A majestic end, but not without some strange twists

Rating: Null/10 (21 July 2011)

I gave the last Harry Potter movie an 8 because I wanted to like it. My initial gut feeling during the end of the movie was almost disbelief paired with mild disappointment. @ the moment I left the theater I probably would have given it only a 6 or so, simply because it didn't live up to my expectations.
The Harry Potter books all came to life because of JK Rowling's wonderful language. The writing and the plots grew more and more into adult or young adult literature, with increasing maturity of character and plot. That takes nothing away from the great design that Rowling had from the first book to the last pages. Everything came together: clues from the Sorcerer's Stone found their solution or reunion with the events in the last book, and so on. It was as if each book was somehow addressed again in the last book and the final battle. Harry's first wand gets healed in the last scene; elves and hippocrypths come to his rescue in the last fight. It would be too much to expect to see all those things in the last film. But at least a few???
Why omit such wonderful scenes like Harry's welcome by Prof McGonogal after he curses the Caros brother, and she says: that was.. very gallant of you". Why have the students march in military formation when it's plenty clear in the book how invasive the new school leadership under Snape has become. Why fabricate? Why reduce the final battle to mass engagement and special effects, when the story's real tension lies in the fact that Harry and Voldemort argue in front of the entire school. In the course of this, we finally all learn, and the students and teachers in particular, how everything fit together, how everything had been in motion since Harry's first encounter with Voldemort.
The final battle scene is much more than battle: it explains the intracacies of wand lore, horcruxes and protections against spells, protecting friends, the elder wand's powers and limitations and more.
Instead, we see Harry battle Voldemort in the ruined towers of Hogwarts with hardly anybody around!! The power of that last scene, in the book, lies in the fact that Voldemort does not dare use the elder wand against Harry for fear that Harry knows something he doesn't. And so he holds out until he realizes that all his plans have failed, no more horcruxes, just one last deadly spell. The movie has them exchanging spells like in the graveyard HP4, but the entire logic of Voldemorts demise lies in the fact that the Elder Wand will Not fight its rightful owner Harry. So why the cheap fighting scenes?
Why would Aberforth mention horcruxes when only very few people knew about them? Why cut short Harry's last moments when he decided to accept death and NOT talk to his friends, because they would have stopped him? The loneliness of that decision, the courage, and the sacrifice not to have that last emotional moment with Ginny or Hermione. Where was that?
In a summary, I would call it a good movie, but the plot lines where spotty to say the least, particularly for viewers who have not worked through the books. The acting was great, but many characters remained flat. Why find a different Aberforth than we saw in earlier movies? The teachers were barely in the story. Snape's emotional development was a pleasant surprise. The movie felt one dimensional, Harry, Hermione, a fairly flat Ron, that was that. No built up of Mrs Weasly really charging against Bellatrix. How come they weren't surprised to see Harry and his friends in Hogwarts? They hadn't seen our friends for about 7-8 months or so. No greetings, no hugging, no words. Why have Snape die in the boathouse when we all know it was the Shrieking Shack from HP3? Why cut the scene so short?
The retrieval of Snape's memories (tears not the usual brain wave of smoke?) and the pensieve scenes were lovely and slowed down to let the viewer enjoy it. Harry and Ravenclaw, ghostly beautiful, yes. Will continue this in a bit. A good movie, yes, but not the best one in this epic story.