Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2
By Warner Bros.
Starring Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, Emma Watson
Genre: Magical fantasy
Some say it’s the end of an era. It only lasted about ten years, though, so for cinema in general it’s a fairly small time frame, and arguably the literary potential can last indefinitely. But those were some of the best ten years of most of our lives. From the first time we saw Harry Potter pick up a wand way back in 2001, to the final epic (inevitable) battle between the evil Lord Voldemort and Harry, I have totally enjoyed this epic tale that finally reached its conclusion mere days ago.
Harry, Ron and Hermione continue on their quest to destroy the Horcruxes, or fragments of soul, belonging to Voldemort which sustain his life and make him immortal. Voldemort now becomes very afraid at the tenacity of Potter and his friends, aware that they have already destroyed several of his Horcruxes. With the aid of Griphook, the goblin that aided Harry at the very beginning of his tale, the trio begin their quest by infiltrating Gringotts, the wizard’s bank, where things almost immediately turn sour…
Once again the high standards of storyline and atmosphere initiated by the last few installments are carried forward into this, the last. Hogwarts is huge and grand, and pretty much all the characters belonging to her hallowed halls make appearances, even the comic relief character, the caretaker Filch, whose cruelty and propensity to always stick to the rules is played for laughs in all the installments in which he appears, to offset the dramatic tension with some humor.
And there is much dramatic tension. Sneaking everywhere to avoid being caught by the oily yet vicious Death Eaters, Voldemort’s followers; almost being killed by the magical defenses in Gringotts; and three more very personal journeys into the mind of Harry Potter himself (including one he shares with his worst enemy!) ensure that you’re always on the edge of your seat.
A word of warning: If you’ve read the book, you should already be prepared for this, but there is a pretty heavy full-scale battle in this book, complete with the death you’d expect. Some deaths are those of characters we’ve grown to know and love throughout the series, and all of them are keenly felt and appropriate weight given to them. So, emotional people beware; you will be moved.
The end of an era? Maybe. The potential for the longevity of “The Boy Who Lived” is beyond the scope of this article. However, as long as fans keep writing their in-universe fiction, and as long as J. K. Rowling’s new website project, Pottermore, has popularity, I predict the wizarding world will have plenty of inhabitants for years to come. For this final installment, I give five stars and declare it the best of the Potter movies!
