Well, it's over. Ten years of cinema and fifteen years since the first book came out, and the series has come to a close.
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2, has been released, and it's going to be emotionally taxing coming to terms with that fact for many of us. It's also going to be a confusing experience seeing this film unless you've recently re-watched
Part 1, so I urge you all to do that before you head to the cinema; this isn't a review of a movie, it's a review of the second half of a movie. And for those of you who've read the book (many have read it and re-read it, our eyes almost wearing the pattering strips of ink from the pages), you'll know already that if you subtract from the story everything that was covered in the first film, you're pretty much left with action, tragedy and closure. And death. There's a lot of death.
Before we continue, let's get one thing clear: this review is going to be loaded with more spoilers than a chocolate frog is with sentient, enchanted chocolate. It's for those of us who've read the book; really, it's more of a wrap-up for fans who want to know whether this final installment is going to make them happy or not. Firstly, I'm a Hufflepuff through and through, so I tend to be incredibly enthusiastic, positive and loyal towards things I already like, but I'm not an idiot. I'm not so blinded that I can't assess a film for its artistic merit, which is an easy, joyful job when you're tasked with reviewing the
Harry Potter films which, since
The Prisoner of Azkhaban, have evolved from children's movies into playgrounds for auteurs in every cinematic field. And if you read reviews by critics who 'don't get it', or even those who don't like it, remember:
Harry Potter isn't for them. It's for you. If, by the eighth film they somehow doggedly insist on railing against this ongoing narrative, then they're not worth your time. Hell, even Dumbledore wouldn't give them a second look and he was the bravest, most compassionate wizard ever.
The last few films have had the increasingly noxious charge of being long books; far longer than would be considered easy to adapt, especially for the screenwriter, whose job it is to hack and slash away excess material until they're left with a manageable portion which can then be made into a feature length film. Steve Kloves has had this job for all the films (except
The Order of the Phoenix, my favourite of the series), and he's done an excellent job, for the most part. David Yates has done a superb job as director of the final four films in the series, the child cast have grown into fantastically nuanced and capable performers, the adult cast have continued to absolutely nail their characters, and visually, the films are impeccable. If you're going to criticise the
Harry Potter films as cinematic constructs, you're going to find yourself trapped down a critical tunnel hemmed in by dementors, without so much as a glimmer of an argumentative patronus to watch your back.
It's an odd film to review, given that it really is a ninety minute finale, and it's one which truly does belong with its counterpart,
The Deathly Hallows: Part 1. The main criticism directed as the first installment of this sprawling conclusion was that it lacked energy, or that nothing happened. This is a fatuous, lazy claim, given that whilst, yes, the three main heroes do spend a great deal of time hiking through the wilderness, they also make repeated, and horrifically close escapes from nightmarish foes. They disguise themselves as members of a corrupt ministry and brazenly infiltrate the Ministry of Magic, they fend off Death Eaters, and they manage to weather explosive internal conflicts. All of this occurred as part of a long, intensely stressful and vitally paced setup for the second film, and as such, viewing the first film as close to viewing the second as you can possibly manage is imperative. As much as you might think your brain can bridge the gap, it cannot; it would be like casting a spell, pausing for five minutes mid-incantation, and then recommencing your arcane mutterings. The spell would simply not work.
The film, of course, culminates with the second Battle of Hogwarts, a term which people who've not read the books won't really grasp. This isn't their fault, as
The Half-Blood Prince didn't depict the storming of the school and the execution of Dumbledore as a battle, whereas in book six, it was a pitched, bloody and tragic conflict. The second battle, which takes up the bulk of this film, is spectacular, tragic, and the anticipation of it weighs down upon both you and the wizards and witches you've grown up with so palpably that it stings. Those left at Hogwarts after Snape's brutal (but complicated and, ultimately, noble) regime are battered and few. Even the teachers look like husks of their former selves as the inevitable Battle approaches, and when Harry returns to greet his Gryffindor classmates, they're huddled on filthy mattresses under yellowing awnings. And in one of the most touching moments in the film, Neville presents Harry, Ron and Hermione to their peers, and amidst an ocean of relief and an uproar of hope, the Harry Potter theme drizzles down through what has been an uninterrupted deluge of gorgeous but tragic film scoring.
The battle begins, and all bets are off. It's horrific to see the death of characters we love, and it's equally tragic to watch Harry, Hermione and Ron fling themselves through the school and to see, behind them, students, teachers and surviving members of the Order get struck down and flung out of shot. It looks, feels and sounds like a war, and somehow, seeing it done so viscerally actually makes the sacrifices of beloved characters feel justified. Not fair, and not fun to watch, but justified.
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