MuggleCast 227 Transcript
Show Intro
[“Hedwig’s Theme” plays]
Andrew: Because we are here for one last trailer review show, this is MuggleCast Episode 227 for April 28th, 2011.
[Show music begins]
Andrew: This week’s episode of MuggleCast is brought to you by Audible.com, the Internet’s leading provider of audiobooks, with more than 75,000 downloadable titles across all types of literature, including fiction, non-fiction, and periodicals. For a free audiobook of your choice, go to AudiblePodcast.com/MuggleCast.
And by Hypable.com, a MuggleNet for the rest of the fandoms in the world and created by MuggleNet staff. Visit Hypable.com for thorough and up-to-the-minute coverage around The Hunger Games, Glee, Doctor Who, The Hobbit, and many more. That’s Hypable.com – H-Y-P-A-B-L-E dot com.
[Show music continues]
Andrew: Welcome to MuggleCast Episode 227 for our final [gasps] trailer show ever which is kind of weird to think, I have to say. Micah and Eric are here. Hey guys!
Eric: Hey!
Micah: Hey!
Eric: Is this really the final trailer show? Is there not going to be…
Andrew: Yeah.
Eric: …another trailer prior to the film’s release?
Andrew: No, and I mean, there was just that one teaser trailer for Parts 1 and 2. That kind of did like double duty. So we didn’t get a teaser trailer for Part 2, we just got this trailer. But I don’t think anybody is complaining.
Eric: Well…
Andrew: Because the trailer was really good.
Eric: Yeah. Well, then there was also what appeared on Deathly Hallows – Part 1, right? That was kind of a teaser-ish. It had – was that part of the scene between Harry and Ollivander and then it opened up into other shots?
Andrew: Oh, you’re talking about on the DVD.
Eric: Yeah, on the DVD. Yeah.
Andrew: Yes.
Eric: So we get that.
Andrew: That was an opening scene, yeah. And it was good.
Micah: On the Blu-ray, not the DVD. [laughs]
Andrew: Right.
Eric: You guys [laughs] discussed that last week, right?
Announcement: Hypable
Andrew: Yeah. So, obviously we’re back pretty soon, and it’s just because this is going to be a trailer show, nothing but trailer talk. But before we get to the trailer talk, first I want to tell everybody about a new site I’m doing with a couple other MuggleNet staff members. It’s called Hypable.com – H-Y-P-A-B-L-E dot com. It is a MuggleNet for multiple fandoms. It is an entertainment site for fans by fans. I really want you to check it out. We decided to create Hypable when we realized that there was really no good entertainment site out there that really dedicates themselves to particular fandoms. That’s what Hypable is about. It’s multiple MuggleNets, so to speak, all in one site. So whether you’re a fan of Harry Potter, Twilight, The Hunger Games, Glee, a bunch of other TV shows, you go to Hypable, you can get all the news you need for each fandom that you’re a fan of – that you’re a part of. It’s all very easy. We have seventeen fandoms currently, and we’re going to be adding more and more as time goes on. Just over the next couple of weeks, we plan to add at least five more fandoms. All of these fandoms have thorough and quick news coverage. And what I mean by that is we will bring you every story in the fandoms that we cover. And we don’t waste time, we get the news to you very quickly. We are dedicating ourselves to this project. Of course MuggleNet is still going to be around, you don’t have to worry about that, but we’re in Hypable for the long run so I encourage you to check it out. The reviews so far have been very positive and we’re so glad to hear that a lot of people like it. H-Y-P-A-B-L-E dot com. Hypable.com, check it out! Thanks for your support.
Quick Trailer Roundtable
Andrew: Let’s get into the trailer talk. We’re going to go through it frame by frame, quite literally, actually, because we’re going to be looking at every little clip. There were so many clips, unsurprisingly, in the trailer that there’s a lot to talk about. And I keep – I follow a lot of Harry Potter friends on Twitter and everybody is like, “Ooh, this clip! This clip!” and I’m like, “I didn’t notice that clip!” And it’s because everything goes by so fast, it’s kind of like, whoa. So Micah, as the only person here who has not seen the film, [laughs] did it get you excited for the final movie in the Harry Potter franchise?
Micah: Yeah, definitely. I think there’s so much action in this trailer and that’s what differentiates it from – I think the ones that we’ve seen before, there’s been so much plot that we’ve had to go through, and now finally this is it, this is the last film. You guys have talked about it on previous shows and you’ve said so much of this film is dedicated to the actual battle. And I think we saw a lot of that in this trailer, probably, even for me, more so than I would have liked to have seen, to be honest with you. But that’s part of these trailers being put out there. Inevitably, we see things that we’d rather leave for the theaters. But it seems like – I don’t know that you can be disappointed with this film, based upon looking at the trailer.
Eric: Yeah.
Andrew: Eric, being the person who has seen the film, does the trailer live up to the film – does the film live up to the trailer?
Eric: Does the film live up to the trailer? Well, Andrew, the version we saw did not have many special effects completed, so what I was looking for in this trailer was sort of the – as Micah said, lots of action, all of the effects that have been completed. Particularly because the Battle of Hogwarts, when we saw it, was very fast-paced, but we didn’t see, for instance, some shots in here that have been completed since. And that’s really awesome. Like spells flying, breaking windows, and even people on brooms, during the battle. That’s all really cool, and that’s all new. To see it in the final version is more rewarding.
Andrew: I would have to agree. I, too, was looking for the special effects because, like you said, there weren’t many complete in the test screening we saw in Chicago. And the special effects looked great in this movie. So, very pleased. Let’s start going through it then. We’re going to start – and what we’re going to do is give you the second-by-second marks, so if you were sitting there on your computer, listening to this, you too can kind of watch with us. You can kind of just scroll through, frame by frame…
Eric: Bono is going to watch this with us?
Andrew: Who?
Eric: Bono and the Edge, they’re going to watch this with us?
Andrew: Yes, U2 are watching it with us tonight. [singing] “It’s a beautiful day.” [stops singing] So, at the seven-minute…
Micah: You know those jokes, man. You know it’s late when those jokes are coming out.
[Andrew laughs]
Eric: What, I asked – I made the joke.
Micah: I know.
Scene-by-Scene: “Hedwig’s Theme”
Andrew: All right. So at four seconds, the very first shot in the trailer is Snape walking through Godric’s Hollow. And you know what? I think, actually, the bigger story here – well, at least for these first few opening shots – and we’ll talk about each shot but first, let’s just hear the music at the beginning. I thought something was wrong with my computer when I heard this.
[Eric laughs]
Andrew: So take a listen.
[Clip from trailer plays]
Andrew: [laughs] Personally, I was like, “What’s going on with my computer? Is it the Internet?”
[Eric laughs]
Andrew: Anyway, that’s…
Micah: Yeah, it’s very child-like, you know? It’s almost like you’re about to enter this really – what’s it called? Like this horror film, of sorts. It has a really eerie feeling to it.
Eric: Yeah. It’s like…
Micah: And then you see this weird, shadowy figure walking down a corridor.
Eric: Mhm.
Micah: Or an alleyway.
Andrew: It’s kind of like something’s broken, the sound.
Eric: Well, it’s really like a music box.
Micah: Yeah, exactly.
Andrew: Mmm.
Eric: It’s like a music box winding down. So after it’s been playing this high-speed Harry Potter theme, it’s now slowing down to where it’s going to die.
Scene-by-Scene: Ravenclaw’s Diadem
Andrew: The next shot that we see, at the seven-second mark, is the Ravenclaw tiara. A very close look at it. You can really see the detail, every little diamond. I mean, it’s a beautiful piece.
Micah: You can actually see the writing, too. You can make out the…
Eric: Yeah.
Micah: What does it say? “Wit beyond measure is man’s greatest treasure,” or something along those lines.
Andrew: Yup.
Micah: You can actually see those words written. So it really gives you an idea of how much time and effort the crew, the prop crew, put into creating these items. I know we always talk about that, we always hear about it from David Heyman and David Yates, all the producers, but this is another example of just how much time and effort they put into these things.
Eric: Yeah. The cool thing is that this tiara – like Micah said, the detail. Also, it appears to be resting on its original blue velvet case that’s sort of holding it. It just makes the whole artifact look so much older and authentic, as being this really old relic, the oldest relic in the Harry Potter series, next to obviously the other items of the founders, like the sword. But it’s a really nice shot.
Scene-by-Scene: The Prince’s Tale
Andrew: Also at the seven-second mark is a shot of Petunia and Lily, and…
Eric: Oh, don’t spoil it! [laughs]
Andrew: What? Oh. Well, that’s the thing. An average person would see this shot and not know exactly what this is. I mean, quite frankly, you don’t really – well, I guess you do know it’s a Harry Potter film because you hear that little music at the beginning. But it takes – not until you see Voldemort…
Eric: Yeah.
Andrew: …do you see that this is Harry Potter.
Eric: Yeah. Yeah, I know exactly what you’re saying. And I agree.
Micah: It is misleading. I think that when…
Andrew: Misleading?
Micah: Well, no, no…
[Everyone laughs]
Micah: No, no, listen though.
Eric: And then there’s…
Micah: Exactly, because you just brought up the point that until you see Voldemort, you have no idea what this movie is, unless you’re very familiar with “Hedwig’s Theme.”
Eric: I think – but who isn’t?
Micah: And it’s very eerie, like I said. You have this – as Eric pointed out, this music box song that’s playing, and then all of a sudden you see this person walking down a hall and there are these kids standing on a grassy hill. It’s almost like something out of Children of the Corn or Poltergeist or something like that.
Andrew: Yeah, yeah.
Eric: Yeah, like ominous things are going to go bad.
Andrew: So we see – by the way, this does confirm that in the memory scene, there is – in “The Prince’s Tale” Petunia is there. And I wanted to mention that because on the last episode, I think somebody asked me if Petunia was in “The Prince’s Tale” and I said “I don’t know, I went to the bathroom.” [laughs]
Eric: Oh. Yeah, she definitely is, and she has dialogue.
Andrew: And then they cut to the close-up shot of Lily’s hand with the flower kind of coming out of it, showing Petunia that she’s a witch.
Eric: See, this is probably the least – this is the special effect shot that’s in the trailer that I’m least happy with.
Andrew: It’s not good.
Eric: It’s not good. I think, to me, that the flower was supposed to be blossoming in her hand, like on top of her hand, and not sort of coming out of her hand. And it’s not that it specifically looks like it’s coming out of her hand to me, but that’s – Andrew, you just said that’s what you thought it was. And to be honest, it’s just – it looks fake and it doesn’t look like the flower is resting on her hand. I thought it was a little disappointing that this was the first intro to CGI in this final, only trailer.
[Andrew laughs]
Eric: Not that I would change it, I would just improve it. I hope it looks better in the final film.
Scene-by-Scene: Dumbledore’s Hand?
Andrew: We then see Dumbledore’s hand picking up the – is that Dumbledore’s hand?
Eric: No, they’ve got – somebody with nails. Yeah.
Andrew: It wouldn’t actually make sense for it to be Dumbledore’s hand.
Eric: No, his nails are painted.
Micah: Because it’s Harry.
Eric: Yeah, I think it’s…
Andrew: And it’s not Harry, no way.
Eric: It’s not Harry. Look at the finger, look at the nails.
Andrew: Yeah, those are old…
Eric: Old man’s…
Andrew: Old man or woman.
Eric: Yeah, it’s got to be Dumbledore.
Scene-by-Scene: Harry and Lily’s Hands
Andrew: All right. And then we see a shot – now, Micah, in the notes, you wrote – you think it’s Snape and Lily’s hands, but I actually think it’s Harry’s because if you see the jacket the guy is wearing, it’s the jacket that Harry is wearing during the final battle.
Micah: Okay.
Andrew: It’s like the corduroy.
Micah: Yeah, I honestly didn’t know.
Andrew: Okay.
Micah: You guys would probably know better than I would.
Andrew: My guess is this is Harry and Ginny, and they’re kind of like, “Don’t leave me!”
Eric: Ooh.
Andrew: Or Harry – something is going on there.
Eric: This is weird.
Andrew: I don’t remember this specific shot in the film.
Eric: No, I don’t either. It looks like it’s in the forest though. The background is specifically forest. I would have…
Andrew: Could it be his mom? Is he reaching out for his mom?
Eric: I think – yeah.
Andrew: I think that’s it.
Eric: It could be the resurrection scene.
Andrew: Yeah. See, Eric wouldn’t know that because his eyes were filled with tears so much, he could hardly see the screen.
[Andrew and Micah laugh]
Eric: Yeah, I think during this scene – yeah. [laughs]
Andrew: Yeah, I think it’s his mom.
Eric: Yeah.
Scene-by-Scene: Close-up of Voldemort’s Face
Andrew: That would make sense, Eric. Okay, so now we advance to twelve seconds, and like we mentioned just before, this is the first time – this is when you actually see it’s Harry Potter. We got a look – we got three shots of hands and arms in a row – four shots of hands and arms in a row!
[Andrew and Eric laugh]
Andrew: And then we get a close-up…
Eric: And it’s not over yet!
Andrew: Right.
Eric: There are more shots of hands and arms in this trailer.
Andrew: We see a shot of Voldemort opening up his eyes, and he sees the…
Micah: Now, is that him lying in the forest? Is that – does that happen in the film, where he’s actually knocked out for that period of time that Harry gets knocked out, for King’s Cross?
Eric: Yeah, that happens. I don’t know why the shot is off-center, though. But I think that that’s probably what’s going on.
Micah: It looks like grass.
Andrew: I can’t tell…
Micah: A little bit underneath.
Andrew: Yeah, it does, but it’s hard to tell if he’s laying on the ground.
Eric: Yeah, he is.
Andrew: I don’t know.
Eric: I’m fairly certain that’s when he wakes up from having the shared experience with Potter. But that – it’s so off-center. [laughs] So still, if you can’t recognize it as Voldemort, there’s no hope.
Scene-by-Scene: Dobby’s Grave
Andrew: And now we get to seventeen seconds, the Warner Bros. logo, of course. And then at the twenty-second mark, we see Harry overtop of Dobby’s grave.
[Eric laughs]
Andrew: With Shell Cottage in the background.
Eric: Next to Harry.
Micah: Now, what is he looking at, though?
Andrew: Yeah, he’s – I think that’s…
Eric: He’s looking at the mirror.
Andrew: Yeah.
Eric: Yeah. He’s reminded – he’s reminiscing in this scene about how Dobby came to find them, and it was because he shouted into the mirror, in Harry Potter: Part 1. Or Deathly Hallows – Part 1.
Scene-by-Scene: Voldemort’s Voiceover and Scream
Andrew: Okay, advancing to 23, 24 seconds, 25, it’s a very close shot of Harry. Let’s listen to what’s going on here to kind of help us keep – I think this is Voldemort giving the message, right? Here, let’s listen to this.
[Clip from trailer plays] “Harry Potter, you have fought valiantly.”
Andrew: So this is Voldemort telling Harry it’s time to fight. And so we’ll jump back to 24 seconds there, and – you could probably presume this is when Harry is listening to Voldemort’s message.
Eric: Yeah. So here’s – also at 25 seconds is the first instance of this really odd sound that’s coming from Voldemort. Voldemort screams.
[Andrew laughs]
Eric: It’s like…
[Andrew and Eric imitate Voldemort’s scream]
Eric: Right? Well, it’s repeated throughout the trailer, I think at least three times.
Andrew: Really?
Eric: And – yes. Especially when Harry grabs him, pulls him off the cliff – we’ll talk about that later. But this scream appears at least three times in this trailer. It just – it irks me. It’s really weird, it reminds me of – there’s a common film scream, it’s – basically it’s stock footage. A long time ago somebody recorded this scream and instead of having actors do their own screams throughout history, it’s – they’ve been replaced, essentially. Inserted over dialogue is what’s called the Wilhelm Scream. It’s been used in hundreds of films in Hollywood.
[Clip of the Wilhelm Scream plays]
Andrew: Interesting. So that scream – that’s kind of a movie – I mean, obviously it’s not the one that’s in this trailer, [laughs] but…
Eric: No, no, no.
Andrew: …that’s kind of an interesting…
Eric: But it’s the same idea. So different movies, different…
Andrew: Same scream.
Eric: …different scenes, same scream coming from all different people. It’s footage. And they repeat this scream in this Harry Potter trailer – it’s Voldemort’s scream. They repeat it at least three times.
Andrew: I think it lends to Voldemort’s craziness, though. I mean…
Eric: But why the same exact scream?
Andrew: Are you sure it’s the same exact…
Eric: If Voldemort…
Andrew: You’d have to cut it up and compare, I don’t know if you can claim something like that.
Eric: If Voldemort isn’t actually screaming, like the scream is not coming out from his body, why would they play it during this trailer?
Andrew: I don’t know.
Micah: That’s a good question, but I mean, if Voldemort really screamed like in the way that you just played that, I don’t know if I could take him very seriously.
[Eric laughs]
Andrew: It’s to make a sense of eeriness. I like it, I think he’s a crazed man.
[Andrew and Eric imitate Voldemort’s scream]
Eric: Play it again. Play Voldemort. Play Voldemort again. It’s 25, 26 seconds.
Andrew: Okay. Now here’s Voldemort’s scream.
[Clip from trailer plays]
[Andrew imitates Voldemort’s scream]
Eric: So that’s – anyway, that’s number one. That’s the first time we hear that scream in this trailer.
Scene-by-Scene: Voldemort Shooting a Spell
Andrew: All right. Well, at 26 seconds we see the quick shot of Voldemort throwing a spell, and the way they cut this it looks like it’s hitting Greyback. But we know better than this. I don’t think this is actually what had happened. I think this is obviously two different scenes.
Micah: Yeah, that little creative splicing going on there.
[Eric laughs]
Andrew: Yeah. And Greyback…
Eric: What does Voldemort have against Greyback? Geez.
Andrew: Greyback looks kind of not interesting. I don’t think he looks that great.
Eric: [laughs] What?
Andrew: I don’t know, he looks like a – I don’t – it just looks like he’s wearing a mask, I guess.
Eric: Well, you can only see him if you are really creative with your freeze-framing.
Andrew: Yeah. We’re using QuickTime.
Eric: Otherwise it’s… [laughs]
Micah: Well, what you’re saying, Eric, is anybody who normally would watch this trailer and not pause it would just think Voldemort is shooting a spell and it’s hitting somebody.
Andrew: Yeah, exactly.
Eric: Yeah.
Andrew: That’s true.
Eric: Yeah, and hitting a student. Yeah.
Scene-by-Scene: Bodies Falling in the Water
Andrew: All right, then there’s a quick shot of bodies falling in the water. Again, that’s kind of lending to the whole watching this very quickly, not going [laughs] frame by frame like we are.
[Eric laughs]
Andrew: We’re essentially destroying the trailer by going frame by frame. [laughs]
Eric: Well, that only works if the film doesn’t hold up as well – the trailer doesn’t hold up as well, if we pick it apart.
Scene-by-Scene: Voldemort Screaming
Andrew: At 27 seconds we see Voldemort with his mouth wide open, and this is obviously when he made that little scream.
Eric: [laughs] No, it’s not though. We see him make the scream later in the trailer.
Andrew: Well, he does it a few times.
Micah: He’s just an angry man.
Eric: Well, here he’s…
Andrew: Yeah, whatever.
Eric: Yeah.
Andrew: Who cares.
[Eric laughs]
Scene-by-Scene: Body Falling
Andrew: We see – very quick shot of bodies falling at 28 seconds and then at twenty – yeah, at the end of 28 seconds you see a body falling. Almost looks like it doesn’t hit the ground, it may be resting an inch above ground, kind of like in Order of the Phoenix when the…
Eric: Well, that effect appears in this film.
Andrew: Yes.
Eric: But not at this moment. This is Malfoy Manor, this is when he’s angry at everybody because Harry broke into the vault.
Micah: It almost…
Andrew: I’m talking about that body with the hat on it.
Eric: Yeah, yeah, the body.
Andrew: The guy wearing the hat, 28 seconds.
Eric: Yeah, that totally – it makes the loud thunder sound of falling and hitting the ground.
Andrew: Oh.
Eric: Why would you say it didn’t hit the ground?
Andrew: Because it’s a trailer.
Eric: Oh.
Andrew: They manipulate everything.
Eric: That’s true.
Scene-by-Scene: Malfoy Manor
Andrew: The best shot is at thirty – well, first at 29 seconds. A wide shot of Malfoy Manor, Voldemort walking barefoot. This is like – either one of you two just mentioned Bellatrix – realizing that the vault was broken into. You see Draco in the background. Very cool shots.
Micah: So is he cursed or has he killed all these Death Eaters?
Andrew: I think killed.
Eric: They’re not getting back up.
Micah: Okay.
[Andrew laughs]
Eric: Oh, but they’re not all Death Eaters. A lot of them – I think it’s actually – if I’m remembering correctly it’s goblins. It’s nearly all of the goblins.
Andrew: Yeah. You can tell they’re goblins, too, a couple of them.
Eric: A couple of them. It’s just the officials of Gringotts who have obviously broken the news to Voldemort that his vault – or Bellatrix’s vault has been…
Andrew: Robbed.
Eric: He brings them there to torture them and kill them.
Micah: Oh okay. So this is Malfoy Manor, it’s just…
Andrew: Yeah.
Micah: It’s like he went and seized all of these goblins and brought them in for questioning.
Eric: Yeah. Or they came to him. I feel like there has to be sort of a…
Andrew: It’s probably their duty to come to him.
Eric: Their duty?
Andrew: Yeah.
Eric: Yeah, something like that.
Andrew: Of course we also see Nagini there, too.
Eric: Hmm.
Scene-by-Scene: Trio Looking at Sky
Andrew: And then advancing to 32 seconds we see the trio looking up at the sky. Based on some information from WB in the past, I am pretty sure this is when they are in Hogsmeade and a Patronus had been sent.
Eric: Oh. Yeah, I don’t know what this is.
Andrew: It’s hard to tell because it’s a close-up shot of them, but I’m 99% sure.
Eric: Yeah, they’re against a tarp or something.
Andrew: Yeah, yeah.
Eric: Interesting.
Scene-by-Scene: Gringotts Carts
Andrew: Advancing to 33 seconds and 34 seconds we see some special effects that were probably not in the test screening, Eric.
[Andrew and Eric laugh]
Andrew: It’s when they’re moving through Gringotts and…
Eric: This – yeah.
Andrew: Hmm? Go ahead.
Eric: And the cart is spinning. This was the point in the film when there was a title card instead of a special effect and it said something like, “A cavernous and vestigious pit is revealed.”
[Andrew and Eric laugh]
Eric: Or – there was some V word. It was funny.
Andrew: Got Griphook in the front.
Eric: Yeah.
Andrew: Harry, Ron, Bellatrix/Hermione…
Eric: And Bellatrix.
Andrew: …in the back.
Eric: Yeah.
Micah: Now, who is behind Griphook? Is that Travers?
Eric: It’s another goblin, isn’t it, Andrew?
Andrew: Yeah and he’s under Imperio.
Eric: Yeah.
Andrew: Because – to help them get into the vault.
Eric: Yeah, there may be a slight departure from the book but it’s not – I think it’s very slight in the break in scene.
MuggleCast 227 Transcript (continued)
Scene-by-Scene: Gringotts Dragon
Andrew: Okay, and then we advance further into the break in scene where the trio get the dragon out. And we see them in the hall – I guess the foyer you could call it – of Gringotts, and the dragon shoots a very fiery breath at some of the goblins. And then we get the first title card, “On July 15th.”
[Micah makes indistinguishable sound]
Andrew: Hmm?
Micah: I was going to just ask – we touched on the water scene but what exactly is that from?
Andrew: The water scene.
Micah: When…
Andrew: Please…
Eric: Something hitting the water?
Micah: This was way back in 27 seconds.
Andrew: Oh, I know exactly what that is. That’s when they jumped off the dragon I think, right, Eric?
Eric: Oh, good catch.
Andrew: That sort of just clicked with me. That must be what it is.
Eric: Yeah.
Andrew: Yeah.
Eric: Yeah, they jump off the dragon. They – obviously it’s a water landing.
Andrew: [laughs] Right.
[Micah laughs]
Andrew: It’s water.
[Eric laughs]
Andrew: Captain Sully Sullenberger helped them land.
[Andrew and Eric laugh]
Scene-by-Scene: Statues
Andrew: So okay – so we get the title, “July 15th,” we see the shot of Snape. We’re at 39/40 seconds now. Okay, best shot of the film and the trailer right here. 40 seconds in when the statue – okay, this is what’s so great about it. I’m going to have a Mikey B moment here. The camera is on the ground…
[Eric laughs]
Andrew: …kind of slowly trucking towards the Great Hall, the entrance, and right in front of the camera drops one of the guards. And he drops from one of the walls. He was perched up on one of the walls. And the way he lands – he lands on one knee and he’s kind of bowing down with that axe-like thing in his hand.
[Eric laughs]
Andrew: Now, in the movie this is triggered by McGonagall calling the statues to life. And it is so badass! It’s one of the best things in the movie! Thank you.
Micah: Yeah. And that’s great because that’s one of the – my favorite scenes from the book. It’s just cool to think that she has all this power to bring the castle to life.
Andrew: Right.
Micah: And it must be great seeing her in that scene, bring these statues and suits of armor and everything else, gargoyles, to life.
Eric: Well, the interesting thing is – maybe it’s a departure between the books and the movies. In the books it always seemed like Hogwarts has these measures that were – Hogwarts can protect itself. Hogwarts always has been kind of a school/fortress. Things like suits of armor in the books already move from place to place, at least in the earlier books.
Andrew: But we never see it [laughs] in the movies.
Eric: We never see it in the films. In the films McGonagall has to call these to life and again that – of course it happens in the book but I’m thinking, “This was a unique scene,” because I didn’t think we’d ever see things like statues coming to life, with the exception of the chess in the first movie. So this was…
Micah: Now, does she actually say the spell?
Andrew: Yes.
Eric: Yeah, it’s like “locomotor something magnifico.”
Andrew: Yeah.
Eric: “Locomotor magnifico.” It’s some ridiculous variation of that spell.
Micah: Oh, that’s cool though.
Andrew: And to give you some perspective, this is – the opposite direction that the camera is facing is the courtyard. And McGonagall is standing on the courtyard/Great Hall steps in between the two areas of the school.
Eric: Yeah, so this is where Dumbledore closes the doors in Movie 5. This is the Entrance Hall essentially, which leads into the Great Hall behind him.
Andrew: Right. And you can see, by the way, the Great Hall – the window, that giant window at the front is smashed in.
Eric: Yeah.
Andrew: There’s a giant hole in the middle of it.
Eric: Ooh, is it before he lands?
Andrew: No, it’s not.
Eric: Can we freeze-frame before…
Andrew: It’s not.
Eric: Oh.
Andrew: Oh, it is before. The hole is there before he lands.
Eric: Yeah, it is. Ha!
Andrew: Yeah.
Eric: Look at that, there’s a Snape-shaped hole in the window.
Andrew: Snape shaped? Oh, I see what you’re saying. [laughs]
Eric: That’s in the book, too. She calls it a Snape-shaped hole, I’m pretty sure.
Andrew: [laughs] Doesn’t look Snape shaped in here, but anyway.
Eric: Looks similar to a bat, really.
Andrew: So at 41 seconds there’s another title. It says, “Only one.”
Eric: [gasps] Only one.
Andrew: Film left. [laughs]
Eric: Oh, I haven’t even – I never – oh wow, I’ve seen this and I haven’t even been paying attention to what they’re telling us.
Scene-by-Scene: Voldemort and His Followers
Andrew: [laughs] Then the next shot is Harry. 43 seconds in. We’ve seen this shot a lot actually in other previews. Then the following shot is Voldemort with all his Death Eaters and basically he’s looking down at the castle.
Eric: You never realize how many Death Eaters there are until this shot, I think it is.
Scene-by-Scene: Close-up of Snape’s Face
Andrew: Yeah. The next shot – very badass shot: Snape. A lot of flashing going on around him, presumably just spells from the battle.
Eric: Lightning maybe?
Andrew: Oh. Or lightning.
Eric: I think this is a continuation of – because we missed it. He was actually standing outside Godric’s Hollow, outside of…
Andrew: Oh okay.
Eric: …Lily and James’s house. So in the very beginning – the first shot at four seconds is him walking down the corridor towards the house. Then there’s another shot of him standing in front of the house. This is also a continuation of what plays during “The Prince’s Tale” scene, of him coming closer and closer to discovering what has happened essentially. But the flashing is like lightning. It’s like a stormy night.
Andrew: Oh okay. He looks very disturbed, too. Some great acting on Alan Rickman’s part.
Eric: Yeah, I’m glad they didn’t have to do any CGI tears for this scene.
Andrew: [laughs] Another title card, “Can live.”
[Eric laughs]
Scene-by-Scene: Destruction of Hogwarts Castle
Andrew: And here – and right after this at 47 seconds some more great special effects. We see the Death Eaters flying in sending a green spell at the castle. A good Harry Potter fan would assume that’s Avada Kedavra but as you see the spell light up the castle you can see nobody is in there. So it’s kind of just a destruction spell.
Eric: Yeah, why did they Avada Kedavra – what do they have against that window? Really?
Andrew: Well – yeah, I don’t know.
Eric: To Avada Kedavra it – they split their soul on behalf of a – I don’t know.
Andrew: Now – okay. Yeah, this may be getting too technical. Well, they’re not even officially sending an Avada Kedavra spell. They’re just sending a spell.
Eric: Yeah, and it’s green.
Andrew: But I was going to ask, if it was an Avada Kedavra spell, could it actually blow up a brick castle – a stone castle?
Eric: Right. I think it’s – no, it’s a good question. It would be more like a Diffindo or a Reducto or a spell like that.
Scene-by-Scene: Harry’s Scar Hurting
Andrew: So then there’s a shot of Harry. It’s kind of a bird’s eye view. It’s kind of swooping down at him.
Eric: What’s wrong with him?
Andrew: He’s feeling Voldemort’s wrath.
Eric: Is he?
Andrew: Yes, absolutely.
Eric: This is Dan’s complete go-to, Harry being overcome, over-succumbed – succumbing and being overwhelmed to his scar.
Andrew: And again this is the final battle. You can see he’s wearing that corduroy jacket.
[Eric laughs]
Micah: No, it’s…
Andrew: [laughs] Well, it’s true.
Micah: …”Oh man, I shouldn’t have had that burger earlier. This is the wrong time for this to happen.”
[Andrew and Eric laugh]
Eric: Oh RiffTrax.
Andrew: Like, “I got enough problems going on and now I have digestion cramps?! Dammit!”
Eric: [laughs] I’m taking a picture of this screenshot to preserve this moment. Okay.
Andrew: Yeah, he’s like holding his stomach almost. That is funny.
Eric: He is holding his – right at the zipper.
Scene-by-Scene: Voldemort Scream No. 2
Andrew: Then there’s – right after that, we’re at the 49 second mark now, there’s a shot of Voldemort. He’s kind of doing a little – somebody is going to turn this into a GIF. He’s totally doing a little groove thing if you advance back and forth through the frames. He’s kind of doing like a little crab dance sort of thing. But Voldemort looks very angry, by the way. If you get to the end of this clip…
Eric: Yeah.
Andrew: …you see him with probably one of the most angriest faces that you see him ever in these films.
Eric: Oh, guess what? Scream number two.
[Clip from trailer plays]
Andrew: It was kind of low but yeah, I get what you’re saying. [laughs]
Eric: Yeah. Same scream. It’s the same audio presumably for this scream.
Scene-by-Scene: The Battle of Hogwarts
Andrew: So destruction of Hogwarts at 49 seconds. Then at 50, we see Kingsley and at this point you can see, really, the Great Hall and Hogwarts have really fallen apart and daylight has come up now. And it’s nice that they actually did this. They kept the timeline similar to what it was in the book.
Eric: Mhm.
Andrew: In terms of the battle going on all night.
Eric: Yeah.
Andrew: And there they are when the sun is coming up and the battle is still going on. In the background you can see Arthur Weasley. You can see the giant window at the back of the Great Hall. It’s completely gone now.
Eric: Yeah.
Andrew: Another cool shot as we continue. Go to 51 seconds, you see all these spells from the Death Eaters trying to penetrate the castle, but they can’t because of the giant globe protection that – the globe-like protection that was put on the castle by the Hogwarts professors. And if you listen to our test screening review from a couple of episodes ago, you’ll hear that Eric and I thought that was very cool that scene, when the Hogwarts professors are all saying the same spell and putting that spell up.
Eric: Yeah.
Andrew: Guys, I got to pee, [laughs] so just hold on one second.
Eric: Okay.
Andrew: If you want to talk about – here, I’ll set up the next scene.
Micah: This is just like the movie.
[Andrew and Eric laugh]
Eric: Yeah, what is it with you and…
Scene-by-Scene: Narcissa Malfoy
Andrew: I should have waited until more from Snape’s memory. [laughs] Well here, I’ll talk about this and then you guys can talk about it. At the 52-second mark we see Narcissa Malfoy, and Eric, please tell us what is this clip – shot.
Eric: This clip of Narcissa Malfoy is really – she’s wondering why she’s in this film, I think. It’s almost like a candid shot. She’s like, “What’s going on? Why is there a camera here? I’m just hanging out in the woods.”
Andrew: And you can see on her face the – she’s kind of almost unsure it looks like. She turns around to give them an answer, but she’s kind of – I guess you would say hesitant.
Eric: [laughs] It’s very obvious that she’s about to tell a big fat lie…
[Andrew laughs]
Eric: …to Voldemort.
Andrew: Yeah, exactly, because she’s kind of scared.
Eric: Like, “What will he say if I lie?”
Scene-by-Scene: Person Flying on Broom
Andrew: We see another shot of the battle at 53 seconds. There’s a wizard on a broom. He’s kind of like waving people – oh, that’s not – is that Percy? No.
Eric: It looks…
Andrew: It kind of looks…
Eric: …like Percy.
Andrew: Yeah.
Eric: We thought it was – we thought it would have been Oliver Wood because when we saw it in the film, again the effects weren’t completed, it was just some guy on a broom. But you can hear him. He says, “Come on.” It looks like Percy, but I…
Andrew: At the beginning it does but not at the end, if you look at the very last frame. By the way, this is one of those training wheel brooms.
[Eric laughs]
Scene-by-Scene: Harry’s Vision
Andrew: It’s got the foot rests on it. I hate those. I hate how they did that. Next shot at 53 seconds, a very large army of statues coming to life like we talked about earlier. This is obviously when McGonagall brought them all to life with her “Locomotor” [speaks gibberish]. Then at 54 seconds we see Ron close-up shot kind of giving Harry a little talk, and Harry – actually I think this is related to the digestion cramp scene…
[Eric laughs]
Andrew: …that we saw earlier. [laughs]
Eric: He’s taken off the corduroy jacket, right? And he’s kind of…
Andrew: No, he’s still got it on.
Eric: Oh.
Andrew: 55 seconds. Yeah, he’s still…
Eric: Oh, he’s – yeah, but he’s wrapped around it. It’s like he’s cold. It’s like he’s having shivers.
Andrew: Well, you could – it almost looks like he’s sweating. His hair looks very soaked, I would say.
Eric: Yeah.
Scene-by-Scene: Nagini
Andrew: Then at 56 seconds an awesome shot of Nagini kind of jumping and coming towards the camera.
Eric: Is the spell hitting Nagini or is Nagini magicking…
Andrew: I think it’s just – Nagini just kind of appeared. Maybe Apparated?
Eric: Because it’s…
Andrew: I don’t know if that’s possible for Nagini.
Eric: [laughs] For a snake to Apparate? But it looks like that, doesn’t it?
Andrew: But you see at the beginning of the scene it’s just – or maybe – I don’t know. You may be right about a spell.
Eric: Yeah, I think a spell is hitting her, but she’s totally…
Andrew: She’s going through it.
Eric: Yeah, she’s absolutely overcoming, I think. The interesting thing about the freeze frame right now is just how many teeth there are. Like I wonder – God if snakes really look like that, I don’t ever want to see a big snake.
Scene-by-Scene: Ron and Hermione
Andrew: Next shot, 56 going into 57, we see – we’ve seen this shot a lot already.
Eric: Yeah, we have.
Andrew: Ron and Hermione…
Eric: And Ron is just devastated…
Andrew: Yeah.
Eric: …over something.
Scene-by-Scene: Dragon Breaking Out
Andrew: Another shot as we enter 57, 58 seconds of the Basilisk and the trio are on the back. I do not…
Eric: Not the Basilisk.
Andrew: …know how they hold on, but – oh sorry.
Eric: The dragon.
Andrew: The dragon, yeah.
Eric: Yeah.
Andrew: Obviously that’s not the Basilisk. [laughs]
Eric: That’s okay.
Scene-by-Scene: Ron Crying Over Fred’s Body
Andrew: At 59 seconds we see Harry crawling on the ground. Now, finally another interesting scene. 59 seconds in we see Fred who is dead, Ron is crying, Molly is there. What’s your guys’ thoughts? This is a very sad scene.
Eric: You can see the devastation on Ron’s face. But it’s playing to this epic music where you are like – again this is one of the shots that’s for us freeze-frame folk.
Andrew: Exactly, yeah. I didn’t – this is one of those scenes I mentioned earlier. I did not notice it until I – until actually going frame by frame.
Eric: Mhm. Yeah, but it’s heart wrenching.
Andrew: Rupert looks like he does a good job crying, I have to say. He does look very emotional.
Eric: That scene, yeah. That’s what first led up to me crying, was seeing Rupert there as Ron completely destroyed, mourning the death of his brother.
Scene-by-Scene: Trio’s Goodbye
Andrew: Next shot we see, one minute in, Harry, Hermione, and Ron. This is the moment – this is one of the saddest moments in the film, I have to say. This is when Harry and Hermione talk to each other about what’s going on. They know that Harry has to go into the forest…
Eric: Yeah.
Andrew: …and sacrifice himself.
Eric: This is after Harry knows he has to go die.
Andrew: Right, but what I mean is that this is when Harry and Hermione finally – Harry says – well, I won’t spoil it, but Harry and Hermione both understand that this is what Harry needs to do.
Eric: Yeah, so this is the goodbye hug…
Andrew: Yeah.
Eric: …that we see.
Andrew: And Ron is in the background like, [in a silly voice] “What? What’s going on?” [back to normal voice] Just kidding, he’s a very smart person.
[Eric laughs]
Scene-by-Scene: Voldemort Shooting a Spell
Andrew: Advancing to 1:01, 1:02, very cool shot. We see Voldemort sending a spell towards the castle. We see Bellatrix by his side. The special effects look amazing, I mean so detailed.
Eric: It’s very brightly lit is this. And I see from the screenshot that Voldemort is screaming. Is this the same scream, Andrew?
Andrew: Let’s see.
[Clip from trailer plays]
Eric: That one’s…
Andrew: Yeah, another little one.
Eric: Another little, little one.
Andrew: Yeah.
Eric: So that one is, I guess, different. But stay tuned.
Scene-by-Scene: Harry in Gringotts Vault
Andrew: Nagini is there by his side too, by the way, for the record. At 1:03 we see Harry climbing up trying to get to the sword, and you can tell this is the scene because you see all the gold behind him.
Eric: Not the sword, the cup.
Andrew: The cup, sorry.
Eric: The cup.
Andrew: Yeah.
Eric: And I wanted to say the preview shot of Ginny is a released still that we received.
Andrew: Yes.
Eric: From WB, wasn’t it?
Andrew: Yup.
Eric: So…
Scene-by-Scene: Lupin and Tonks
Andrew: At 1:05/1:04 we see Lupin and Tonks. First shot of them.
Micah: Only shot of them. [laughs]
Eric: Yay!
Micah: Well, until later.
Andrew: [laughs] Only shot, yeah.
Micah: Only live shot of them.
Andrew: Well, later in the movie. [laughs]
Eric: But they’re reaching for each other. Again, arms reaching and touching each other.
Andrew: Because as we learned in Part 1 they’re getting – oh no, she’s having a…
[Eric laughs]
Andrew: Of course she had the baby at this point. I was…
Eric: [unintelligible]
Scene-by-Scene: Destroying the Protection Around Hogwarts Castle
Andrew: At 1:07 we see Hogwarts, and we see these – oh sorry, this is more like 1:05, 1:06. We see the spell that the professors had put on the castle, crumbling.
Eric: Mhm.
Andrew: And it’s cool how it’s represented.
Eric: Yeah, very much. It shows that Hogwarts is vulnerable. It’s all going down.
Andrew: In the front of the castle down at the water you can see the boathouse, by the way.
Eric: Oh.
Andrew: I just wanted to point out how they made sure that was there.
Eric: I feel like the boathouse is in the trailer – or is in the poster for the first Harry Potter film.
Andrew: I think it may be, yeah.
Eric: They just never used it.
Micah: Well, it’s in all the video games, too.
Eric: Yeah.
Micah: Or most of them anyway.
Eric: Yeah, that it is. And then leading up is the actual moment with the third Voldemort scream.
Scene-by-Scene: Harry and Voldemort Jumping Off a Ledge
Andrew: And now this part at 1:08…
Eric: Six.
Andrew: …1:09.
Eric: Yeah.
Andrew: This is when – this is the thing, I don’t – we shouldn’t spoil people, but – I mean, obviously if you watch this, you see what’s happening here. Well here, let’s – I’ll play it.
[Clip from trailer plays] “Come on, Tom. Let’s finish this the way we started: together!”
Micah: There’s another scream for you.
Andrew: Now, I – that is another scream, yeah.
Eric: Yeah.
Andrew: Well, because he’s falling off a cliff. I would scream, too.
[Andrew and Eric laugh]
Andrew: This – I hate this so much because it just seems so wrong for Harry to touch Voldemort. So Harry grabs him around the neck and pulls him off the cliff, and it’s just – I don’t like it at all.
Eric: So – well, does the dialogue do nothing for you? Because…
Andrew: No.
Eric: …I have to say, I almost wet my pants, listening – watching this in the film. I thought it was awesome.
Andrew: I hate it. And I think that we’re going to have a lot more to say when the movie comes out.
Eric: Okay.
Andrew: I won’t talk about it now…
Micah: Well, I will. [laughs]
Andrew: …because obviously there’s stuff that happens.
Eric: [laughs] Yeah, Micah…
Andrew: Okay, you talk about it from what you’ve seen here in the trailer.
Micah: Okay, without trying to go back to that Deathly Hallows – Part 1 mind-set where we obviously had disagreements [laughs] on what we thought of the film, I think this is the director and the producer’s attempt to add that Hollywood element to the Potter series, because – and what I mean by that is you have to have that sort of typical Hollywood action sequence, and that’s exactly what I think is going to be happening here. Now, I’m not saying that I don’t like it and I don’t think that there’s the chance that this could be a really awesome scene with a lot of great special effects. But there’s also the chance that this scene is going to really rub people the wrong way, especially people who are very strong fans of the books. And from what you have said in past episodes about how this all plays out, how they are battling all throughout the castle, what do you think?
Eric: Well, how do you mean that this scene is a typical Hollywood answer to the Potter series?
Micah: I didn’t say “answer.”
Eric: Because this is the only moment – well, you said it’s a Hollywood version of…
Andrew: It is very – I agree.
Eric: But I don’t because this is the only point in the film – spoiler there – but it’s really the only point in the film where Harry calls Voldemort “Tom,” and…
Micah: Well, that has nothing to do with it being…
Eric: It does, it has to do with being faithful to the source material.
Micah: Well, if it was faithful to the source material it would be in the Great Hall, not on top of a cliff. But the whole point of that was he called him “Tom” in front of everybody else, not on a cliff somewhere at Hogwarts.
Eric: It wasn’t essential that he called…
Micah: But we’re talking about the wrong thing here, first of all.
Eric: Well actually, that’s my…
Micah: We’re talking about the fact that – when I said it was that typical Hollywood scene, I meant from an action standpoint, that you have to have that action sequence where…
Andrew: Right.
Eric: There’s no action here.
Micah: Well, what’s about to happen though.
Andrew: Well, there will be in the film. [laughs] Yeah.
Eric: Well, we’re not talking about what’s about to happen, are we? I mean, I think…
Andrew: Well, it’s presumed.
Eric: …what it is here – okay, I guess you’re right.
Micah: You’re about to embark on that typical [laughs] Hollywood action scene, that’s my point. And I’m not saying that I’m going to have a problem with it, I’m not saying that I don’t like this particular scene. I’m just saying that I think that you’re going to have people who aren’t going to like it.
Eric: Well, I wouldn’t blame Hollywood though. What I would say is that they needed to come up with some severely interesting ways to show an hour and a half of Voldemort chasing Harry.
Andrew: That’s Hollywood.
Eric: And the fact…
Andrew: You’ve got to interest people for an hour and a half. [laughs]
Eric: No, it’s not Hollywood, it’s movie-making. Don’t confuse the two.
Andrew: Well…
Eric: I mean, in my opinion it’s movie-making where Voldemort and Harry are in close proximity. I know you don’t like it when he touches Voldemort. I think that’s a completely true or valid point, a valid thing not to like. But I also think that because they’re chasing each other for so long in the film, they needed this variation. And I like the idea that Harry and Voldemort are familiar with one another at this point enough that they can battle, but it doesn’t have to be from across a courtyard shooting spells at each other. They can be each other’s archenemies and be breathing down each other’s neck. That’s what I like about this.
Micah: [laughs] So they could be WWE style in the middle of the ring, duking it out with each other.
[Andrew laughs]
Eric: Yes. They can hate each other…
Micah: I get that.
Andrew: [in announcer voice] “In this corner…”
Eric: …and still be…
Micah: Eric, I get that. Believe me, I understand that. But I think – and look, maybe I’m approaching this the wrong way…
Eric: I don’t think so. I mean, I…
Micah: …and people who read the books aren’t going to – normally I get criticized for talking about people who go to the films who haven’t read the books, and there not being enough plot in place all the time for them to get it. Here I’m talking about the people who have read the books, and they’re going to come in [laughs] and they’re going to say – and I’ve seen comments already, tweets, things like that, say, [laughs] “Why is Harry pulling Voldemort off a cliff?”
[Andrew laughs]
Eric: Yeah. [laughs]
Andrew: They’re like, “All right, let’s just both die. Let’s just both have our heads smashed into a rock [laughs] at the bottom of this cliff.”
Eric: [laughs] It’s daring, it’s dashing, it’s Harry Potter…
Andrew: I think Harry followed the whole mantra, “Keep your friends close but your enemies closer”…
[Eric laughs]
Andrew: …a little too literally.
Eric: Well, and – no, I think – Micah, I think why is Harry pulling – the fact that fans are asking that, it’s true. And why isn’t the Tom thing in the Great Hall with everybody? It’s these film choices that they’ve made, but they’re departures and because of that, there are going to be people who are very upset.
Micah: This looks like it’s about to be a great action sequence, and…
Eric: It’s good dialogue! It’s “Let’s finish this the way we started it: together!” It’s like…
Micah: And then what? Does the Hungarian Horntail shoot up from its hiding place?
Andrew: [laughs] No, Dumbledore…
Micah: [laughs] Dumbledore.
Andrew: …comes back to life. He picks up Harry but lets Voldemort keep falling.
Eric: I don’t get it.
Andrew: It’s a slight change from the books.
Eric: What do you mean?
Andrew: I’m just making a joke. [laughs]
Eric: [laughs] Oh okay.
Andrew: All right…
Micah: Yeah.
MuggleCast 227 Transcript (continued)
Scene-by-Scene: Snape Disapparating
Andrew: …let’s move on from picking that apart. We’ll have much more to say later. The next few shots we’ve seen before, so let’s just skip to 1:15. We see Snape in the Great Hall. Pretty badass shot of him, I have to say. He kind of whips his cape around, and we see him turn into the bat-like figure.
Micah: I called him “Batman Snape.”
Eric: Yeah. Or at least – [laughs] Batman Snape.
[Andrew sings the 1960s Batman TV show theme song]
Eric: Severus…
Andrew: There’s a dead body in the background. I don’t know if that’s anyone of importance or that’s just one of those random dead bodies.
Eric: What?
Andrew: I think it’s just a random dead body.
Eric: That’s weird because when he turns into a bat is in front of the whole Hogwarts audience when he summons everybody. That’s a spoiler.
Andrew: Well, maybe there is an audience. We just can’t see it.
Eric: But there’s no – why would there be a dead body there? I see what you see.
Andrew: Oh! Wait, wait, wait, doesn’t this…
Eric: But there’s no…
Andrew: This happens when…
Eric: Yeah, when Harry is about to be – or when Harry and McGonagall…
Andrew: Yeah.
Eric: …are about to…
Andrew: So, why…
Eric: I don’t think that’s a body. It looks like…
Andrew: It’s a body. It’s a hundred percent.
Eric: It’s a face. Who…
Andrew: I’m looking at the 1080p HD version.
Eric: Oh geez, okay.
[Andrew laughs]
Eric: I’m not going to argue with your Blu-ray copy of this.
Andrew: Don’t argue with HD!
Eric: [laughs] But who would be there? Because this is during – he hasn’t killed anybody. Maybe the Carrows – one of the Carrows fell over.
Andrew: Yeah, that’s my only thought.
Eric: Because this is during the meeting in the Great Hall.
Andrew: Yeah.
Eric: All the students, and then Harry steps out and Voldemort – and McGonagall has to protect him.
Andrew: Yeah.
Eric: But I don’t know who would be there.
Scene-by-Scene: Fiendfyre
Andrew: Yeah, me neither. We’ll have to figure that out later. We see another title, “The Epic Conclusion.” And then we get to 1:17, another shot I think we’ve seen bits and pieces of: Ron and Hermione holding hands as fire chases after them. We see
a snake-like figure, I would say, in that fire.
Eric: It looks like a bear to me.
Andrew: Or a bear. Or a wolf.
Eric: Or at least when it hits and turns the corner. Or maybe a – maybe it’s a badger. I have this really unique shot of it, it’s during 1:17. This is where multi…
Andrew: Yeah, I see what you’re saying. It looks like a wolf to me, actually.
Eric: Yeah, a wolf.
Andrew: Because of the ears.
Eric: But looking at the cartoon insignia of Hogwarts, it kind of – like it would be a badger because if – I think I remember Fiendfyre takes a really interesting form in the film, as far as being several different animals of fire chasing. Very interesting.
Andrew: Okay, so there’s that. And then as we advance to another title, “Of The Worldwide Phenomenon”…
Eric: Whoa!
Scene-by-Scene: Courtyard Battle Scene
Andrew: …wide shot. And now there’s a lot of detail in this shot. We see they’re in the courtyard, we see giants – that’s definitely the most prominent. We see about two giants, a couple of Death Eaters in the sky.
Micah: Where do you see the giants? Or do I need higher resolution?
Andrew: Don’t you guys? One of them is holding a lamppost.
Eric: Yeah, it’s like on the – if you’re looking at the five window – or five columns on the very right side – one, two, three, four, five – it’s right above the fifth column if you’re going right.
Andrew: Oh! And I think one of the giants is swinging…
Eric: Yeah.
Andrew: …one of the Quidditch pitch rings.
Eric: Oh, no.
Andrew: One of the goals.
Micah: Oh yeah, I see that now. Yeah.
Eric: I’m pretty sure it’s just a bone.
Andrew: No.
Eric: Yeah.
Andrew: No.
Eric: Like a bone turned into a club.
Andrew: Shut – Eric, come on, it’d be awesome if that was a Quidditch pitch ring.
[Eric laughs]
Andrew: Can we please pretend that it was?
[Micah laughs]
Andrew: That it is? Let’s spoil them now: The final battle takes place in the Quidditch pitch.
Eric: Yeah, no.
Andrew: Kidding!
Eric: Although we do see it, what, engulfed in flames?
Andrew: Yeah.
Eric: On the left side of this shot – same shot – I love how you can see into the building.
Andrew: Yeah.
Eric: You can see into Hogwarts through the wall. It’s like…
Andrew: And you see a Death Eater coming in, going inward.
Eric: Yeah.
Andrew: You see a smoky figure moving in.
Eric: That’s really awesome.
Andrew: Yeah, so that’s a very cool shot.
Scene-by-Scene: Harry Fighting Off Fiendfyre
Eric: Ooh, and then Harry – the next shot, obviously – Harry trying to fight off the Fiendfyre.
Andrew: Yeah.
Eric: By shooting water at it? What’s…
Andrew: Yeah.
Eric: No, it’s a spell. That’s really…
Andrew: Aguamenti?
Eric: Aguamenti. It’s like a waterfall.
Andrew: Yeah.
Eric: Very unique shot. But this was not an effect that was complete when we saw it.
Scene-by-Scene: Bridge Destruction
Andrew: Moving into 1:22, we see a couple – a few shots in a row, actually, of one of the bridges leading to Hogwarts crumbling as the Snatchers try to not fall to their deaths. [laughs] But they do fall. There is obviously somebody who caused that wreck, but we won’t spoil that.
Micah: Who?
Andrew: I’m not spoiling it!
Micah: Neville.
Andrew: No! Okay, another interesting shot.
[Everyone laughs]
Scene-by-Scene: Snatchers Running Into Protective Charm
Andrew: The other interesting shot, 1:25, we see Molly sending the spell. “Not my daughter, you bitch!”
Micah: Wait, can we go back for a second?
Andrew: Yeah.
Eric: Yeah.
Micah: To 1:24. There’s a little quick scene before that, and what exactly is happening to these…
Eric: Oh.
Micah: I don’t know if they’re Snatchers. As they’re running, they’re transforming into skeleton-like people.
Eric: Yeah, you’re right actually. You can see…
Andrew: I think they’re disintegrating.
Eric: It’s totally Dead Man’s Chest style. They are disintegrating, but this is kind of a cheesy effect of showing it. They’re liquifying, really. They’re turning into white liquid, white goo. Basically they’re running into the force field and the force field is stopping them.
Andrew: Right.
Eric: So it takes a few Death Eaters for everybody else to figure out, “Hey, there’s…”
Andrew: Yeah.
Eric: “We can’t really go any further.”
Scene-by-Scene: Duel Between Molly and Bellatrix
Andrew: All right. So like I said, at 1:25, we get to hear:
[Audio (Stephen Fry)]: “Not my daughter, you bitch!”
Eric: She does not say that in this trailer, and it’s – that was hilarious.
Andrew: Now, that was – just for the record, that was not a clip from the trailer. Though – here, I’m going to play it with the trailer. Let’s see how this goes.
[Clip from trailer and audiobook play in sync]
[Andrew and Eric laugh]
Andrew: I don’t know if that works. Kind of.
[Eric laughs]
Andrew: Okay, where were we? Okay. Yeah, so what do you guys – I mean, it’s kind of hard to tell, but what we see in the trailer is Molly fighting off the spell – or Bellatrix fighting off Molly’s spell.
Eric: Yeah, but she’s – at the same time, she’s surprised.
Andrew: Yeah.
Eric: Because it’s kind of more of an aggressive spell.
Andrew: Yeah.
Micah: Well, what’s interesting to me is you get – that one shot of Molly looks like that’s the fatal shot that she’s delivering, but then they switch to a scene where it looks like Bellatrix is deflecting the spell.
Eric: Yeah.
Micah: So is it possible that that’s how they ordered it?
Eric: Yeah, I think it’s mis-ordered. It’s possible that that’s the kill-blow.
Micah: Because they’re so close in that particular shot, but then they’re so much separated…
Eric: When she’s deflecting the spell?
Micah: …when they go to the next shot.
Eric: Yeah, you’re right.
Andrew: It could be perspective though, too.
Eric: Yeah.
Andrew: If Bellatrix is – if the camera is really over Bellatrix’s shoulder, it may not…
Eric: Although, interestingly, if you look in this shot of Bellatrix at 1:25, you see the students in the background…
Andrew: Yeah.
Eric: …and they’re kind of just hanging out.
Andrew: Yeah.
Eric: Like none of them are focusing on Molly and Bellatrix. They’re kind of like hanging out, playing Nintendo. Maybe Exploding Snap or Charades or cards or something. But they’re not really paying attention to what’s going on. It’s kind of weird.
Andrew: At 1:26 we see the trio again, on the back of the dragon. They are going through Diagon Alley this time. You can see the entrance to Gringotts in the background and where the dragon broke out.
Eric: Oh. Wait, let me amend what I said, sorry. In a freeze frame it looks like they’re hanging out, but these students behind Bellatrix are actually battling Death Eaters.
Andrew: They’re fighting, yeah.
Eric: Yeah, sorry.
Micah: They’re using Wii remotes.
[Andrew laughs]
Eric: No, it looked…
Andrew: [laughs] They’re playing the video game.
Eric: Obviously when I froze it they weren’t in action, so of course I didn’t see them in action. My bad.
Scene-by-Scene: Rubble Falling
Andrew: 1:26/1:27, we see Voldemort. We’ve seen that shot a million times.
Eric: Shit’s falling down though. Hogwarts is…
Andrew: Don’t curse! Come on. I get e-mails.
Eric: All right.
Andrew: [in a silly voice] “Don’t curse. Don’t curse, guys.” [back to normal voice] 1:27, that same area, we see stuff falling down. [laughs]
Micah: It looks like a person, though.
Andrew: Really? Where?
Micah: I have it paused, it looks like a body is falling.
Andrew: I think it’s a bunch of bricks.
Micah: No, no, there’s definitely a person in here. [laughs]
Scene-by-Scene: More Scenes From the Battle of Hogwarts
Andrew: At 1:30, we see Voldemort and Harry sending the spells at each other. We’ve seen this a million times, again. Beautiful high-rise shot, and actually probably one of the cooler shots in the trailer, other than the statue thing I mentioned earlier, was at 1:32 when we see all the Death Eaters sending hundreds of spells at the castle. And the castle just looks beautiful. The spells coming out of the Death Eaters’ wands, they’re a light blue, it’s a very cool shot. A couple of quick last minute shots: at 1:34 we see Voldemort send Harry a blue spell at him. Harry obviously very easily deflects it. Then at 1:35, we see Neville holding the Sorting Hat with Ginny and Arthur. This is obviously when Hagrid is holding Harry’s body and everybody thinks that Harry is dead. Very emotional scene. We see Hermione, Kingsley, Seamus, Cho Chang, several others in the background as well.
Eric: And then the “P” gets it.
Andrew: Well, the way the trailer is cut, it cuts to a shot of Harry and it’s almost like…
Eric: Yeah.
Andrew: …he’s turning around to look at all the people crying, and being like, “Hey guys, I got him. I’m just fighting off this really hard spell.”
Micah: Then who gets it?
Eric: The “P” in the Harry Potter logo gets it.
Micah: [laughs] Oh, oh.
Eric: I want to count how many times this thing has been hit by a spell. But this time they really mean it.
Andrew: So that’s it, that’s the trailer. We went through every little scene. What did you guys – any more overall thoughts?
Eric: It started with that flower unrealistically growing in Lily’s hand, but it only got better from there. And apparently they say 3D is going to be available. They still say 3D is going to be available.
Andrew: [laughs] Yeah. “Complete the journey in 3D,” just like the Part 1 trailer said.
[Eric laughs]
Announcement: LeakyCon 2011
Andrew: It’s a good time actually to bring up LeakyCon. LeakyCon.com. While you guys think of any closing thoughts, LeakyCon 2011 is taking place July 13th to the 17th in Orlando, Florida on the Universal Orlando Resort where The Wizarding World of Harry Potter theme park is located. Of course, the conference is over the release of Deathly Hallows – Part 2. So all the amazing things that we saw in the trailer today, we’ll be watching on a giant movie theater with some of the biggest, bestest, coolest, cry-babyish Harry Potter fans in the world.
Eric: [laughs] Was that last comment directed to me, Andrew?
Andrew: Including our own Eric Scull, yes.
Eric: Yes. I have…
Andrew: Oh, you will not be the only one crying.
Eric: So I do have a final thing, it will blow your mind again.
Andrew: Well, let me just finish the plug here.
Eric: Okay.
Andrew: Of course, we’ve talked about it a lot before. There’s going to be the dance which is going to be amazing. The dance is always my favorite part of the conference. The party in the park. Just so much to look forward to, and of course, some fantastic panels. There’s actually a new announcement, and that is concerning the amount of registrations left. There’s only about forty percent – not forty percent, about four hundred spots left at LeakyCon. So if you’re going to do it, if you want to come, if you want to see us do a live podcast – we’re going to do our big movie review show there – visit LeakyCon.com because there’s only four hundred registrations left, and those are going to go quick. Especially when some other big announcements are made, concerning special guests and what not. So visit LeakyCon.com. If you do register, please enter code “Muggle” so they know we sent you, and we cannot wait to see you there. LeakyCon.com. Eric, what was your big find?
Scene-by-Scene: Voldemort Screams
Eric: Well, just – I like that we can turn a one minute, fifty-four second trailer into an hour of discussion. And – but just so that it’s done properly…
Andrew: It’s exhausting.
[Eric and Micah laugh]
Eric: Yeah, can you still pull up the trailer? Pull it – start at 1:30.
Andrew: Okay.
Eric: There’s two more instances of the Voldemort scream. And they’re back – they’re on top of each other.
Andrew: You are just obsessed with this scream.
Eric: You’ve got to play it, it’s…
Andrew: That’s why this show is an hour.
[Clip from trailer plays]
Andrew: Yeah, he’s very angry in this movie. [laughs]
Eric: It’s the same scream!
Andrew: That’s the takeaway, he’s an angry man.
[Eric sighs]
Andrew: Here’s what I recommend: Cut up the trailer, take all the bits where he’s just screaming, patch them all together. It’ll be a YouTube hit.
Eric: But it’s almost like pacing. It’s almost like every fifteen seconds, to advance the story of the trailer, they – it’s a book-end. They’ve book-ended this trailer with these Voldemort…
Micah: What you don’t know, Eric, is just that Voldemort has composed the soundtrack for Deathly Hallows – Part 2.
[Eric laughs, Andrew imitates Voldemort’s scream]
Eric: Ralph Fiennes…
Micah: The one thing I was going to bring up about this trailer, though, is that you get no look at Dumbledore – Aberforth or Albus – in this at all.
Andrew: Good! He’s dead.
[Micah laughs]
Eric: Finally. Geez. Yeah. I was getting tired of that old man.
Micah: But yeah, no Hog’s Head, no King’s Cross, none of that. So it’s good to see, though, that some of the stuff…
Eric: Is a mystery.
Micah: [laughs] Is a mystery, yeah.
Andrew: Yeah, it’s good.
Eric: You’re right. Wouldn’t it suck if this trailer had showed King’s Cross?
Andrew: It would.
Eric: Like Harry waking up in the all-white scene.
Andrew: Yeah.
Eric: Whatever.
Andrew: All right, everyone. Well, it’s been a very full show. Thank you everyone for listening. We’d like to remind everybody about our website before we let you go. MuggleCast.com has all the information you need about this wonderful show that we produce every other week. There you will find a contact page where you can send in your feedback. Do send in your feedback about the trailer. There was a lot we didn’t get to, your thoughts, but you know what? We’ll save a little something to be desired. We’ll put those on Episode 228. Actually, let me run through some tweets real quick because we did tell people that we would.
Eric: Well, just – Andrew, before you do this, I’m on YouTube right now and it says 308 views of this trailer…
Andrew: That’s a bug, that always happens.
Eric: I know it’s a bug but right down beneath it, it says 1,276 likes and 3 dislikes.
Andrew: [in a silly voice] “Those must have been from Death Eaters!”
[Eric and Micah laugh]
Andrew: Everybody – whenever there’s like 2 dislikes on a video, people always make a joke about a group of haters.
[Eric laughs]
Andrew: So yeah, that must have been Death Eaters.
Eric: But if that’s any indicator, a lot of people seem to like this.
[Andrew laughs]
Eric: This trailer. 1,250 versus…
Andrew: Yes.
Eric: …3.
Andrew: Yeah. Yeah, it’s weird. It’s a video on a Harry Potter fan site and everybody likes it. Who would have thought?
[Andrew and Eric laugh]
Listener Tweets: Deathly Hallows Trailer
Andrew: Okay, let’s get through some tweets real quick. SirNicholas wrote:
“I love the trailer! Epic is the only word, especially when Harry Potter pulled Voldy.”
Whoa. Okay, somebody liked it.
Eric: Yeah.
Andrew: [continues]
“I’ll cry and be proud of it.”
Oh, here’s another comment about the jump! BaraOmalley said:
“I screamed when they jumped. It was some epic…”
Bleep. Knicknacknikki – that’s a clever name:
“Most epic trailer ever. Can’t wait until July but I’ll be sad the series is over but most well-done trailer so far.”
Would you guys say it was the best – it was the most well-done trailer so far? I would.
Eric: That scream. That scream irks me.
Andrew: You need to go into some counseling, I think, about that.
Eric: I think I’m going to have that voice going through my head all the time, just Voldemort… [imitates Voldemort’s scream]
Andrew: Janet516 wrote:
“I can’t wait for July! This looks action-packed and emotional.”
Phillygirly wrote:
“This was the most amazing trailer ever. I’ve never been so excited for a trailer. I loved it and can’t wait for the movie.”
Here’s a negative comment about the jump. Judder47 wrote:
“What was with Harry pulling Voldy off the top of the tower? ‘Come on, Tom. Let’s finish this the way we started it,’ hug, ‘together!'”
That was her mocking, of course.
Eric: [laughs] Hug.
Andrew: [laughs] Bestest513 wrote:
“Amazing! Amazing! It was enough. My question: Why the heck are the people turning into skeletons at 1.23?”
We answered that for you.
“Gave me chills.”
Writes hippychick10793. So overall, very, very positive. A couple of people confused about the jump, but that’s okay. And that does it…
Show Close
Eric: Yeah.
Andrew: …for MuggleCast Episode 227. Visit MuggleCast.com. You can always find us on Twitter.com/MuggleCast as well as Facebook.com/MuggleCast.
[Show music begins]
Andrew: If you follow or like us you can stay up to date on the show, new episode announcements, coming soon announcements, things like that. MuggleCast.com has all the information you need. Thanks everyone for listening! I’m Andrew Sims.
Eric: I’m Eric Scull.
Micah: And I’m Micah Tannenbaum.
Andrew: And we will see you next time for Episode 228.
Eric: Eight.
Andrew: Goodbye. Goodbye! Buh-bye!
Eric: See you later.
[Show music continues]