Noahtomlin's blog

Universal Studios Celebrates the Harry Potter Films with - Wait for It - A Celebration of the Harry Potter Films

2011-07-25T19:52:41Z

Universal Studios is going to host a three-day event in honour of the Harry Potter films from November 11 to November 13th.

"This special event will be hosted by Warner Bros.," read a press release announcing the event, "and will celebrate a decade of movie history by allowing fans to share their love for the Harry Potter films."

A Celebration of the Harry Potter Films will include a gala event at The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, autograph sessions with some of the stars, a Q&A panel, and screenings of all the films at the AMC Universal Cineplex 20.

Who's goin'?!!!

Source: MuggleNet

JK Rowling's Life Story Turned into Lifetime Movie of the Week

2011-07-19T16:46:16Z

Added by Noahtomlin

Lifetime, a television channel that is apparently an expert in creating made-for-TV movies with anvil-sized morals about the dangers of promiscuity and drug abuse, now tackles a slightly more tasteful subject with the story of JK Rowling's pre-Harry Potter upbringing. In Magic Beyond Words: the JK Rowling Story, the author's life is reimagined for the small screen, from her awkward childhood, her time spent as an ESL teacher in Portugal, right up to her experience writing the first Harry Potter book.

Well, whatever floats your boat I suppose. The movie officially aired yesterday at 8 pm EST, though doubtless there will be reruns.

Source: MuggleNet.com

Deathly Hallows Part 2 Makes a Truckload of Money, Sun to Rise Tomorrow

2011-07-15T17:41:24Z

Added by Noahtomlin

H arry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 is, unsurprisingly, king of the midnight box office. Screenings for Thursday's 12 am showing raked in $43.5 million (USD), crushing the previous record held by Eclipse.

DH2 has already secured $100 million in revenue and it's not even the official opening weekend yet.

Do you think the film will set the record for biggest opening ever? And/or highest grossing film EVER? Wouldn't that be magical...

Source: Hollywood Reporter

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part II Has a PC Demo, For Some Reason

2011-07-08T17:53:54Z

Added by Noahtomlin

The critical drubbing the Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part I video game received was ridiculously harsh even by licensed-game standards. Despite this, it seems Warner Bros. Interactive are not about to give up on this new Gears of War-inspired take of Potter play just yet. A demo of the PC version has been released and is available here, supporting both keyboard/mouse and an Xbox 360 gamepad. If you don't want to subject yourself to playing it, I've embedded playthroughs of the demo's two levels (a Battle of Hogwarts slaughterfest as Harry, and a boss fight against Fenrir Greyback as Hermione) after the break.

WB Has Some B-Roll Footage for You

2011-07-06T19:17:09Z

Added by Noahtomlin

Are you a fan of poor-quality videos with shaky-cam, taken straight from a movie set without any of the sound replaced and tons of green screen? Then do we have something great for you!

In all seriousness though, the two B-reels that Warner Bros. has released from the Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 set is rather interesting. We get to see our first glimpse of Aberforth Dumbledore and his rockin' beard in action, as well as B-rolls of some scenes which were previously released as finished clips. For instance, did you know the door to the Chamber of Secrets is an actual prop, and not just CG?

I've embedded both videos below.

Added by Noahtomlin

New Harry Potter Featurette is Filled with Goblins, Spoilers

2011-06-29T18:01:43Z

Added by Noahtomlin

The most recent featurette promoting Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 is all about the much-anticipated Gringotts break-in. Amongst other details, the cast and crew talk about the changes to Griphook's character from the rather simplified cameo in the Philosopher's Stone movie, show a bit of Helena Bonham Carter playing Hermione playing Bellatrix, talk about the new design for the Gringotts carts, and show some new footage of the Lestrange vault itself, multiplying treasure and all.

Suffice it to say, there are a ton of movie spoilers, so don't click if you don't want your movie experienced ruined. Everyone else can go right here and check it out.

Pottermore, a Website for Supplementary Material, Announced

2011-06-23T16:58:32Z

Added by Noahtomlin

J.K. Rowling's most recent project, Pottermore, has been officially announced. It is, as its title suggests, more Potter. Serving primarily as a ground for providing supplementary material, it will also serve to simulate the Wizarding experience through the internet. Pottermore will also have an online store where you can purchase, amongst other things, the entire septology as an eBook. Hit the jump for the official press release!

For this groundbreaking collaborative project, J.K. Rowling has written
extensive new material about the characters, places and objects in the 
much-loved stories, which will inform, inspire and entertain readers as 
they journey through the storylines of the books. Pottermore will later 
incorporate an online shop where people can purchase exclusively the long-
awaited Harry Potter eBooks, in partnership with J.K. Rowling’s publish-
ers worldwide, and is ultimately intended to become an online reading ex-
perience, extending the relevance of Harry Potter to new generations of
readers, while still appealing to existing fans. As the Pottermore Shop
develops, it is intended that it should include further products designed
specifically for Harry Potter fans, offering a potential outlet for Sony 
products and services related to Pottermore. In keeping with Harry Potter’s
international appeal, the site will launch in English, French, Italian, Ger-
man and Spanish, with more languages to follow. 

In the new website, the storyline will be brought to life with sumptuous
newly-commissioned illustrations and interactive ‘Moments’ through which
you can navigate, starting with the first book, Harry Potter and the Phi-
losopher’s Stone. On entering, you choose a magic username and begin your
experience. As you move through the chapters, you can read and share exclu-
sive writing from J.K. Rowling, and, just as Harry joins Hogwarts, so can 
you. You visit Diagon Alley, get sorted into a house, cast spells and mix
potions to help your house compete for the House Cup. 

At a press conference at the Victoria & Albert Museum in London, Rowling
revealed some key features of the website. In an announcement which will
thrill fans, she described how she has brought to life both the Sorting Hat
and Ollivanders experiences from her books for the first time on Pottermore
by revealing the questions asked by the Sorting Hat - which places newcomer
into their Hogwarts houses according to their characteristics - and the
magic behind the Wand Chooser – which finds the right wand for each user
from over 33,000 possible combinations. She also revealed glimpses of the 
new information she has provided on some of the best-loved characters.

Source: MuggleNet

Still more TV spots released for Deathly Hallows Part 2

2011-06-22T19:51:27Z

Two new television spots have been captured by our sleuthy netizens over at MuggleNet. Will it ever stop? (I for one, hope not.) I have embedded them both after the break for your enjoyment.

The first is a bit more on the darkly comic side, with Neville showing off a newfound snarkiness and some more footage of the Gringotts heist. The second is a more traditional spot without much new footage, aside from George Weasley fighting off a Death Eater and some sweet new narration from Dumbledore, courtesy of the King's Cross chapter.