Brow Beat

The first trailer for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 hit the web last night, and it's as frenzy-stoking as one could wish for. It's all appropriately epic-scaled and stirring, with plenty of teasers for great-looking action sequences and ominous Voldemort voiceovers, delivered in Ralph Fiennes' evil, whispery purr. The quiet, almost elegiac opening seconds, though, are what get me the most, especially that poignant shot of the two hands almost-grasping — I have no doubt that this final showdown is going to be a fist-pumping glory, but those brief glimpses give me hope that the human element won't get lost in all the wand-slinging battles.

The film opens July 15.

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