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OK, That's hyperbole, I should be over noting all the little changes between the movie versions and the book. But I'm not. And it still drives me mad. Random bitching ahead folks!
Maybe it was because I hadn't seen part 1 just before hand. maybe it was because the cinema was more crowded than usual even toward the end of the film's second week and I was not in my usual back of the cinema seat with room to stretch my feet into the isle but HP8 failed to impress me.
The start seemed really clunky to me. It's starting in the middle of a tale and it really shows. The necessary exposition seems shoehorned in. Olivander for example, has the remind was the three Hallows are really like. One thing I really remember liking the book was that Ollivander believed in 'the deathstick'. the amazing invincible wand but still treated the Hallows as a silly fairy tale.
I've just come back from this and was writing stream of consciousness style and suddenly my minds gone completely blank.
So I'll focus on the canon purist rage thing. Now yes, they have to change things. In earlier movies they had to cut alot. This one didn't suffer from that as much since they were forcing us to pay twice to get the whole story. So the changes are more noticeable and less excusable. Now some are the result of the need for exposition and to explain the story. Those I get.
The ones that annoy me are where they've changed something for no good reason I can see. Take Snape's memories for example, leaving aside the fact he seemed to be remembering things he wasn't present for, they changed Lily from levitating from a swing (and awesome image) to levitating a paltry flower. This is better... why?
Neville seems a big victim of this. The film version has like a tenth of the awesome he had in the book. They gloss over his facial scars and standing up to the Carrows and leading Dumbledore's Army.
And they absolutely ruin the scene between him and Voldemort. In the book, Voldemort genuine seems to respect Neville as a pureblood and a brave person that he could use on his side. In the film we get schoolyard mockery of him. In the book Voldemort gives a great speech about abolishing the houses, in the film, Neville gives the standard hollywood speech about people not dying if we remember them.
I hate that speech. In the book Neville was succinct. He'd never join Voldemort. Dumbledore's Army! And then he chopped off Nagini's head. One stroke. Instantly. And that worked. That was badass. They have the sense to get rid of Harry's long monologue and then make a new one for Neville to say?
As for the finale fight a couple of things: Harry's seemed to be blocking green flashes in the final fight; ie) blocking the unblockable curse. And second there's no uses of the invisibility cloak. So one of the Deathly Hallows, the title objects go completely unused in the finale.
As ever, I really hate the wizard fight style the went with. For the most part it doesn't feel... magical. They could be using ray guns and forcefield shields in place of wands and the effects could be the same.
It's petty but I miss the line where McGonagell assures Harry they'll be able to buy him some time because 'the teachers do know something about magic you know.'
Ok bitching over. I should at least pay lip service to things I liked. Some of the preamble to the fight was good. The Twins. And Lupin and Tonks reaching out for each other but not being able to reach... and then their corpses are mirroring that reaching motion. Hellena Bonham-Carter doing the vulnerable Hermione act was great.
I dislike the fights but i do like that while McGonagell's fighting Snape the two Carrows get blasted away like they were nothing. It's good because it shows how much less badass they are than McGonagell and because its Snape's defense that deflects the shots that take them down at them. Snape, The secret good guy, is helping to take them out while still maintaining his cover.
Both the King's Cross scenes are great. Though dead!Dumbledore made me think of nothing so much as Gandalf The White. But I like Gambon's deleivery of the line 'of course this is happening in your head but why ever should that mean It's not real?'
And the nineteen years later.. they managed to slim that down to the very essence of the scene; Harry's bond with his son and imparting the same lessons about choice that Dumbledore taught him.
I'll probably like this film alot better on a rewatch, knowing what they've done to it. I usually do. Plus watching it on DVD will mean full footroom and snacks that won't explode all over my jeans or spill all over the floor and under the chairs in front.
Sadly I don't think its inspired my writings. Although the bit with Harry crawling through the battle ruined hogwarts towards his wand. does mirror something I already had in mind for the INJS Battle Of Hogwarts.
PS. I keep trying to end this post and more things pop to mind: Is movie!Lavender dead? We see Hermione blast Fenrir off a savaged person and definitely Trewlany and perhaps Parvarti were draping a blanket over a dead person after the first half of the battle. And is Harry using Draco's wand permanently in filmverse? He destroyed the elderwand without repairing the phoenix wand.
Maybe it was because I hadn't seen part 1 just before hand. maybe it was because the cinema was more crowded than usual even toward the end of the film's second week and I was not in my usual back of the cinema seat with room to stretch my feet into the isle but HP8 failed to impress me.
The start seemed really clunky to me. It's starting in the middle of a tale and it really shows. The necessary exposition seems shoehorned in. Olivander for example, has the remind was the three Hallows are really like. One thing I really remember liking the book was that Ollivander believed in 'the deathstick'. the amazing invincible wand but still treated the Hallows as a silly fairy tale.
I've just come back from this and was writing stream of consciousness style and suddenly my minds gone completely blank.
So I'll focus on the canon purist rage thing. Now yes, they have to change things. In earlier movies they had to cut alot. This one didn't suffer from that as much since they were forcing us to pay twice to get the whole story. So the changes are more noticeable and less excusable. Now some are the result of the need for exposition and to explain the story. Those I get.
The ones that annoy me are where they've changed something for no good reason I can see. Take Snape's memories for example, leaving aside the fact he seemed to be remembering things he wasn't present for, they changed Lily from levitating from a swing (and awesome image) to levitating a paltry flower. This is better... why?
Neville seems a big victim of this. The film version has like a tenth of the awesome he had in the book. They gloss over his facial scars and standing up to the Carrows and leading Dumbledore's Army.
And they absolutely ruin the scene between him and Voldemort. In the book, Voldemort genuine seems to respect Neville as a pureblood and a brave person that he could use on his side. In the film we get schoolyard mockery of him. In the book Voldemort gives a great speech about abolishing the houses, in the film, Neville gives the standard hollywood speech about people not dying if we remember them.
I hate that speech. In the book Neville was succinct. He'd never join Voldemort. Dumbledore's Army! And then he chopped off Nagini's head. One stroke. Instantly. And that worked. That was badass. They have the sense to get rid of Harry's long monologue and then make a new one for Neville to say?
As for the finale fight a couple of things: Harry's seemed to be blocking green flashes in the final fight; ie) blocking the unblockable curse. And second there's no uses of the invisibility cloak. So one of the Deathly Hallows, the title objects go completely unused in the finale.
As ever, I really hate the wizard fight style the went with. For the most part it doesn't feel... magical. They could be using ray guns and forcefield shields in place of wands and the effects could be the same.
It's petty but I miss the line where McGonagell assures Harry they'll be able to buy him some time because 'the teachers do know something about magic you know.'
Ok bitching over. I should at least pay lip service to things I liked. Some of the preamble to the fight was good. The Twins. And Lupin and Tonks reaching out for each other but not being able to reach... and then their corpses are mirroring that reaching motion. Hellena Bonham-Carter doing the vulnerable Hermione act was great.
I dislike the fights but i do like that while McGonagell's fighting Snape the two Carrows get blasted away like they were nothing. It's good because it shows how much less badass they are than McGonagell and because its Snape's defense that deflects the shots that take them down at them. Snape, The secret good guy, is helping to take them out while still maintaining his cover.
Both the King's Cross scenes are great. Though dead!Dumbledore made me think of nothing so much as Gandalf The White. But I like Gambon's deleivery of the line 'of course this is happening in your head but why ever should that mean It's not real?'
And the nineteen years later.. they managed to slim that down to the very essence of the scene; Harry's bond with his son and imparting the same lessons about choice that Dumbledore taught him.
I'll probably like this film alot better on a rewatch, knowing what they've done to it. I usually do. Plus watching it on DVD will mean full footroom and snacks that won't explode all over my jeans or spill all over the floor and under the chairs in front.
Sadly I don't think its inspired my writings. Although the bit with Harry crawling through the battle ruined hogwarts towards his wand. does mirror something I already had in mind for the INJS Battle Of Hogwarts.
PS. I keep trying to end this post and more things pop to mind: Is movie!Lavender dead? We see Hermione blast Fenrir off a savaged person and definitely Trewlany and perhaps Parvarti were draping a blanket over a dead person after the first half of the battle. And is Harry using Draco's wand permanently in filmverse? He destroyed the elderwand without repairing the phoenix wand.
