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When it comes to opening-weekend box-off magic, "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 1" is the unequivocal champ of the boy-wizard franchise. After snagging $24 from midnight screenings, the flick went on to rack up $61 million on Friday alone en route to a $125.1 million weekend, by far the largest opening frame for a "Potter" film to date (the previous mark was set by 2005's "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire," which netted $102.7 million in its first three days) and the sixth biggest opening weekend for any movie ever.

But how does "Deathly Hallows - Part 1" stack up to the rest of the Potter oeuvre? Is it your favorite film in the series so far? Your least favorite? Or does it fall somewhere in the middle? While this poll is aimed at assessing your feelings about this particular "HP" film, we will be running a separate poll asking you, the fans, to vote for your favorite flick in the franchise. Come back to MTV Movies Blog tomorrow to cast your vote in that one, the final results of which will be revealed after Thanksgiving weekend.

For now, tell us what you think of "Deathly Hallows - Part 1" in the poll below and (as always) elaborate on your thoughts in the comments! Read more...

Tags Harry Potter, harry potter and the deathly hallows, harry potter week, Poll

There's nothing quite like a little bit of legal drama to start your work week off right, is there? Certainly, when you've got actors like Matthew McConaughey and Marisa Tomei at the helm, there's plenty of room to launch into Monday with a star-studded legal affair like "The Lincoln Lawyer."

Yahoo Movies posted the first official trailer for "The Lincoln Lawyer" over the weekend, showcasing McConaughey's latest turn as a lawyer thrust into a hairy legal battle filled with murder and deception. Based on a novel from crime writer Michael Connelly, director Brad Furman's adaptation of "The Lincoln Lawyer" arrives in theaters on March 18, 2011. Read more...

Tags marisa tomei, matthew mcconaughey, Ryan Phillippe, The Lincoln Lawyer, Video

Each day this week we've been providing recaps of the previous "Harry Potter" movies -- consider them a kind of affectionate Cliff's Notes and a much-need refresher -- to prepare for today: the release (!!!) of "Deathly Hallows: Part 1." We've already covered "Sorcerer's Stone," "Chamber of Secrets," "Prisoner of Azkaban," "Goblet of Fire" and "Order of the Phoenix," so today we're focusing on the sixth film in the "Harry Potter" series, "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince."

"Half-Blood Prince" serves two major purposes in the "Harry Potter" series. First, it finally fully introduces us to the person who became Voldemort, Tom Riddle. It also finally defines Severus Snape as a character and brings him into the foreground, setting up one of the biggest plot twists in "Harry Potter" history (you're going to have to wait until "Part 2" to find that one out). Read more...

Tags Harry Potter, harry potter and the deathly hallows, harry potter and the half-blood prince

By Kristen Shalbinski

The end is upon us, Potterheads: "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1" is officially in theaters. I'm getting goose bumps just thinking about seeing it (again)! It's been almost 10 years since we joined our favorite boy wizard for his first trip on the Hogwarts Express, and Harry sure has faced some obstacles along the way. Six films later, we're almost at the end (sniff, lone tear forming in corner of eye, sniff). And so, in honor of this decade-long franchise, here is a list of the 10 most memorable moments from the "Harry Potter" films thus far, in chronological order and not including "Deathly Hallows: Part 1" and "Part 2."

10. "You're a Wizard Harry" ("Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone")
This is the moment that started our decade long journey with Harry. After their escape from Privet Drive and the massive amounts of Hogwarts letters, the Dursleys flee to a deserted shack by the sea. At exactly 12:00 a.m. on Harry's 11th birthday, our favorite giant Hagrid breaks down the door and gives young Potter the news he has waited for his entire life: "You're a wizard, Harry."
Why It's Memorable: A giant breaking into a house and bending a shotgun is pretty memorable, but the news that Harry is a wizard? That's life-changing.

Read more...

Tags Harry Potter, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, harry potter and the deathly hallows, harry potter and the goblet of fire, harry potter and the half-blood prince, harry potter and the order of the phoenix, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, harry potter and the sorcerer's stone, harry potter week

A couple weeks back, Tom Cruise dangled from the 124th floor of Dubai's Burj Khalifa skyscraper, a.ka. the world's tallest building ever, for a stunt for "Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol." Today, he trumped himself for a new feat of daring that saw him perched at the tip-top of the same building -- a staggering 2,717 feet above the ground -- as a helicopter hovered nearby. Guess they don't pay him the big bucks for nothing. In other on-set photo goodness, Jennifer Aniston got cozy with Paul Rudd on the New York set of their romantic comedy "Wanderlust" (in which Aniston supposedly goes topless), and Hayden Panettiere tried to stay dry while filming in Rome. Click on the image below to see the latest photos from movie sets around the globe.

What do you think of the pics? Tell us in the comments!

Tags hayden panettiere, jennifer aniston, mission impossible ghost protocol, paul rudd, Photo, tom cruise, wanderlust

This week's "Green Lantern" trailer has been out in the world long enough to attract a range of reactions for the comics and mainstream crowds alike. Read what you will into James Gunn's assessment of the film, but he seems to think it would be better suited for Syfy.

As for the big theatrical release of the week, "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1" continues to be a hot topic in the Twitter-Wood feed. Brian Lynch and Andy Milonakis engaged in a deep exchange about the film's earnings, while Ben Stiller's been working on top of a building and Penn Jillette got up close and personal with a jacket that belonged to Harry Houdini. Those posts and more await you down below.

I'm @brianwarmoth, and this is Twitter-Wood for November 19, 2010. Read more...

Tags andy milonakis, ben stiller, brian lynch, danny pudi, edgar wright, james gunn, penn jillette, ted hope, Twitter-Wood

Looks like we were spot on with our casting of Daniel Day-Lewis as our tallest president, Abraham Lincoln. The only problem is, we cast him in the wrong movie. Day-Lewis won't be slaying bloodsuckers in the upcoming adaptation of "Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter," but he will be starring as Honest Abe in Steven Spielberg's long-gestating biopic "Lincoln," according to a statement released by DreamWorks.

The role had originally been reserved for Liam Neeson, but following years of delays, the 58-year-old grew too old for the part (Lincoln was assassinated at 56). So now it'll go to 53-year-old Day-Lewis instead. Read more...

Tags Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter, daniel day-lewis, lincoln, steven spielberg

When you're growing up, experiencing all your "firsts" -- first kiss, first girlfriend, first ill-timed voice-crack... first appearance as the title character in a "Harry Potter" movie -- can be both a wondrous and harrowing experience. Such was the case for 12-year-old Daniel Radcliffe, who, while promoting "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" back in 2000, stopped by MTV for his premiere go-around on "TRL." But just being on the show wasn't the only first he'd experience that day; it would also mark the first time -- though probably not that last -- that the young actor would come face to face with a swooning female fan wearing nothing but a towel. And Dan owes it all to Carson Daly (thanks, Carson!).

In the clip below -- part of a series of flashback videos MTV is running to feed that pang of nostalgia so many Potterheads are feeling thanks to today's release of "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1" -- Radcliffe and his costar Emma Watson relive that seminal experience while appearing on a 2004 episode of "TRL" to promote "Prisoner of Azkaban." Check it out below.

Read more...

Tags daniel radcliffe, emma watson, Harry Potter, harry potter and the deathly hallows, harry potter week

As if portraying the first director of the FBI, America's first serial killer and the great Gatsby isn't enough for one man, Leonardo DiCaprio is now adding another role to his already heaping plate of cinematic awesome. According to EW.com, DiCaprio is set to play an FBI informant helping to solve the murder of President John F. Kennedy in "Legacy of Secrecy," an adaptation of the 2008 book in which Lamar Waldron and Thom Hartmann reexamined the assassination of JFK.

DiCaprio will play FBI informant Jack Van Laningham, who befriends the southern mafia leader, Carlos Marcello, a man the book fingers as the potential mastermind of the 1963 murder (he reportedly even confessed involvement). The film will probably be released in 2013 on the 50th anniversary of Kennedy's death, so filming shouldn't conflict with DiCaprio's other projects. There's no word yet on who will play Marcello. Read more...

Tags Legacy of Secrecy, leonardo dicaprio

If you've never seen a "Harry Potter" movie or read the books in your life, going to see "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1" -- the penultimate film in the "Harry Potter" saga -- is probably not the best place to start. There's a whole lot of a stuff that's happened in the first six films, and they franchise has definitely moved past the point of stopping to explain the rules of Harry's wizarding world to new audiences.

But even if you are a diehard fan of the series, there's a lot of terminology and history to know that sometimes slips through the cracks. To save you from hours of poring over the novels and rewatching the films, we've decided to compile a list of terms that will magically alleviate any confusion you may have going into "Part 1." Read more...

Tags Harry Potter, harry potter and the deathly hallows