Deathly Hallows 2 Behind-the-Scenes Moments Revealed on Ultimate Edition DVDs

The new Ultimate Edition DVDs of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix and Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince were released yesterday. Both DVD sets include a special feature retrospective of the making of all eight films called “Creating the World of Harry Potter.” The Order of the Phoenix DVD set contains Part 5 of this special feature, “Evolution.” These screenshots of the cast and crew of Deathly Hallows Part 2 are from this special feature. (Minor spoiler warning below!)

 

 

 

 

 

 

In the last two it appears that Arthur and Hermione are trying to keep Ginny, Neville, and Ron from rushing forward, and perhaps doing something courageous but foolish. In the video it appears that they are being pushed back from something dreadful during the chaos of battle. It could be the scene when they think Harry has been killed.

Minor spoiler warning! These photos are from part 6 of feature, “Magical Effects.” Apparently Ron extracts the basilisk’s fang! And we get to see a bit more of Ron and Hermione holding hands, which is always a good thing.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

To celebrate the release of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part Two, I am giving away a signed copy of my book, The Lord of the Hallows: Christian Symbolism and Themes in J. K. Rowling’s Harry Potter at the Goodreads website on July 15, 2011. You can enter to win a copy of the book here: http://www.goodreads.com/giveaway/show/7330-the-lord-of-the-hallows-christian-symbolism-and-themes-in-j-k-rowling. It would be greatly appreciated if you would help me spread the word about this. It is difficult for a first-time author to promote a book, as I am relatively unknown outside of the Harry Potter convention fandom community.

If you would rather buy a copy today, you can purchase one at http://www.outskirtspress.com/thelordofthehallows/ or from http://www.amazon.com/Lord-Hallows-Christian-Symbolism-Rowlings/dp/1432741128/ref=sr_1_cc_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1307225900&sr=1-1-catcorr. Thanks so much! Positive reviews are always welcome.

 

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Win a free copy of The Lord of the Hallows!

I am giving away a free copy of The Lord of the Hallows at the Goodreads website. Please enter the drawing at http://www.goodreads.com/giveaway/show/4742-the-lord-of-the-hallows-christian-symbolism-and-themes-in-j-k-rowling.

Here’s some information about the book that may interest you.

The Lord of the Hallows: Christian Symbolism and Themes in J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter

Title: The Lord of the Hallows: Christian Symbolism and Themes in J. K. Rowling’s Harry Potter

by Denise Roper

ISBN: 978-1-4327-4112-9

Tagline: A must-read for fans of Harry Potter, The Lord of the Rings, and The Chronicles of Narnia.

www.outskirtspress.com/thelordofthehallows

Praise for The Lord of the Hallows:

“Roper is a talented writer that obviously double checks all her facts, and she writes her literary criticism in a very professional and scholarly way. I’m glad to have a copy and enjoyed every page.”—J. W. Braun, author of The Lord of the Films: The Unofficial Guide toTolkien’s Middle Earth on the Big Screen

“There is a danger in being friends with John Granger, and that is in assuming that all the symbolism in the Potter books has already been discovered. One of my chief criteria for a book examining the Harry Potter series is that it add something new to our collective knowledge of them. This book met and surpassed that criteria.”—A. T. Ross

“She has produced an extremely well-researched scholarly work that will appeal equally to fans of epic fantasy and those interested in modern religious literary studies. I enjoyed the book very much, and found her arguments compelling.”—Rob Hermanowski at  www.goodreads.com.

 “This wonderful book will delight not only Christians, but all students of spirituality and mythology. It is filled with fascinating arcane information, yet the author’s engaging and descriptive style results in a text that never feels weighed down by its rich content matter…. Anyone interested in literature and religion will find this volume to be a valuable addition to their library.”—Logospilgrim, author of Bring Forth the Best Robes: A Spiritual Understanding of Severus Snape

Look for Denise Roper at:

www.twitter.com/DeniseRoper

www.myspace.com/thelordofthehallows

www.mugglespace.com/group/thelordofthehallows

www.the-leaky-cauldron.org/myleaky/groups/3364

Autographed copies of The Lord of the Hallows are available from http://stores.alibris.com/SilverUnicornBooks.

 

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The Lord of the Films by J. W. Braun

I mentioned in an earlier post that fellow goodreads author J. W. Braun read and reviewed my book, The Lord of the Hallows.  This is my review of his book: 

The Lord of the Films by J. W. Braun is a fun, fact-filled guidebook to the wonderful Lord of the Rings films by Oscar-winning director Peter Jackson. Braun’s book also includes discussion of the Rankin/Bass animated versions of The Hobbit and The Return of the King as well as the Ralph Bakshi Lord of the Rings film.

The book is filled with behind-the-scenes information, details of the award-winning film trilogy that you may not have noticed, bloopers, and comparisons with the original source material for the films–the novel that is Tolkien’s beloved masterpiece.

The Lord of the Films is a book that devoted fans of the Peter Jackson trilogy will certainly enjoy. It’s an entertaining read that you may want to examine carefully before re-watching the saga on DVD. It includes interviews, trivia, puzzles, rare cast photographs, and information on how to find the DVD “Easter Eggs” which are hidden on the extended edition DVD versions of the films.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading  The Lord of the Films, and I intend to refer to it next time I watch The Lord of the Rings on DVD.  If you are interested in this book and J. W. Braun’s other projects, please visit his website at http://jwbraun.com. In addition to being a Tolkien fan, he loves Star Trek and Harry Potter!

I’m giving away some cool freebies at my online bookstore. With any purchase from http://stores.alibris.com/SilverUnicornBooks, you will get a bookmark promoting The Lord of the Films by J. W. Braun, a card promoting Professor Logospilgrim’s excellent books about Professor Snape, and a card promoting The Lord of the Hallows, in addition to other surprises. Autographed copies of my book are available at my online store as well.

Don’t forget to visit The Lord of the Hallows on MySpace at www.myspace.com/thelordofthehallows.

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Review from A. T. Ross

  Here’s yet another positive review of The Lord of the Hallows from goodreads.com. A. T. Ross wrote:

A. T.‘s review

rating:

bookshelves: literary-study

status: Read from April 08 to 10, 2010

 

This little book proved to be a wonderful introduction to some of the Christian themes and symbols in the Potter novels. There is a danger in being friends with John Granger, and that is in assuming that all the symbolism in the Potter books have already been discovered, and one of my chief criteria for a book examining the Harry Potter series is that it add something new to our collective knowledge of them. This book met and surpassed that criteria. If you’ve read Granger, there will be some overlap, but not a whole lot and there is a lot of great stuff here that hadn’t even occurred to me. I thought I knew most of what there was to know about name origins, but Roper’s explanation of Dumbledore’s name (for instance) was simply fantastic. Her use of Medieval bestiaries and tapestries, not to mention her interpretation of Horcruxes and Rowling’s clear use of Arthurian legend, just made the book that much better.

There were only two flaws to the book. The first flaw was that as you read and come to a brilliant insight, a hundred more examples of what she is talking about spring into your mind. For instance, in the chapter on the belief in God in Harry Potter, she makes a valid point, but I would have wanted mention of other instances, such as all the instances of characters, specifically Harry, praying. And there is a fantastic moment in HBP (p. 271) when young Voldemort is mock praying, only he is worshiping himself.

The only other flaw is that the book is only 109 pages, and that I didn’t want it to end that soon.

My response to A. T. Ross:

Thank you for the positive review. I really loved what you wrote about my book. As for the chapter on belief in God in Harry Potter, an author named Nancy Solon Villaluz has written about every instance of a character “praying” in the series, so I didn’t want to write about what she has already described in her book, “Does Harry Potter Tickle Sleeping Dragons?” And with regards to John Granger, I’m a HUGE fan of his work. When I read his first book on Harry Potter several years ago, I began keeping a journal of my own interpretations of the symbolism in the series, predictions about what would happen in the final three books, and a lot of detailed research notes. I didn’t plan on writing a book though. A week after Deathly Hallows was released I was asked to fill in as a guest lecturer at a local SF/F convention at the last minute. I used my notes to put together a one-hour lecture that was received with cheers, a few tears, and a standing ovation from an audience of about 200 fans. “You should write a book,” was what I heard for the rest of the day, so I started writing one.

I have actually written a lot more on Rowling and C. S. Lewis since The Lord of the Hallows was published. I’ll be presenting my paper on Harry Potter and Narnia at the Infinitus 2010 Harry Potter Symposium in Orlando.

I’m glad that you enjoyed the book. Thank you so much for your kind words.

Denise Roper

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Another Positive Review from Goodreads

J. W. Braun, author of The Lord of the Films: The Unofficial Guide to Tolkien’s Middle Earth on the Big Screen, read and reviewed The Lord of the Hallows at www.goodreads.com. Here’s what he had to say:

04/08 J.W. Braun gave 5 stars to: The Lord of the Hallows: Christian Symbolism and Themes in J. K. Rowling’s Harry Potter by Denise Roper
status: Read in April, 2010

This is a fun little book that fans of Harry Potter and The Lord of the Rings who are looking for a deeper understanding of religious symbolism in the books will enjoy. Roper is a talented writer that obviously double checks all her facts, and she writes her literary criticism in a very professional and scholarly way. I’m glad to have a copy and enjoyed every page.

I have just read The Lord of the Films very recently and I’ve just posted an online review of it on the goodreads site.  If you are interested in J. W. Braun’s book on the Lord of the Rings films, please visit his website at http://jwbraun.com for more information. It is a book that fans of the LOTR films are sure to enjoy, filled with lots of unusual facts and interesting trivia.

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