Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Blu-ray Review (HT Guys Demo Disc Approved)

4.8 Stars (out of 5)

Synopsis

The first installment of the two-part conclusion to the Harry Potter series finds the bespectacled wizard (Daniel Radcliffe) walking away from his last year at Hogwarts to find and destroy the remaining Horcruxes, putting an end to Voldemort's bid for immortality. But with Harry's beloved Dumbledore dead and Voldemort's unscrupulous Death Eaters on the loose, the world is more dangerous than ever.

Starring:

Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, Emma Watson, Ralph Fiennes, Helena Bonham Carter

Director:

David Yates

Blu-ray Release Date:

April 15, 2011

Subtitles:

English SDH, French, Spanish, Portuguese

Rating

Overall rating weighted as follows:
Audio 40%, Video 40%, Special Features 20%, Movie - its just our opinion so take it with a grain of salt

Audio 4.9 Stars (out of 5)
HT Guys Demo Aprroved!

Dolby and DTS Demo Discs used as basis for comparison
●        Subwoofer - 5.0 Stars
●        Dialog - 4.5 Stars
●        Surround Effects - 5.0 Stars
●        Dynamic Range - 5.0 Stars

English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, French: Dolby Digital 5.1, Spanish: Dolby Digital 5.1,  Portuguese: Dolby Digital 5.1

As soon as the Warner Brothers logo appeared with the high pitched squealing of the horcrux made my dog go crazy, I knew that this DTS-HD Master Audio presentation would be stellar. I started making a list of things that sounded awesome while watching this film. Before the movie was half way done, my list had grown to 10 items. I decided to give up on my list a say, this is one of the best audio experiences I have ever had. The subwoofer was always active but never overpowering and surround effects were used often.

Video  4.8 Stars (out of 5)

Spears & Munsil Benchmark Blu-ray Edition used as basis for comparison
●        Color Accuracy  - 4.5 Stars
●        Shadow detail - 5.0 Stars
●        Clarity - 4.5 Stars
●        Skin tones - 5.0 Stars
●        Compression - 5.0 Stars

Codec: MPEG-4 AVC, Resolution: 1080p, Aspect ratio: 2.40:1, Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
They tried to hide Daniel Radcliffe's beard stubbles, but the clarity on this Blu-ray couldn't keep his age a secret. This film is very dark and bleak. Not just in tone but also in color. I can only remember a few scenes that happened during the day. With that said, it handles the blacks and ominous shadows great without any hint of wavering. The skin tones are very life-like, and even though the color palette is mostly black and blue, it looks great and successfully translates the mood of the film and its characters.

Bonus Features 4.5 Stars (out of 5)

• Maximum Movie Mode: A Picture-in-Picture version of the film that includes behind the scenes footage, extended scenes, interviews, readings from the novel, and look backs on past events.
• Focus Point Featurettes: 7 featurettes that are also included in the Maximum Movie Mode.
• Behind the Story Featurettes (Disk 2): 5 more featurettes are on Disc Two.
• Additional Scenes (Disk 2): 8 deleted scenes.
• Exclusive Deathly Hallows Part 2 Sneak Peek (Disk 2)
• The Wizarding World of Harry Potter Grand Opening (Disc 2): Cast members and author J.K. Rowling visit the new "Wizarding World of Harry Potter" theme park at the Universal Orlando.
• Behind the Soundtrack (Disc 2)
• BD-Live Functionality

Movie - 4.0 Stars (out of 5)

Review

As the characters get older and the film's themes become more adult, this Harry Potter shows us it's a film franchise that has grown up and isn't afraid to have darker subtext and tone. This is the first time the series that no scene takes place in Hogwarts. It's also the first time several adults didn't help them along the way, in fact most tried to hurt them. They're finally grown up, on their own, and in major trouble.

This film, gave me something I've always wanted in a Harry Potter film, progression of the story. Don't get me wrong, I like watching the Quidditch matches, seeing the owls deliver letters, watching Hagrid with some new crazy pet, but seeing the same thing in 6 movies gets a little old. It was nice to see the formula changed up a little bit. However, I did feel like the film was a little too long which made it drag in little in the middle. It's great that they give alot of detail for millions of fans of the books, but it also makes the other 6 films looked rushed. This movie does not have a cliffhanger ending, but it does have me waiting for the next movie to come out.

Movie Trailer ...