Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1

City Paper Grade: B

by Drew Lazor

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Published: Nov 17, 2010

[ City paper Grade: B ]

The weightiest installment of the Harry Potter canon, The Deathly Hallows has sold 50 million copies since its 2007 release. The last book in J.K. Rowling's series is perhaps also her riskiest, considering it plucks our tousle-headed teen heroes out of the familiar confines of Hogwarts and drops them into numerous compromising situations — lots of camping! — designed to challenge allegiances and erode goodwill. David Yates, who's handled the last two Potter films, stays faithful to Rowling's blueprints with the first half of his finale, so Part 1's sluggish swathes should be chalked up to the realization that this is less a battle of sparkly-wand wits and more an effete college road-trip movie — just replace the smelly '95 Toyota Tercel with nifty teleportation tricks.

A fuming Harry (Daniel Radcliffe), enraged by the death of his mentor, Dumbledore, sets off on a search for the Horcruxes, soul fragments the noselessly evil Lord Voldemort (Ralph Fiennes) has hidden to ensure he never really dies. Besties Ron (Rupert Grint) and Hermione (Emma Watson) at his side, Harry traverses landscapes magical and muggle alike for a good chunk of Part 1, wearing oversize sweaters, sulking and bickering about which direction they're going.

If this sounds dull, it's because it is — 2009's Half-Blood Prince did adolescent anguish to the death, so constant cinematic reminders that the students are sensitive kids first and sorcerers second might come off redundant. Luckily, Yates orchestrates a slew of exhilarating sequences that remind us why Rowling's universe is so compelling. Whether Harry and Co. are infiltrating the Ministry of Magic's bowels disguised as bureaucratic stiffs or breaking twigs on the run from a band of bounty hunters, the adventure at the core of the Potter mythology shimmers untarnished.

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