Very pleasantly surprised

Rating: 9/10 (7 September 2013)

This movie was simply wonderful. We finally see he series come to an end, and boy does it go out with a bang! We get way more action here than in the previous movie, and it moves at a much quicker pace (which is how the book goes too).
Harry, Ron, and Hermione finally stop camping in the woods and return to Hogwarts, and the battle ensues with Voldemort and his army almost immediately after. A few things happen in the movie before this, but the movie really starts at Hogwarts. In the book, Harry was absent from most of the battle, but here we get to see extensive footage of it and Hogwarts gets torn up! The special effects here are the best they've ever looked, and the powerful score is very effective at playing you to root for Harry and his friends. And yes, several main characters do die.
My only real complaints of the movie were that Voldemort is a bit over the top, and some characters don't get nearly enough screen time. Also, the epilogue feels a bit rushed in order to end the movie in a timely manner. These are mostly forgivable though.
This ties for the 3rd movie as my favorite in the series. Harry, Ron, and Hermione are all very well-acted, the action is great, the score is beautiful, and I was engaged the whole time. This movie is one of the best ways to kill an afternoon.