As the eighth and final film installment of one of the most successful series of all time, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 needs no introduction. Regardless of what I say here, fans will flock to theaters (some in full costume), and detractors will avoid them at all costs (some invoking Ogre’s mantra: NNNNEEEERRRRDDDS!). This reviewer, however, is slightly skewed toward the former camp, though I do draw a line at wearing costumes to the cinema.
Harry Potter: Part 7: Part 2 begins in medias res as Harry, Ron and Hermione, just escaped from Malfoy Manor, continue their hunt for Horcruxes to vanquish Lord Voldemort. If you’re lost, take this time to read books 1-7 or watch movies 1-7.1, or both. I’ll wait right here.
Alright, so if you enjoyed Rowling’s rousing tale then you should be pretty excited about what to expect from this final chapter. This is director David Yates’s fourth Harry Potter flick, and by now, he seems fully comfortable and capable of bringing to life some of the novel’s best scenes. The Gringotts heist of the first act is first rate. From the multiplying spell to the fierce and pitiful dragon guard, the scene retained it’s wonder and suspense even as I knew exactly what to expect.
The rest of the film plays out in a similarly satisfactory way, retaining the darker monochromatic tone of the past few films, evocative of the dire times at Hogwarts and, indeed, the entire wizarding world. As the stage is set for a wizard battle of epic proportions—the Death Eaters rivaling the Empire in it’s menace and iconic villainy—Harry’s hunt for the Horcruxes becomes more than just a battle between good and evil, but a coming of age as well. For a fan, seeing all this on the big screen is almost as exciting as was reading the books. From Snape’s revelation, to Neville Longbottom’s unsung heroics to the EPIC WIZARD BATTLE! this is the kind of stuff to get any nerd’s knickers in a knot. If Harry Potter still isn’t your cup of tea, thanks for making it this far, but the pitch-perfect epilogue makes for a bittersweet ending to what I and many consider to be a darn good yarn of witchcraft and wizardry.
