(Updated) Harry Potter 《Mudblood》 fanfilm review

The canon and original 《Harry Potter》 novel series centered on Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Fans have always wondered since the original run of the books how other magical communities fit in the timeline. In 《Mudblood》 we get to see an adventure distant yet so near to the events after the Order of the Phoenix and how it could have had changed the course of history.

Whether you are a 《Harry Potter》 fan or not, whether you have watched fanfilms before or have never done so in your life, 《Mudblood》 is a highly recommended film to watch.

ℹ️ Note: This review is imported from Snoworld . The original format and my initial thoughts remain largely unchanged for this archive.

ℹ️ Update 2022-02-06: Corrected an image caption for the character Kendra Boardman—in 《Mudblood》 Part 3 the character was played by actress Maggie Keating. Thank you very much to Director Conrad Faraj for reaching out.

Synopsis

《Mudblood》 is a 《Harry Potter》 fanfilm which takes place in the United States of America between the events of the 〈Order of the Phoenix〉 and 〈Half-Blood Prince〉. It follows the story of Muriel Warrington—a Hufflepuff student from Hogwarts—who acquired a very important item which belongs to the Dark Lord. With a very important artifact in her possession, Muriel can not trust anyone, especially not when The Sisters is hunting her down across America.

This three-part fan film was produced by Conrad Studios with Honduran-American filmmaker Conrad Faraj as its director and writer. The series stars Makenna Weyburne as Muriel Warrington, Angela Cole as Emmeline Purkiss, Jazz Securo as Merlin Evergreen, Sabré Randall as Fleur Jones, Evan Kilmartin as Alvin Finch, and Maggie Callahan as Kendra Boardman in the first two films and with Maggie Keating for the same role in third film.

If Potterverse was an open shared world, 《Mudblood》 can easily become canon with its good and very interesting story, great production, and amazing and very talented actors.

‼️ Spoiler Alert!

Story

Overall the story was good and there were no contradictions with what we know as canon in the novels. It was also brilliant that they tied an adventure in the Americas, something fans were wondering about since the middle of the book series. The MACUSA (Magical Congress of the United States of America) was also involved with the usual 「it's a problem from across the pond, why should we deal with it」 attitude.

As powerful as Hermione?

What I loved the most was the main character, Muriel Warrington, a British girl who was a Hufflepuff student from the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Muriel is a very powerful witch who can wield two wands and use both simultaenously. It is established canon that spells are weakened when two wands are used at the same time but for Muriel it was just another ordinary spellcasting.

Fleur Jones (Sabré Randall) attacking Muriel Warrington (Makenna Weyburne)

Kendra Boardman (Maggie Keating) attacking Muriel Warrington (Makenna Weyburne)

Muriel can even withstand two simultaneous attacks from well-trained Death Eater Sisters!

Muriel Warrington (Makenna Weyburne) using two wands

Even Hermione witnessed Muriel’s abilities when she faced the Slytherin bullies.

Slytherin students

Hermione Granger (Kari Lewis) with Gryffindor students

Hermione Granger (Kari Lewis)

We all know Hermione would jump to the defense of the bullied especially if they are a mudblood like herself, and the bullies are Slytherins. Yet in this instance, she just stood, in awe of Muriel Warrington. Although I think she was more worried of Muriel when she lost herself in her rage and used the dark arts. Or maybe, Hermione thought she can recruit her in the Order of the Phoenix. Regardless of what Hermione was thinking, it just proves how powerful Muriel is at her age.

Okay, last one! I think Muriel would also fit Ravenclaw. I would not be surprised if the Sorting Hat chose between Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff, Muriel is not only wise but is also highly intelligent like Hermione.

Performance

In all three short films, what I was most impressed was the acting. Special mention to Angela Cole who played Emmeline Purkiss. She was great both as an Auror-in-training and as a Death Eater Sister, she can easily pass as the Bellatrix of America.

Emmeline Purkiss (Angela Cole) acquired the Hufflepuff Cup

Emmeline Purkiss (Angela Cole)

One where it could have been better was the scene where the British representative was trying to convince MACUSA to find Muriel. It felt like they were practicing their dialogues, the urgency of the matter was not there, and MACUSA's desire to downplay the request was more of words than action. The two characters acted like they were long-time friends from their school days but what little hints about them we can glean points to the opposite direction … strangers outside of their roles.

I also commend the other two Sisters, Fleur Jones played by Sabré Randall and Kendra Boardman played by Maggie Callahan. Since The Sisters was a group of Death Eaters under the command of Bellatrix, it was only apparent that there are members who are as crazy as her, Sabré Randall and Maggie Callahan, and later Maggie Keating, did great in portraying their own brand of 「avada kedavra」 hungry Death Eaters.

The Bellatrix Death Eater Sisters: Fleur Jones (Sabré Randall), Emmeline Purkiss (Angela Cole), and Kendra Boardman (Maggie Callahan)

The Bellatrix Death Eater Sisters: Fleur Jones (Sabré Randall), Emmeline Purkiss (Angela Cole), Kendra Boardman (Maggie Callahan), and Muriel Warrington (Makenna Weyburne)

Production

On the production side, it looks like they used 《Harry Potter》 merchandise if officially available—the Hogwarts uniform, the Hogwarts Houses neck scarfs, and the time turner necklace, to mention a few. The wands were also well-made especially designed for filming, if they can secure a license to sell their own wand designs, they should, especially the wands of Alvin and Emmeline.

However, there was a forest scene where the camera was shaking randomly. It was as if the cameraman was running and unexpectedly stepped on stones. It was a little unnerving, at least for me who is sensitive to sudden unexpected motions. Other than this, I have nothing but praises for the team.

For example, the special effects for the spells were high quality. Special effects is the most time consuming to add and it takes a lot from the budget, thus the level of effects we see in a film reflects the budget and time they spent on it. In 《Mudblood》 they made sure it is up to par with the official films, even better in some scenes.

Verdict

Whether you are a 《Harry Potter》 fan or not, whether you have watched fanfilms before or have never done so in your life, 《Mudblood》 is a highly recommended film to watch. If Potterverse was an open shared world, 《Mudblood》 can easily become canon with its good and very interesting story, great production, and amazing and very talented actors.

There are a lot more to tell about the characters too. I want to see more of Emmeline Purkiss, she was a very promising and powerful Auror-in-training witch. Who was she? Who were her parents? Why was she easily turned?

Is Hermione Granger friends with Muriel? It looked like she did not come by chance when Muriel was dueling with the Slytherin girls. Are mudbloods always that powerful? Lily Potter was a very powerful mudblood as well. So, who is Muriel? Did she have powerful wizards and witches as her ancient ancestors? Why was she willing to use the dark arts when the situation calls for it? Did she reach her full potential as a student of the Ilvermorny School of Witchcraft and Wizardry?

Muriel Warrington (Makenna Weyburne) transferred to the Ilvermorny School of Witchcraft and Wizardry

These and more are the stories yet to tell from this fanfiction/fanfilm world Conrad Studios introduced us into. I hope they can make more and I also hope they can get considered as canon too, or soft canon in Trek lingo.

Ratings

Here are my scores:

Mudblood: Part 1: 9 out of 10 stars

Mudblood: Part 2: 8 out of 10 stars

Mudblood: Part 3: 10 out of 10 stars

With a total score of 9 out of 10 stars.

I hope you agree because …

Bellatrix Lestrange (Darby McNeill)

And the MACUSA will not be happy either …

MACUSA Wizards and Witches

In fact, everyone will be your enemy …

Merlin Evergreen (Jazz Securo), Muriel Warrington (Makenna Weyburne), and Alvin Finch (Evan Kilmartin)

Not even Muriel will side with you …

Muriel Warrington (Makenna Weyburne)

The Dark Mark on Muriel Warrington’s arm

Muriel Warrington (Makenna Weyburne) taking the Bellatrix Death Eater Sisters test

What do you think? You can share your review in the comments below.

Official trailer

Watch now for free

Cover image: The cover image used in this article is Copyrighted to Conrad Studios ; used under Fair Use.

This review was first posted on Snoworld on 2021-12-21 at 22:50 UTC+8.

Content license: CC-BY-SA 4.0 International ; see Legal Notice for more details.