A Perfect Conclusion to a Magical Franchise

Rating: 10/10 (15 July 2011)

¨Harry Potter, the boy who livedcome to die. Avada Kedavra!¨
After ten years and eight films, the Harry Potter franchise has finally come to its magical conclusion and what a great one it was. As the British might say: It was bloody brilliant! This film is by far the best one of the entire franchise because it brings closure to a series that has been a part of us for a decade. I really never expected to like the Harry Potter series as much as I did and I became more and more hooked to the franchise as each new movie came out. It was like if every new film kept on improving from its predecessor. Not only did the series grow darker, the visuals just kept on looking more amazing as the movies were being released. Ever since David Yates was called to direct these movies beginning with The Order of the Phoenix he just kept on outdoing himself and winning new converts. J.K. Rowling can be proud of the producers for adapting her novels so magically, and of Steve Kloves (who should receive some recognition) for writing such a magnificent screenplay. I don't see how anyone could dislike this movie; it's truly a masterpiece. By the eighth film I know most of the people that are going to watch this movie are true Harry Potter fans, since I don't see how if they didn't like his previous movies they would have any reason to want to see this last one anyways. If you enjoyed the other Potter films then you will definitely love this one; if you hated them then there is no reason why you would want to see the eighth one in the first place. This is not only my favorite film of the franchise, it's also my favorite film of the year so far.
The movie picks up right where the last one ended with the abrupt finale of when Voldemort (Ralph Fiennes) collects Dumbledore's (Michael Gambon) wand from the grave. It just happens to be the most powerful wand in the world and it ends up in the hands of the most dangerous dark wizard who wants nothing more than to see Harry Potter dead. On the meantime Harry (Daniel Radcliffe), Ron (Rupert Grint), and Hermione (Emma Watson) are searching for the remaining three horcruxes in order to destroy them before Voldemort finds Harry. As long as the horcruxes are safe, Voldemort will remain immortal. The quest will end up leading the boys back to some familiar territories that we have grown to love. Potter knows that sooner or later he will have to face Voldemort; but there is much more at stake here as the forces for good and evil begin taking center stage for a final confrontation that has been waiting to happen for quite some time now. The build up for the grand finale happened almost entirely in the first part of The Deathly Hollows; now in the second part the action and intensity felt almost nonstop. Most of the characters from the previous films are all back and ready for battle. On Voldemort's side you have the evil Bellatrix Lestrange (Helena Bonham Carter), the Malfoy's, and several death eaters, while fighting along Harry's side are the Weasley's, Luna (Evanna Lynch), Neville (Matthew Lewis), and the rest of the crew from Hogwarts. I cannot leave out one of the central characters of the film, Severus Snape (Alan Rickman), who if we've never read the novel before don't quite really know who he is really fighting for until the very end.
The final film of the franchise will leave almost every Harry Potter fan completely satisfied because it brings closure to a decade long affair. We've grown to love and care for most of these characters that have shared so much screen time with us. There are so many memorable characters in this franchise and they all get plenty of action in this five hour long finale (if we add both parts of The Deathly Hollows). The young actors have all matured over the years and we've grown to expect great performances from the entire cast. The visuals and special effects were also mesmerizing as usual. What I loved even more from this second part is that we came back to Hogwarts, and I really hadn't noticed what a key character that place had become until Harry Potter puts his feet back in the school and is greeted by his friends. Of course it has grown much darker now that Dumbledore is gone, but so has the franchise over time. The battle scenes were also very effective and powerful, but what really stood out for me in the entire movie was the five minute montage when Harry sees Snape's memories in the Pensieve and so many questions are answered as to what was going on between him and Dumbledore, and as to why he seemed to protect Potter at times and despise him at others. His love story is even more powerful than Ron and Hermione's (that was way long overdue) or Harry and Ginny's. Those five minutes really changed my perception of the entire film and made me see things in a whole other light. I really loved Rickman's performance as Snape and think he stood out over the rest, although Fiennes was excellent as the fearful Voldemort and Helena Bonham Carter as the hateful Bellatrix. They did a pretty decent job of making me forget about my favorite character of the franchise: Sirius Black. I absolutely loved this film, and it was a wonderful conclusion to a magical franchise!
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