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Don't remember what made me think of it this morning, but I was once again mulling over the fact that we're down to the last two Harry Potter movies. As you probably know if you care about this at all, they split Deathly Hallows in half. It was with some sadness that I realized I wasn't looking forward to either one...
The first half of Deathly Hallows was, as far as I'm concerned, boring and frustrating. Our heroes wander the countryside, desperately wanting to do something to save the world but having no idea how to actually go about it. So they hide, doing nothing. Every once in a while, they run across someone who could potentially help them. But no! Dumbledore, the man who brought them all to the brink of global disaster by hiding too many secrets, told them that they have to keep their mission a secret. So, faced with someone who should be trustworthy, who knows a lot more than they do, and could actually aid them in their search... they run away and hide. Huddled in a tent in the middle of nowhere, they fret over how they're lost and helpless and running out of hope and have no idea what to do and clearly need help. And then they find someone who could, perhaps, help. And they run away. Again. Lather, rinse repeat. For over 400 pages.
How the heck are they going to turn that into a watchable movie? It would take a miracle.
Speaking of miracles, there's the second half of the book. Action! Finally! There is screaming and chaos and violence and danger and excitement and death. Quite possibly too much of it. Everything that was missing from the incredibly dull first half of the book is squeezed into the second half. And then...
Harry understands what he must do. He steps out into the clearing. A holy light shines down from above. He stands, unafraid, and willingly, peacefully sacrifices himself to save the world. And so he dies.
But! By that very action, his soul is made pure. And because of his noble sacrifice, he is given a unique opportunity. He is resurrected, and that gives him and all who are good a burst of hope and magical power. The world is delivered from evil.
Somehow, that story seems familiar. I can't quite put my finger on it. Something to do with that giant chocolate bunny I saw in the store window a couple days ago? No, couldn't be. Don't know what brought that to mind. Still, it seems like I should know, that I've heard that story before... Hmm...
The first half of Deathly Hallows was, as far as I'm concerned, boring and frustrating. Our heroes wander the countryside, desperately wanting to do something to save the world but having no idea how to actually go about it. So they hide, doing nothing. Every once in a while, they run across someone who could potentially help them. But no! Dumbledore, the man who brought them all to the brink of global disaster by hiding too many secrets, told them that they have to keep their mission a secret. So, faced with someone who should be trustworthy, who knows a lot more than they do, and could actually aid them in their search... they run away and hide. Huddled in a tent in the middle of nowhere, they fret over how they're lost and helpless and running out of hope and have no idea what to do and clearly need help. And then they find someone who could, perhaps, help. And they run away. Again. Lather, rinse repeat. For over 400 pages.
How the heck are they going to turn that into a watchable movie? It would take a miracle.
Speaking of miracles, there's the second half of the book. Action! Finally! There is screaming and chaos and violence and danger and excitement and death. Quite possibly too much of it. Everything that was missing from the incredibly dull first half of the book is squeezed into the second half. And then...
Harry understands what he must do. He steps out into the clearing. A holy light shines down from above. He stands, unafraid, and willingly, peacefully sacrifices himself to save the world. And so he dies.
But! By that very action, his soul is made pure. And because of his noble sacrifice, he is given a unique opportunity. He is resurrected, and that gives him and all who are good a burst of hope and magical power. The world is delivered from evil.
Somehow, that story seems familiar. I can't quite put my finger on it. Something to do with that giant chocolate bunny I saw in the store window a couple days ago? No, couldn't be. Don't know what brought that to mind. Still, it seems like I should know, that I've heard that story before... Hmm...
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From:
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I'm probably going to sound very cocky there, but I think the direction I had followed with my post HBP fic was much better
Not cocky to me. I've no doubt you're right.
And yes, the setting is different. As is the ending, I suppose. Still... it was a big much for my tastes.
Not sure what they'd add to the book to make it into two movies. The book is fairly big, and the previous 6 movies have gone long while still cutting out huge chunks of the books.
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True, it was a bit much. DH had potential to be so much better, in general. I think JKR got bored with the series, or rushed, or something. Who knows.
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Re: reposted for icon
As for JKR... I don't know. She has a good style. Flowing prose that just draws you along. A real talent for bringing things to life. But I think that sometimes covers up a weakness in plot construction.
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Then again, it might have been a matter of circumstance - as in, which books I read in which language and in which order. Dunno.
It was always the plot that intrigued me, though, which is why I was so disappointed by the last couple of books. The plot had always been complicated and unexpected, but the unexpected turns in the last couple of books (especially the last one) felt... cheap.