Even a movie that is part of a longer series and tells only a piece of the whole story needs to work, and should be judged, on its own. I believe this to be especially important when the film in question is not part of a trilogy (where a third of the whole is already a large fraction), or of a loose franchise (like James Bond, where it really does not matter how much of it you see and in which order). The Deathly Hallows are doubly burdened here, both as the seventh part of the story, and as the first part of that seventh film. This will not matter to Harry Potter fans, who will have read all the books, seen all the movies, and re-read and re-watched them again in preparation for this one, but I can only wonder how much the uninitiated can enjoy these 146 minutes.

I imagine it to be somewhat like this: You are thrown in the middle of a story, and do not really know who all these people are. That part is not a problem, too much exposition can be detrimental as well. A lot of things are happening on screen, that you do not understand the meaning, but enjoy the spectacle of, at least when the turn of events does not seem to be complete happenstance. You will get a very enjoyable heist sequence, an impression of the main characters' growing frustration, and a wonderful animated picture-book scene. You will probably miss any kind of showdown or resolution at the end, though. That last part was dealt with much better in the books and in the previous movies, but then again, this is only half a movie.

6 points