The colors have faded. The world has turned bleak, and the magic has darkened.

The shadows that began to encroach upon Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix have taken over Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part One. Gone are the vibrant colors of the first three Harry Potter movies, along with the childhood and the innocence of its characters. Their world is now under direct siege, and with war raging around them and casualties falling left and right, Harry, Ron and Hermione have to face responsibility as adults, for there is now no one to rescue them but themselves.

The film holds few surprises for those who are familiar with the saga, for it hews surprisingly close to the essence of the last Harry Potter book. Yet even while we expect what is to happen next, we are still astonished by how it is done, and by how what our imaginations conjured up while we read the book still pales beside how the events play out on film. The bleached out colors, darkening around the edges, translates fairly well into an ambiance of menace and make us feel that hope is all but lost. Yet the knowledge that we already possess of the events that transpire in the book make us look forward to Part Two and anticipate that all will be well and that the sun will shine and the bright colors return in the end.

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Personal note (and possible spoiler alert)

Okay, I just had to write the above review that way, because the movie was crying out for it. So much for my formal review, now comes the informal part. I am really curious as to how the movie was directed and edited, because I loved the way it turned out. How do you achieve that bleached out, dark, sort of overexposed-film effect?

The kids have grown up and are finding out the really hard way that life really isn't fair but you have to keep fighting just the same. The friendship between the three is highlighted really well, especially Harry and Hermione. There are tears and laughter, tension and calm, sweet and bitter, humor and pathos. I have to go back and watch the other Harry Potter movies in this context, but I keep feeling this is the best movie of the lot so far in the way it draws you in and makes you feel.

My best friend, with whom I watched the movie, said she liked most the way the tale of the deathly hallows was presented, and that it reminded her a bit of Battle Realms. I myself thought the monochrome effects were reminiscent of Chinese and Japanese paintings. Beautiful!

I'm a bit disappointed that they didn't include one of my favorite parts in the book, what happens when Harry finds his parents' house, and that the events in Godric's Hollow were sort of streamlined, but I guess they had to make a lot of cuts in the film, as it was already two and a half hours long!

Heavy-drama movies don't make me cry, but surprisingly, this one did (and you would probably know
why and at what part). I am really, really looking forward to Part Two, and I hope it lives up to the promise shown by Part One. Why such a long wait, why? It better be worthwhile!