Now it’s very rare that we have a major disagreement. Sure we don’t see eye to eye on everything but mostly the disagreement is so minor that no arguments arise. This week’s movie choice however is a completely different story. Never before in the history of the planet have two people disagreed about something more and fought their cases with such force and precision. What’s this subject matter that has caused us to question our friendship we hear you ask; it’s the release of Harry Potter 7, part 1. Val sees this as the high point of the year, a true wonder, Keli however would rather cut out her eyeballs than have to sit through that movie ever again. Here we will explain our rationing and although we can’t come to a decision maybe you can help us out…..
Val's View:
Well let’s just face it; the first part of the seventh instalment in the Harry Potter series was amazing! Now, anyone who knows me well enough will know that I am nothing short of a Harry Potter fanatic, and may therefore argue that my opinion is somewhat biased. However, there are several reasons to account for my even-higher-than-usual levels of enthusiasm. Unlike its predecessors, this film, being divided into two parts, meant that the script almost directly followed the storyline from its novel counterpart. The previous films have had to miss out several key aspects from the novels due to time constraints, but this 2hr40mins addition gave David Yates the freedom to include all the rich details we know and love from the books! I recall leaving the cinema after watching the 6th film, and feeling thoroughly disappointed that some of my favourite parts from the book had been overlooked, whilst other scenes (i.e. the destruction of The Burrow!) were simply made-up and added in! This time when I left the cinema, I felt nothing but a strong urge to go back and watch it all over again! Additionally, this meant there was more freedom to really watch the relationships between the main characters grow, which is what will make the final instalment that much better! All in all, it was a solid 10 out of 10, and anyone who thinks differently (a.k.a Keli!) should just read the books or shhh!
Keli’s Case:
That is all very well Valarie but what if you don’t have your extensive knowledge of all things wizardly and just wanted to enjoy a good film on a Saturday afternoon? I will say that honestly I wanted to love it. I truly and utterly went in there with all so much hope and expectation- similar I suppose to when you venture from the classic vanilla and try a new flavour ice-cream on holiday- but sadly, and I mean sadly, instead of the delight you get after indulging in a mango and passion fruit sorbet for the very first time, I was left with a sour taste combination of boredom and frustration. If I wanted to watch three teenagers camping, awkwardly dealing with their crushes and trying to find ‘magical things’ in the forest I would just watch my camp trip video from sixth form instead of sitting through over two and a half hours of the latest Potter tale to hit our screens. Not reading the book meant that with this film even more than the others I did not understand the little jokes, the tensions and the suspense that I have later been told is “all part of the first section of the dramatic finale”. But dramatic the first part ain’t, and who really wants to go to the cinema to wait for something to happen when consequently nothing will in Harry’s world until summer 2011. Sorry Val we will have to agree to disagree on this one………
