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Harry Potter & The Half-Blood Prince discussion... - Page 6  

post #151 of 344
1/14/08 at 5:39am

Re: Harry Potter & The Half-Blood Prince discussion...

There isnt a Deathly Hollows thread so Im putting this here, but AICN is saying the crew was told to prepare for 2 films for Hollows.
post #152 of 344
1/14/08 at 6:26am

Re: Harry Potter & The Half-Blood Prince discussion...

if it's aicn then at this point it is just WB's method of floating the idea to the fan community to gauge the reaction to the idea.
post #153 of 344
1/14/08 at 6:54am

Re: Harry Potter & The Half-Blood Prince discussion...

It's definitely a possibility (and an enticing for for WB) but I kind of doubt it. They've been saying splitting up the film ever seen Goblet of Fire so it's always been an unfounded rumour for every time the new Harry Potter film is released.
post #154 of 344
1/14/08 at 7:42am

Re: Harry Potter & The Half-Blood Prince discussion...

With the WGA strike, they almost certainly don't have a script yet, so I'm sure it's a "just in case" style thing.
post #155 of 344
1/14/08 at 10:46am

Re: Harry Potter & The Half-Blood Prince discussion...

To be honest, if the book wasn't called "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows", they could easily just cut that subplot, save about an hour's worth of runtime, and still be able to wrap everything up - even if some of the book's depth may be lost.

Still, I'm not opposed to two movies. What would they call the lead-in movie (or the last part)? Harry Potter and the Mysterious Case of the Horcruxes? Harry Potter and the Wand of Destiny? Harry Potter and the Battle of Hogwarts? Harry Potter and the Final Showdown?

They could get a tag team of Guillermo Del Toro and Alfonso Cuaron to take on the directing duties.
post #156 of 344
1/14/08 at 4:07pm

Re: Harry Potter & The Half-Blood Prince discussion...

Quote:
Originally Posted by Kevin Grey
With the WGA strike, they almost certainly don't have a script yet, so I'm sure it's a "just in case" style thing.
You're right:
Empire: Movie News - About Those Harry Potter Rumours
Kloves will be back as screenwriter, but he hasn't been able to put anything down on paper because the American is WGA talent.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ray H
Still, I'm not opposed to two movies. What would they call the lead-in movie (or the last part)? Harry Potter and the Mysterious Case of the Horcruxes? Harry Potter and the Wand of Destiny? Harry Potter and the Battle of Hogwarts? Harry Potter and the Final Showdown?
I'm assuming they'd shoot it in one go and split it in half in the editing booth. That being the case, they'd probably release it like Kill Bill: two parts with the same title.
post #157 of 344
1/14/08 at 4:26pm

Re: Harry Potter & The Half-Blood Prince discussion...

Thanks, Adam. Good to hear that Kloves is back onboard.
post #158 of 344
1/18/08 at 11:21am

Re: Harry Potter & The Half-Blood Prince discussion...

Timothy Spall to return as Wormtail in Half-Blood Prince and Deathly Hallows
post #159 of 344
1/23/08 at 9:37am

Re: Harry Potter & The Half-Blood Prince discussion...

Quote:
There isnt a Deathly Hollows thread so Im putting this here, but AICN is saying the crew was told to prepare for 2 films for Hollows.
The same was said about Goblet of Fire - indeed, the director was given the choice of one versus two films, and thank goodness he chose one.

I think we need to distinguish between the fanboy hopes of everything they've read in the books being put on the screen and the wishes of the normal viewer, who wants entertaining, but probably doesn't want to drag their ass out twice to see two bits of the same story.

I think I'm right in saying that the film lengths are in exact inverse proportion to the length of the books. Clunky Columbus dragged out the first two films, but once some real directors took over the series, the fat was trimmed and we began to get some genuinely exciting films without every plot point being signposted to the point where even the hard of thinking must have begun to find it tedious. Given a decent director the final couple of movies can be brought in at circa 2 hours each. There's less waffle in the last two books than in e.g. Goblet of Fire, but there's still a lot of side issues that don't need to be in the movie as they deal with subplots that the movies have never raised. Harry et al wandering round the countryside can be clipped to a couple of establishing shots and the key episode with Ron. Subplots of Tonks, Fleur et al don't need to be there. Etc, etc. Yes, these are great storylines, but they don't *have* to be there for the main story to work. And indeed, given how much better Goblet the movie was than Goblet the book, there is a case for brevity over comprehensiveness.
post #160 of 344
1/23/08 at 10:01am

Re: Harry Potter & The Half-Blood Prince discussion...

I think two films is a crock as well. There is one major story in DH. They haven't gone to two films for 4 or 5, which were as dense (or moreso) as 7. Doing it now would be a bad business decision. Go with a film and finish the movie on a strong note. Don't water it down to get two paydays.
post #161 of 344
1/23/08 at 11:56am

Re: Harry Potter & The Half-Blood Prince discussion...

I'm on the fence with the two movie idea... I can see merits in both, and reasons against both. In the end, I think it's just really important that they don't go the route they did with the David Yates-directed OOTP. I don't remember exactly where I read this (I wish I did), but before OOTP came out, Yates was interviewed and said that he found the other films in the series to be too long, boring even, and it was his goal from the start to make the shortest Harry Potter movie to date. That, in my opinion, is a lousy approach to making a movie. As opposed to every film that came before it, I just never found myself immersed in the world of Harry Potter during the film...things raced by at lightning speed, plot points weren't developed, and characters were never given their due. However, I think Steve Kloves as a writer has a better grasp on how to adapt these books than Michael Goldenberg did, so if it's true that Kloves is returning for the final installment, that does make me less worried.

I don't think it needs to be two films, but if they're determined to make it one film that's about two hours and five minutes (which is what OOTP clocks in as if you don't count the endless end credits), it would be a resounding disappointment. From the point of view of the film's fans, they've spent nearly a decade watching these characters onscreen, and I don't think anyone would object to a big epic finale to give the film series a proper conclusion. From a storytelling point of view, I don't think every single detail in the book needs to be in the film, but I think it's got a lot of material worth keeping. Unlike perhaps some of the other books, Deathly Hallows ends up containing a lot of backstory that might not be directly relevant to the plot, but that sheds light on the history of many characters, which in turn reveals why they are the people they are. That information enriches the characters, and having watched them for all these years, it's not necessarily a bad thing to learn a little bit more, since it literally is the last chance the filmmakers will have to do that. I also think that would end up enriching the earlier films upon rewatching.

I think it can be one great film if they just allow it to run three hours, give or take a few. The smartest thing for them to do would be to allow work on the screenplay to begin without any sort of expectation that the film should be the shortest one ever, or two films, or anything else... let Steve Kloves adapt it as he sees fit, and then (and only then), look at that script, figure out about how long of a film it would make, and then make an honest, informed decision about whether the film would be best served being told in one long part (with perhaps some further paring done done to the draft of the script) or split into two.
post #162 of 344
1/23/08 at 12:12pm

Re: Harry Potter & The Half-Blood Prince discussion...

I have no problems with a three hour film. On the contrary, I think the material supports it
post #163 of 344
2/21/08 at 6:57am

Re: Harry Potter & The Half-Blood Prince discussion...

According to AICN Yates is doing Deathly Hollows as well.
post #164 of 344
2/21/08 at 11:07am

Re: Harry Potter & The Half-Blood Prince discussion...

Quote:
Originally Posted by JonZ
According to AICN Yates is doing Deathly Hollows as well.
Crap. Everytime I watch "...Phoenix" I like it less and less. I wish they'd kept changing directors with every film.
post #165 of 344
2/21/08 at 11:30am

Re: Harry Potter & The Half-Blood Prince discussion...

Me too. The problem with Yates is that he comes from a TV background, used to BBC budgets. Moving from that to what must seem like the biggest toybox in the world would be an incredibly tough thing to give up, even if him staying on wouldn't be the best thing for the franchise.
I can understand why he was offered Half-Blood Prince after the financial success of Order of the Phoenix, but I really think it'll be time for fresh blood for the finale.
That is not a book I want chopped into the only semi-coherent montage editing of Order of the Phoenix.
post #166 of 344
2/21/08 at 4:31pm

Re: Harry Potter & The Half-Blood Prince discussion...

New Scene Added to Harry Potter 6

New Scene Added to Harry Potter 6 - ComingSoon.net
post #167 of 344
2/21/08 at 5:42pm

Re: Harry Potter & The Half-Blood Prince discussion...

It seems like that stuff could've been seen/discussed in the PM scene at the beginning of the book. As it sounds, the new scene could either work or could feel really out of place and bring the movie to a halt.
post #168 of 344
2/21/08 at 10:22pm

Re: Harry Potter & The Half-Blood Prince discussion...

A user posted the script pages from the scene. Why believe them? 1) The user posted pages from the Order of the Phoenix script during production that held up when the film was released. 2) He posted the pages from the new scene months ago:
Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show)
Without hesitation, she races for the reeds.

84 EXT. REEDS (SURROUNDING BURROW) - MOMENTS LATER - NIGHT

Harry careens through the marsh, reeds flashing past, then
spies Bellatrix. She GRINS, looking like a crazed wood
nymph, then flits off, her LAUGHTER mocking him. As he
pursues, FIRE SNAKES through the reeds toward him.

NEW ANGLE

Fred, George, Ron and Arthur fan out, running full-out,
their feet kicking up SPARKS as SHADOWS splinter throughout
the reeds. It's like chasing ghosts.

NEW ANGLE(S)

Ginny, copper hair gleaming, races through the reeds.

Bellatrix leads Harry on, grinning madly.

Ginny comes dashing to a halt, chest heaving as she peers
into the smoking marsh. A HUGE FIGURE QUIVERS through a
veil of smoke. Ginny's eyes SHIFT, see Bellatrix racing
forward through the reeds, then SHIFT back as the veil of
smoke evaporates, reveals...Greyback. Bellatrix makes an
ODD, CLICKING noise--like a signal--and Greyback edges
forward, sweeping away the reeds in front of him and
revealing...

...Harry as he pelts forward.
GINNY No, Harry! It's a trap!
 Harry falters, looking toward Ginny's voice and spies
Greyback. Bellatrix stops dead, wheels in her tracks and,
seeing Ginny, SHRIEKS with RAGE. Raising her wand, she
fires a BOLT of RED LIGHT which explodes in a SHOWER of
SPARKS around Ginny. Ginny fires back, then wheels away,
flashing through the reeds coming face to face with...

Greyback, sharp teeth glittering.
GREYBACK Don't you smell clean. Just then, a BOLT OF BLUE bursts off Greyback's back and he
turns, sees Harry standing several yards off. As Greyback
gives chase, Ginny pelts after and we CUT back and forth
between Harry, Ginny and the beast between them, faster and
faster, their BREATHS shortening until...

Greyback rushes into a clearing, panting, glancing about.

Just then, TWIN BOLTS of light blast from opposite sides of
the clearing and Greyback is lifted in the air, slammed to
the ground. As he regains his feet he looks into the reeds
and sees Harry and Ginny, wands poised. He grins...when
Bellatrix's odd, CLICKING signal carries through the night
once again. Turning away, he exits.

Harry and Ginny slowly step out of the reeds, stare at each
other wordlessly. Then...Ron, Fred, George, Arthur and
Lupin come thrashing into the clearing, stop. All around
them, the reeds SMOKE, the flames dying. Across the marsh,
Bellatrix's cackle rises briefly on the air--then all is
quiet.
HERMIONE (O.S.) You're lucky you weren't killed. 85 INT. CORRIDOR/HOGWARTS CASTLE - SAME TIME - DAY

Hermione reads the Daily Prophet as she walks alongside
Harry. The HEADLINE is GLOOMY: `MORE DISAPPEARANCES.`
HERMIONE You have to realize who you are,
Harry.
HARRY
(sharply) I know who I am, Hermione,
alright?
(frowning)
Sorry.
HERMIONE So tell me what Arthur said.
HARRY If Dumbledore's travelling places,
it's news to the Ministry. But
get this: that night at Borgin &
Burkes? It seems Draco was
looking at a Vanishing Cabinet.
HERMIONE What would Draco want with a
Vanishing Cabinet?
HARRY You tell me. Hermione frowns, pondering this. Then:
HERMIONE He looks different, don't you
think? Draco. Almost...ill.
HARRY Who could tell the difference?
post #169 of 344
2/22/08 at 6:06am

Re: Harry Potter & The Half-Blood Prince discussion...

As I thought the biggest issue with OotP movie was on the script level, I'll reserve judgment on Yates and Deathly Hollows until I see how he handles HBP.

Re: that script excerpt- Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show)
I'm somewhat surprised Greyback is in the film. He would seem to be an easy cut. I wonder if they are going to put in the full Bill/Fleur subplot (again, something I thought would be likely to be removed)?
post #170 of 344
2/22/08 at 7:18am

Re: Harry Potter & The Half-Blood Prince discussion...

I read that the actress who played Fleur indicated she was NOT in the film. I wasn't pleased with some of the cuts from OotP (no Lily in the Snape flashback is just insane). It was a decent film, with a few great scenes, but I'd prefer a new director for 7.
post #171 of 344
3/12/08 at 3:12pm

Re: Harry Potter & The Half-Blood Prince discussion...

Looks like it's official now that the "Deathly Hallows' movie will be split into TWO movies with David Yates returning to direct. The first part will be released November 2010 and the second part will be released May 2011. Check out the full article...

Final 'Harry Potter' book will spawn two movies - Los Angeles Times
post #172 of 344
3/12/08 at 3:16pm

Re: Harry Potter & The Half-Blood Prince discussion...

I would have thought that they would get a different director for the final two movies

Quote:
Some cynics will see the move as simply doubling the box-office payday, but Radcliffe told The Times that the split is purely in service of the story.

"I think it's the only way you can do it without cutting out a huge portion of the book," Radcliffe said recently during a break on the set of "Half-Blood Prince," the sixth "Potter" film, which is due in theaters on Nov. 21. "There have been compartmentalized subplots in the other books that have made them easier to cut -- although those cuts were still to the horror of some fans -- but the seventh book doesn't really have any subplots. It's one driving, pounding story from the word go."

Producer David Heyman said the decision was made with some anxiety and only after considerable deliberations. The producer joked that "while my wife and Warner Brothers were pleased" to hear that the Potter movie magic will continue into the next decade, he himself fretted that the cynical observers would see the decision as a purely mercenary move.

"I swear to you it was born out of purely creative reasons," Heyman said during an interview in a converted airplane factory outside London that has been home base to all of the "Potter" productions. "Unlike every other book, you cannot remove elements of this book. You can remove scenes of Ron playing quidditch from the fifth book, and you can remove Hermione and S.P.E.W. [Society for the Promotion of Elfish Welfare] and those subplots . . . but with the seventh, that can't be done."
post #173 of 344
3/12/08 at 4:50pm

Re: Harry Potter & The Half-Blood Prince discussion...

Splitting a story with a 6 month interlude is NEVER in service of the "story". It's in service of one thing: $.

If JKR put it in one book, it's ONE story, requiring one movie. This is a cash grab, no less.

Sorry if I sound cynical, but this is a terrible decision, made for business reasons, and sold "for the good of the book". The book is about the same length as Book 4 and 6, and shorter than Book 5.

I might skip the first half in theaters, and watch in on DVD before hitting the theater to see the second half of a single story.

And the "rationale" pisses me off more than the decision. Sorry. I don't believe Heyman. I am sure even he believes it. I don't.
post #174 of 344
3/12/08 at 5:12pm

Re: Harry Potter & The Half-Blood Prince discussion...

Yes, both news don't sound very good!
post #175 of 344
3/12/08 at 7:26pm

Re: Harry Potter & The Half-Blood Prince discussion...

Quote:
Originally Posted by Chuck Mayer
Splitting a story with a 6 month interlude is NEVER in service of the "story". It's in service of one thing: $.

If JKR put it in one book, it's ONE story, requiring one movie. This is a cash grab, no less.

I must respectfully but strongly disagree here!

I just finished re-reading Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows again and believe me, I agree with Warner Brothers' decision to split the movie into two parts. Given the HUGE amount of material not found in any other HP novel, it will take two movies of around 150-165 minutes' length just to include the most salient plotlines from the novel.
post #176 of 344
3/12/08 at 10:18pm

Re: Harry Potter & The Half-Blood Prince discussion...

Quote:
Originally Posted by DavidPla
Looks like it's official now that the "Deathly Hallows' movie will be split into TWO movies with David Yates returning to direct. The first part will be released November 2010 and the second part will be released May 2011. Check out the full article...
My biggest problem with the decision is giving one director control over what will be half the released films. If the same fatal failings of OOTP appear in HBP, that means I have literally nothing to look foward to in the final films.
It also means that one director put in charge of the most massive enterprise in cinema today will be working to the ragged end. Introducing a new director for Deathly Hallows would inject a fresh perspective and new vitality for the material. By the time he gets to finishing the second Deathly Hallows film — circa 2011 — he'll have been working on the franchise for half a decade. At some point, fatigue has to set in. And that's NEVER good for a franchise.
post #177 of 344
3/12/08 at 10:36pm

Re: Harry Potter & The Half-Blood Prince discussion...

I think most of the Order of the Phoenix problems were in the script, and many mirrored the same problems Kloves ran into on Sorcerer's Stone, there were excellent moments in the film but overall it was hampered by the adaptation. And I think that much of what hurt that adaptation the most was the decision to make it the shortest movie yet rather than giving the characters time to breathe and develop scenes and themes. If anything two movies solves the biggest problem with Phoenix, not enough time.

What the split makes me highly suspicious of, though, is that there's going to be some rejiggering of the plot structure to support a big climax at the end of the first part
Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show)
Obviously the biggest climax to end a film on is the breakin at Gringotts, but it requires some major shifting and suspension of disbelief (Voldemort not hearing about it) for this to take place at the end of the first film out of order from the other plot points coming before it in the books).

Another high climax is the escape from the Malfoys and the death of Dobby ending on much the same tone as fellowship of the ring. This is a slightly easier sell, it doesn't have to happen after Godric's hollow it could happen before, conceivably before Ron leaves and they get the sword back.

I think the escape from Godric's hollow would be a bad place to end the first film, though it could be a pretty good action scene with Voldemort almost catching Harry.

The obvious place to split it is along the white doe storyline, but I don't think this is a really satisfying ending from an action standpoint, it's a great character point to resolve the story up to that point.


It's all plot shenanigans, I expect at least one major event rejiggering to make the dramatics work out right for the end of the first part. they could make the movie at 3 hrs 20 minutes and be just fine and probably have a better product, but they want two shorter films, not one return of the king length film. I guess they think they can make return of the king esque money twice, but it may end up blowing up in their face ala the matrix reloaded and revolutions.
post #178 of 344
3/13/08 at 5:50am

Re: Harry Potter & The Half-Blood Prince discussion...

Adam_S,

Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show)
I think it's likely they will end the first Deathly Hallows movie at the end of "The White Doe" chapter because the plot of the book makes a dramatic turn in the next chapter, because it begins the introduction to the Deathly Hallows (the Resurrection Ring, the Elder Wand and the Cloak of Invisibility) and how that affects the plot of the book.
post #179 of 344
3/13/08 at 6:25am

Re: Harry Potter & The Half-Blood Prince discussion...

I fully expected a quality 3 hour movie...if you can do 4 in 2:20 and 5 (the longest) in 2:15, you could do a great DH in 3. Spare me the "there is plenty of cuttable fluff in the earlier books". What fluff there is in any of her books is present in Book 7. Do you need the wedding (especially without Fleur in movie #6)? How about the Ministry/Umbridge grab?

And this is by a director who cut Lily Potter out of the Snape memory in the fifth movie. That was the WHOLE POINT of that scene.

I love Book Seven, but it is not twice as dense as Book Six. It's just not.

And, FWIW, I do not believe there is a compelling closer in the first half. The only thing close is the flight on the dragon after Gringotts. But that's well over halfway through the book.

How will this affect the BO? Unknown, but one of the two films will suffer a bit for the decision. If it truly is just a creative decision, I'm sure WB will allow me to use one ticket for both. I'm sure they won't sell DH1 DVD, DH2 DVD, and then a bit later, a DHComplete DVD.

Thanks, Weinstein, for the Kill Bill model.
post #180 of 344
3/13/08 at 11:09am

Re: Harry Potter & The Half-Blood Prince discussion...

Sure theres lots of information in film 7, but it seems to me alot of significant plot points have already been glazed over.

The whole Harry/Longbottom thing for instance.
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