Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: The Last Installment

The final installment of the Harry Potter series is now up - with a trailer. Watch it here:

After an extended opening showing Harry (Daniel Radcliffe) approaching Lord Voldemort (Ralph Fiennes), the trailer blazes through a montage of some of the big action moments in the films: Harry flies over London on Hagrid's motorcycle, runs for his life through the forest, and gets attacked by a giant snake. Harry's friends also get to show their heroic sides, with Hermione (Emma Watson) standing up to a threat with wand drawn, and Ron (Rupert Grint) swinging a sword.

The trailer also gives a look at the epic scope of the movies. It shows the gigantic dragon that guards the vaults of Gringotts Bank. Hogwarts is surrounded by a dome of fiery energy. And the students run away as the school is blasted with explosions. It all leads up to Harry and Voldemort facing off against each other in the courtyard, locked in their climatic battle.

You're not going to get to see that fight, though, for another year. The first part of "The Deathly Hallows" will open in theaters on November 19 of this year, but the second half won't be out until July 15, 2011. That will be nearly 10 years since the first movie hit screens in 2001.

Splitting one massive "Potter" book into two movies isn't a new idea. The filmmakers considered splitting "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire" into separate films, but decided instead to trim out many of the novel's subplots and just focus on Harry's story. That wasn't an option for the sprawling final book, so they chose to divide it into halves. Naturally, they did consult with J.K. Rowling first, and she agreed with their decision.

Both parts will be shown in 3D, though they were shot in 2D and will be converted in post-production. Segments of the past two "Potter" films were adapted to 3D, but this is the first time a full movie will undergo the process.

If you think that saying good-bye to Harry Potter will be emotional for you, don't worry, you're not alone. Daniel Radcliffe said in a recent interview that he and his costars were all overwhelmed when they filmed the final shot of the series. He told MTV, "I didn't expect myself to get particularly emotional but I really did." Radcliffe said the last shot he filmed was a simple stunt of him jumping and rolling onto a mat, and when that was finished, "It just was bizarre; really, really strange indeed."

taken from Yahoo! Movies

I hope I won't be disappointed. Why? Because,

1. I have already read the book. I know all the twists and turns, what really happened, the real action, the scenes. Therefore, if an exciting part in the book is dropped in the movie, I shall truly be disappointed. Pretty much like the Half-Blood Prince. Lots of good scenes were omitted.
   
2. The book was such an exciting read. The movie should do it justice.
3. Since it's the last, why need to cut down costs? ha ha ha.

But since it will be divided into two parts, I think it will contain all the vital and critical scenes in the book. I really hope so, since the book was such a page-turner.


This is all I can blog, since I'm pretty much devastated these days. Sick and tired.

iPhone 4 hype

For those living under a rock, Steve Jobs, the CEO of Apple, recently introduced the newest addition in the Apple family: the iPhone 4. This changes things.. all over again. Apple fanboys and normal people alike are now all palpitating to just get their hands on the newest beauty of Apple.


As much as I don't want to admit this to myself, but I'm disappointed about the release of Apple's iPhone 4. Why? Because I just bought an iPhone 3GS several weeks after it came out - fresh, new, and the talk during that time. I was happy with my iPhone 3GS for several weeks, too, until the iPad came out. I wanted to get my hands on an iPad too (at this point, I don't know whether you can call me an Apple fanboy or not), because a tablet computer really appealed to me. Plus, it's elegant and beautiful. Therefore, a hint of regret. I should have bought a BlackBerry smartphone instead, and bought an iPad afterwards. Really nice combination right? Yeah, I thought so too. Until the iPhone 4 came along anyway.


As Jobs mentioned, this changes things all over again. Yep, that tagline really suits pretty much everything. Everyone has been gaga enough to pre-order their own iPhone 4-s. I cannot help but pity myself a little too, since I was too hasty in buying a phone. And I knew Apple had something in their hands too.


So, enough with the reminiscing of the past. Here in my place, the desert city, almost everyone owns either an iPhone or a BlackBerry. Those who own an iPhone are mostly yuppies and teens, and those who own a BlackBerrry smartphone are mostly businessmen and workers (vice-versa). It's pretty much common to see the person at your right holding an iPhone and the person to your left holding a BB smartphone.


And, when the iPhone 4 was available for pre-orders, everyone took the bait. Yes. Almost. Here's the article.

Apple recently introduced the new iPhone 4. Shortly after that the shiny new iPhone went live in the Apple online shop for pre-order. And Apple fans made proper use of this, they ordered all the stock within less than 24 hours. SOLD OUT!

The pre-order process for the new Apple iPhone had some glitches in it too, the website was not accessible for some, others couldn’t get their orders through.

Just imagine how fast the new iPhone 4 would have sold out without the Apple online store going down?

Now the next event to watch is the official launch of the iPhone 4 on June 24. That is the day when the shiny iPhone goes on sale in the Apple stores in US and some other countries.

One UAE iPhone insider told us: “We believe that the new Apple iPhone 4 will sell 2 million units on the first weekend alone”. And he is not the only one who thinks so. What do you think? Will Apple really sell so many iPhones?

The Apple iPhone 4 will also be available for Apple fans in UAE close to launch day as we stated earlier. Did you order yours already?

- http://dubaiinformer.com/tech/3583/iphone-4-sold-out-in-less-than-24-hours/#utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=iphone-4-sold-out-in-less-than-24-hours

See what I'm talking about? It sold out... here! Oh, wait.. America? That's more than 3000 miles away from here. Oh, dang...


Back to the drawing board.

Windows Update, fail

During the New Year, I managed to receive and get new things through gifts (particularly gadgets, I don't know if it was coincidental with the New Year though), and I very much appreciated this gesture during the first quarter. Why? Because I have a short-attention span, that's all. Picture this: You want a digital SLR. You like photography. After getting your inexpensive camera, you tinker with it. You fall in love with it. You go to different locations, photographing particular places of pulchritude, sceneries, landscapes, and even common things (because it just looks soooooo good on a gooood camera). After a month or so, your desire and hunger for shooting things slowly falters, and it's slowly fading away, like falling out of love. Even worse, I become bored of something just after a day, usually when I can't tinker and play with it anymore, e.g., a cellphone's capabilities. It's like love at first sight, you know? I just won't pass by again. Read on.