Harry Potter & The Deathly Hollows – Part 1 (2010/Warner Blu-ray + DVD)
Picture:
A-/B Sound: A-/B Extras: B Film: B
Warner
Bros must be sweating at this point. Not
are they in struggles to keep the rights to Superman, but their Harry Potter magical well is about to
run dry…so to speak. Having been able to
stretch the last book into two parts (which was a good choice) they bought
themselves some time, but in the end all good things come to an end.
On the
eve of the last Potter film we have Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows: Part
1. In The Deathly Hollows: Part 1 we have the troubled boy wizard turning
the corner in last leg of the race against evil. All seems lost at this point, with
Voldemort’s army growing stronger by the day and now no longer in hiding they
feel invincible. It has become time for
magic folk to choose sides and as certain families fear the worst, there is no
telling who has fallen victim to darkness.
In for the fight of (and for) his life Harry and his friends set out to
find a set of magical items called Horcruxes that possess small pieces of ‘the
one who shall not be named’s’ soul. In
his plight to live forever Voldemort had split his soul and placed it into an
array of magical implements, but Harry wise to Voldemort’s scheme sets out to
destroy them before all is lost.
Concurrently as Harry sets out to destroy Voldemort, Voldemort is more
than aware of the boy wizard’s plan and strives to return the favor. As the final showdown inches closer it is
unclear who has the upper hand, but it is only fitting that this epic series
have an epic end.
The new
to Blu-ray film is absolutely amazing.
Whereas I was not impressed by the previous film Deathly Hollows brings the series back to life. Whereas the films can not stand up to the
books, some of the films have done better than others in attempting to
accomplish this impossible feat. Deathly Hollows is in the top three
films in series and I have a feeling Part
2 will do even better as it contains the darkest moments the books have to
offer.
The
transfer to Blu-ray is wonderfully rendered and is certainly demo quality. Deathly
Hollows has a very dark style on top of some very jumpy camera work, yet
the image remains steady and unwavering even through the most nauseatingly fast
paced sequences. The 16 X 9, 2.4 X 1
1080p transfer has deep, dark, inky blacks on top of brilliant splashes of
color. The image is crisp, clean and
clear as each moment is sharp and practically without flaw; though there are
certain ‘less than perfect’ moments, they are far and few. The DTS-HD Master Audio (like the picture) is
nearly without flaw. The sound is
immersing as it bellows from the speakers.
This film is all about action and suspense and this track certainly
delivers from beginning to end without missing a beat. As spells are exchanged, as walls come
crumbling down Deathly Hollows demonstrates
a soundtrack full of blasts, booms, perfect dialogue and scores that only
enhance the viewing experience.
The DVD
is nowhere near as great as the Blu-ray and with the DVD included with the
Blu-ray release I think it is a clear choice to purchase the Blu-ray above all
else.
Most of
the extras focus on the technical achievements of the film and are rather
short. There are also a couple fun features
that show the actors goofing around, but for the most part though extras were
there I felt substance was lacking. The
extras include the following:
Return to
Griphook
Creating
Dobby and Kreacher
Magical
Tent!
The Last
Days of Privet Drive
Maximum Movie
Mode
Hagrid’s
Motorbike
Seven
Harry’s
On the
Green with Rupert, Tom, Olive, and James
Dan,
Rupert, and Emma’s Running Competition
Godric’s
Hollow/The Harry and Nagini Battle
The
Frozen Lake
Additional
Scenes
Harry
Potter and the Deathly Hollows: Part 1; Soundtrack
The
Wizarding World of Harry Potter: Promo Trailer
I highly
recommend this film and whereas I don’t quite understand the ‘Blair Witch’
filming style at times it is interesting and keeps the film exciting and on the
edge.
- Michael P. Dougherty II