The very definition of "epic"

Rating: Null/10 (19 July 2011)

Up until now there's been no denying that the Harry Potter movies have been a pale imitation of the books. Finally, in its last installment, after 10 long years of trying, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 lives up to the hype.
The movie wasn't perfect: the first twenty minutes dragged slightly, hampered by a less-than-stellar performance by Daniel Radcliffe when he questions Griphook and Ollivander in Shell Cottage. Here, the acting is mediocre and the pacing seems off.
Skip forward to the scenes at Hogwarts and the movie really gets going. While the final battle comprised maybe 15% of the book, in the movie it takes up almost 70%. Certain subplots and nuisances are therefore lost, but the payoff is great.
The final battle is as epic as they come in all the best ways possible. Maggie Smith is marvelous as a not-strictly-book-canon McGonagall, the special effects are terrific, and the pacing is spot on. Just as the books led up to this moment, so too did the movies – and it works. More so than in any of the other movies, everything really comes together. It's quite true to the books here, too, particularly in reference to Neville; and for once, artistic license serves to actually improve the story rather than detract from it.
It still wasn't perfect: for me, too many of the subplots were lost in the movies as a whole (I'd have loved to see more of Kreacher in particular). But Deathly Hallows Part 2 did something I'd long since lost hope for in a Harry Potter film: it exceeded my wildest expectations and had me on the edge of my seat.
9/10. The franchise ended on a high.