What I would describe as the "coldest" entry in the Harry Potter film franchise thus far, the first half of Deathly Hallows expectantly deals a lot in setting up what will be its no doubt epic conclusion; lots of running, lots of talking and lots of explaining. And while there is lots of explanation, sometimes it still manages to seem as though things are being rushed - having read the books, I know what is going on, but what with characters such as Mundungus Fletcher being introduced, or others like Fleur Delacour being reintroduced so quickly, I occasionally wonder if the casual viewer is given enough to keep up. Fenrir Greyback was given his own character poster for the film's advertising, but do non-readers even know who he is? Or that he's a werewolf?
That said, Deathly Hallows, Part I offered many more intimate character moments between the lead characters than we have seen recently; particularly with regards to Harry and Hermione. Certain scenes, such as that in the wonderfully-realised Godric's Hollow, provided a much quieter, slower tone to things. They enhanced the relationships that we have come to assume over the past ten years. Other moments that I particularly enjoyed were the opening montage of the film, depicting the trio leaving their families, and the scene towards the end in which Harry, Ron and Hermione are pursued by Death Eaters through the forest. Well done on whoever decided to omit any music in the latter; it was much more effective without.
Unfortunately the final scene of Part I (the scene I was most looking forward to from the entire book), while sad, was not given as much sentimentality as I would have liked, in part due to its relative briefness, and in part due to Alexandre Desplat's score (which was fine, but not as prominent as the music in the films that have come before). But that's just a sidenote.
While Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part I isn't among the very best in the series so far, it was still a fine film in the magical world we have become used to, breaking away from the Hogwarts and school life setting that has dominated the previous films. I loved how things seemed much more dangerous this time around, and the paler visuals and characterisation amongst the main characters made for, if anything, a great set-up for events to come. I hope Part II is as epic as it has the potential to be, and that the two films end up complementing each other well.
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