Deathly Hallows opens with the cold-blooded murder of a Muggle Studies teacher, and the bodies begin piling up from there. Harry, Ron, and Hermione (do I need to tell you who plays them?) must set out to find and destroy Horcruxes, evil objects that conceal bits of Voldemort's soul. They start under the protection of their elders, but soon set out on their own and are stranded in the English countryside with nary a clue as to what to do.
As a Harry Potter adaptation, this is the film I have been waiting for. By splitting the book in two parts (also a clever ploy to make more money), writer Steve Kloves and director David Yates are finally allowed to take their time, and really let us get to know these people that we have seen grow up before our very eyes. The movie adds scenes that aren't in the book that help deepen the characters: in the opening we see Hermione erase her parents memories and Harry and Hermione share a dance when all is bleak.
Of course, the film neglects certain details that help flesh out other characters: Lupin's reluctance to stay with Tonks is something they eliminated, though I think that is a powerful scene that forces Harry to accept the fact that he really is on his own, and can no longer rely on adults. And Kreacher's development is thrown out, as he becomes a loyal slave to Harry Potter, someone he once resented.
Otherwise, this film is basically the book, even including long passages in the second half of the trio wandering aimlessly through the woods trying to decide what to do next. As far as a Harry Potter movie is concerned, it is decidedly quiet. There are explosions and chases at the beginning, and many deaths permeate the film; but the film lives and breathes with its quieter moments, including a scene between Ron and Hermione playing a piano, and Ron's continual monitoring of the radio to hear who has died.
The reason Prisoner of Azkaban has been continually lauded as the best in the Potter series is because Alfonso Cuarón gave the film a natural pace, and it flowed as a movie would. It also changed the landscape of the Potterverse and brought the series down to darker depths. Harry Potters 1 - 2 and 4 - 6 have always had a rushed sense about them, though I feel Yates found a better sense of pace in Half-Blood Prince.
When both films are combined they will probably total five hours or so, and will be glorious retellings of a story every Potterfan loves. The only real problem with the film is its eventual and unavoidable sudden ending, but that can be forgiven as it is only half a movie. People will be frustrated because it isn't the same Potter film of the past; its a slower film, and I loved that. And it raises the expectations even higher for Harry's grand finale next July as the Battle of Hogwarts takes place. Yates has delivered introspective Potter; now, the public is hungering for epic Potter.
One final note: the film contains a beautifully animated segment telling the story of the Deathly Hallows, narrated by Emma Watson. Its these touches that help the movie succeed.
