As shared a few days ago, the New York Red Carpet event leading up to the American premiere of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows on November 15th is going to be live streamed online for all the witches/wizards (or muggles) stuck at home.
However, instead of the single stream that came from London this past Thursday, the New York event will have at least FOUR different sites streaming at the same time! AP Live, MTV, E! Online, and PopSugar TV, have revealed their plans to stream from the red carpet. Each will bring a interviews from the cast and crew as they arrive for the premier.
The event takes place Monday, November 15th starting at 3pm PST/6pm EST. The E! Online stream can be found HERE.
The AP Live stream can be found HERE! You can also find it embedded at the bottom of this post!The MTV live stream can be found HERE.
E! Online (follow @redcarpet) and MTV (follow @MTV) have encouraged twitter users to tweet questions for the cast and crew. To tweet to E!, just ask them directly by tweeting @redcarpet and for MTV, use the hashtag #askPotter.
Of the cast, we know that at least Emma Watson, Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, Ralph Fienes, and Tom Felton are slated to attend the New York premiere. Director David Yates will also be there. Other cast members are flying around the world for the various country premieres. James and Oliver Phelps are currently in Taiwan’s for the November 16th premiere, while Mark Williams, Clémence Poésy, Evanna Lynch, and Warwick Davis are all set to attend the French premiere with the twins on November 22nd. Bonnie Wright and Rupert Grint will be at the Japanese event.
Be sure to check out the sites listed previously for coverage, pictures, interviews, and other goodies from the various premieres!
Here is the AP Live LIVESTREAM. Remember, coverage for the Red Carpet will begin at 3 pm PST/6pm EST/ 11pm GST(UK). (Be sure to un-mute the player) Vodpod videos no longer available.
As the event is occurring, I will also be live tweeting pictures from the streams (thank you, Mac screengrab function) with quotes. If you’re at work, in class, or have some other unfortunate even that prevents you from watching the live streams, check them out! I’ll try to bring the best from all the streams. If you’d like to see the pics from the London live-stream, check out my twitpic page.
Warner Brothers released nine new TV spots for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows earlier today. Each is only about 30 seconds long, but all are chocked full of new footage . From the kiss with Ginny and Harry to the anticipated “Seven Potters in a Bra” scene, these trailers are a perfect appetizer for the movie.
For the first time in the trailers, we can experience some of Rowling’s classic humor. Unforgettable lines such as Fleur’s, “Don’t look at me! I’m hideous” and the twin’s “Look! We’re identical!” weren’t thrown out by screenwriters. In fact, these new trailers bring to light the writers and producer’s commitment to maintaining accuracy with the book; most of the dialogue present in trailers is identical to that of the book.
Quite conversely, however, a few of these focus on the darkness, terror, and despair in these books. We see clearly for the first time the whip Bellatrix uses on Hermione; we hear for the first time the infamous “Nagini – dinner” line; we feel the absolute desperation of Xenophilius and the choice he makes; we find ourselves chilled to the bone at the sight of dementors swarming through the Ministry.
Don’t have time to watch all nine? Here are the three you have to watch. (And tell me, then, that you resisted going and watching the rest).
TV Spot #7:
Can you spot: Harry running on a trolly? Hagrid and his turbo button? Dobby with Olivander and Luna at Malfoy Mannor?
Today, Chicago was the place most Harry Potter fans wanted to be.
Earlier today, Warner Brothers aired a test screening of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part I for a theatre full of lucky people! In attendance were director David Yates and producer David Heyman. The purpose of the test screenings is to gage “audience” reactions; the film shown is rarely the finished product. This was the case with Deathly Hallows, which lacked the actual musical score and still had a few special effect touch-ups to make.
Aside from the occasional green-screen though, fans who were in attendance have been sending in their reviews of Deathly Hallows to fansites around the Potterweb. Following is a compilation of many different fan reviews. I started out writing a “non-spoiler” and “spoiler” separated post, but soon realized that there is just too much to spoil…so I say it now: SPOILER ALERT. If you are one of those fans who prefers to be surprised (all power to you, I can’t do it!) or simply someone who has not yet read the book – turn back now. However, if you are like me, and just cannot wait – read on fellow fans, read on!
Please remember, these reviews are not mine (and neither are their opinions). The reviews are taken from mugglenet.com, snitchseeker.com, and The Leaky Cauldron.com. Be aware, it would stand to reason that these fans (having submitted their reviews to HP fansites) are already Harry Potter fans; non-fans may have different reviews.
In a NutShell:
Runtime: 2 hours and 30 minutes
Rating: No official rating, but many of the reviews believe it will get PG-13.
Accuracy to the Book: Excellent; with this long of a movie, it seems they followed the book almost scene for scene. A few scenes are reworked/modified a little, but they are largely useful adaptions.
General Fan Reaction: Quite Positive: “The most perfect Harry Potter film yet”…”Hands down, the best”…”Very Pleased”…”Effective and Exciting”
Best Parts: Character Focus and Development both by the Actors and Directors. Gorgeous cinematography and
Best Scene(s): Dobby’s Death, the Seven Potters, Malfoy Mannor, Destroying the Locket Horcrux
Best on the edge of your seats moments: Kingsley’s deep booming voice from his Patronus, The Malfoy Manor torture scene
Is Everybody There?: According to available reports – yes! Umbridge, Kreacher, Lupin, Xeno, Scrimgeour – they’re all in.
“Worst” Part: It may have actually been too accurate to the books, and seems a little slow at times. For non-HP fans, runtime may be too long. Camping scenes become a bit repetitive.
The Effects: Many of the effects were not yet completed, but of the ones shown, the reviewers were impressed.
Highlights from the fan reviews:
There are really five solid reviews from the screening today. Each varies a little, and brings something else to the entire picture. The reviews are from Mugglenet staff Eric and Emerson (who also recorded a mini-podcast immediately after the screeening), Gabby, Mugglenet reader Kyle (who actually gave two different reviews, one to snitchseeker and one to Mugglenet), a mysterious IMDB user “Snatcherman”, who answered questions from fans, and Edward from the Leaky Cauldron. Click on the links to view their full reports, and keep reading for a collection of highlights from the reviews. The reviews are extremely spoiler filled, and I actually wish I hadn’t read them all, so again, proceed at your own risk. If you choose ones to avoid for spoiler reasons, avoid Gabby’s and the review from Snatcherman (which is the second “spoiler alert” tab on snitchseeker.com).
The Plot:
The movie opens with Minister of Magic, played by Bill Nighy, addressing the media. The scene shifts to see each of the trio in their homes, Harry at the Dursley’s with Sirius’s mirror (although we don’t know quite how he got it) and then to Hermione’s house where we actually see her erase herself from her parent’s memory.’ The scene with Voldemort, Snape, and his Death Eaters at Malfoy Manor discussing their plans is next. According to reviews, the demeanor of the Malfoy family is very well played throughout the entire movie – showing both the demoralization and desperation of the Pureblood family that used to be so high in Voldemort’s favor. This is the first scene where we get to see Voldemort speak as much as he does.
The movie progresses as the book does with the Seven Potters scene, which is appropriately amusing at first (we get to see Harry in a bra). Reviewers Eric and Emerson mentioned that, while the scene was funny at first, it turned dark as it climaxed – and was excellently directed. For those wondering, George’s ear does get sliced off – and the “Holey” joke is still in.
Next comes the wedding which is abruptly ended with the arrival of Kingsley’s Patronus (which is excellent portrayed, giving the audience the “no more fun and games” jolt). After a battle in a London cafe is the flight to Grimauld place, then the infiltration of the Ministry (where Umbridge is “vile”), followed by the escape to the forest. During these scenes, many plot holes were filled in with flashbacks (such as how who got what horcrux) and dream sequences (much like those Harry experiences in the book). Throughout the time at the forest, it becomes clear that Ron’s friendship with Harry is becoming strained, and according to reviewers, the interactions are difficult to watch. The story plays out with Ron’s furious exit, Godric’s Hollow, Bathilda Bagshot (and her opened intestines), and the return of Ron to Harry’s aid. Of the scene with the destruction of the locket, it seems that it could not have been better written, directed, and performed. The mini podcast from mugglenet discusses the scene further, but it looks like the scene is almost perfect.
After the return of Ron, the trio proceed to Xenophilius Lovegood’s house and learn of the story of the Three Brothers (which is animated, and highly praised). Xeno then invokes the tabooed “Voldemort”, leading to the trio’s race from the Snatchers in a nearby forest. After their capture, Harry, Ron, and Hermione are taken to Malfoy Manor.
The Malfoy Manor scene has received absolutely spectacular reviews – the scene with Hermione and Bellatrix is done perfectly. The screams and torture made viewer’s cringe all around, and the viscousness of Bellatrix allows us to see the absolutely brutal side of her which has been hidden slightly behind her sarcasm and insanity over the last two films. Enter Dobby, to the cheer and applause of the movie theatre. Missing for 4 movies, Dobby makes an incredible return, as hero and martyr for Harry. His death was done “absolutely perfect” and “made the entire audience cry”. Harry’s insistence to give Dobby a proper burial makes the tears flow even more.
The movie ends as the Entertainment Weekly magazine discussed, with Voldemort gaining possession of the Elder Wand by defacing Dumbldore’s grave. The “lightning storm” we see during the trailer is presumably the last shot of the movie.
The Acting:
Reviewers raved and raved about the absolutely PHENOMENAL acting from every actor and actress in the movie, especially the trio. “Leaps and bounds” better than the last movie, the characterization that JK Rowling so expertly imput in her novel is portrayed without flaw on the screen; the scenes that were hard to read are hard to watch; the scenes that made you laugh in the books made you laugh in the audience; the scenes that made you cry when reading made you cry when watching. The trio captures your heart, and tears it from you.
The Directing:
David Yates seems to have created a movie that has a feel unlike any other movie before it. “I kept trying”, said Mugglnet’s Eric and Emerson, “to think – what is this movie like? What movie have I seen that is like this? But I couldn’t think of any – it is just unique”. Yate’s ability to work a scene to be both humorous, then suddenly dark and terrifying – but without feeling awkward – is prevalent throughout the movie. Reviewer’s say the director’s vision for many of the scenes is incredible; some of the most beautiful shots are of the gorgeous countryside.
The Editing
While not fully complete, viewers did get a glimpse at the final editing (which includes things like camera angles, timing, and special effects). Reviews of this part were mixed; reviewer Kyle thought thought the timing was off, with many scenes too rushed, and others far too long. Eric and Emerson, however, thought the timing was perfect. It depends, then, on how you liked the pacing of the novel:
It faithfully adapts the seventh book, including the book’s own problems. The “camping in the wilderness” scenes become quite repetitive.
We shall see when the final editing is released – nothing is set in stone. The effects that were seen (incomplete as they may have been) impressed reviewers. There was…however…a bit of a funny conversation on the mugglenet mini-cast, which suggested that Kreacher may not have been fully animated yet (meaning it may have been very funny looking on screen). But that’s good news fans! It means he is in!
“To believe that this is just Part I is crazy”. Whether you are a book purist, movie buffs, or just plain character fans, it seems like this movie will not disappoint. I absolutely cannot wait for the movie – to be able to see this on the big screen. As mentioned before, be careful in reading the other reviews – there are some things I would have wished to be surprised on; however, sometimes, the anticipation only makes it harder to watch.
These Aren't Just Words 