the series have brought to the audience for the past years yet putting their final touches to the finale.
Although the script is wonderfully crafted and supposedly approved by J.K. Rowling herself, chunks of subplots and characters are left unexplained even though Yates invited many of cast members from the past instalments for cameos. While obviously it’s hard to condense the original novel for the movie, I personally thought more time can be dedicated to the more familiar characters. Characters that I shall not name who met their untimely demised.
Ralph Fiennes is spectacular as Lord Voldemort, ever since his debut appearance in “Goblet of Fire”, he has never been given the chance to shine until now. The British thespian is amazingly electrifying, same goes to Alan Rickman for his portrayal of Severus Snape, a character that will surprise you if you have not been a Harry Potter avid reader. Their younger cast members, Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, Emma Watson have emerged victorious for their performances including Matthew Lewis as Neville Longbottom who received a major portion of screentime.
Accolades to production designer Stuart Craig for his eye for detail and workmanship, the battle at the Room for Requirement for example is engaging partly for the physical props which are accumulated over the years for the Harry Potter movies. The meticulous craftsmanship, wondrous CG effects all played a part in creating this swansong.
This generation of lightsaber duels come in the forms of magic wands as wizards fought against the evil death eaters. When Harry, Ron and Hermione bid farewell to their own kids 19 years later on the platform of 9¾ in the epilogue, we can’t help but feels a tinge of sadness as we say goodbye to the magical series that enchants us all for a good 10 years.
SPECIAL FEATURES:
Focus Points consists of several short featurettes including “Aberforth Dumbledore," "Deathly Hallows Costume Changes," "Harry Returns to Hogwarts," "The Hogwarts Shield," "The Room of Requirement Set," "The Fiery Escape," "Neville's Stand" and "Molly and Bellatrix." Running at 29 minutes, it offers insight to makeup, costume design, stunts, cast interviews and more.
When Harry Left Hogwarts is a tremendously well-done behind-the-scenes featurette shot by Morgan Matthews. Running at a whopping 48 minutes, it is humourous, detailed and emotionally wrenching to see the cast and crew wrapping things up after a decade of shooting the series.
We take a closer look at how the little people put on their makeup and shoot for the bank scene in The Goblins of Gringotts.
J.K. Rowling, Emma Watson and Bonnie Wright discuss about the various female characters featured in the movies in the 22 minutes feature, The Women of Harry Potter.
8 Deleted Scenes are included here for your viewing pleasure though most of them are just brief moments that it doesn’t matter much if they are left intact or on the cutting floor.
Warner Bros. Studio Tour London is a promo reel touting the Harry Potter studio tour that is coming up in spring 2012.
Introduced by Rowling herself, Pottermore is another promo reel about the newly launched Harry Potter online website.
AUDIO/VISUAL:
Despite it being a very dark movie with mostly gray shades and a washed out palette, images remain detailed and images crisp and sharp. The climactic battle sounds incredible on the Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack. Dialogue and ambient effects are smooth and impressive.
MOVIE RATING:
DVD RATING :
Review by Linus Tee
