Sheer spine-chilling awesomeness and absolute heart-thumping brilliance

Rating: 10/10 (18 July 2011)

It is no easy task to make a film carrying tremendously high expectations of being a finale to the most popular series in the world, not to mention the fact that the majority audience already knows every possible plot point. And yet, it is in these circumstances, or rather in-spite of it, that 'Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2' rises to a level of cinema that previous films only fleetingly approached. Knowing fully well that millions of Potter-fans across the globe would either way lap-up the film in any form, the makers of DH-P2 have gone that extra mile in ensuring a fitting climatic end for the series, thereby elevating the already popular franchise to another dimension.
The film picks up exactly from where Deathly Hallows Part 1 left off, with Harry, Ron and Hermione continuing their search for the remaining bits of Voldemort's soul, which eventually takes them to (where else but) Hogwarts. Be-fittingly, it IS Hogwarts that plays host to the final showdown, with Voldemort and his army of death eaters, snatchers and giants landing up at its doorstep hunting for Harry. What ensues is a battle of the likes of which Hogwarts has never seen before. It is in the middle of all this that one of the most important escapades from the action takes place, as Harry dives into Professor Snape's memory. You have to be made of stone to not have cried or at the least have gone watery-eyed in this sequence, where the true nature of Snape is revealed. It is followed with another escapade, where another beloved character makes an appearance. The movie also has its share of deaths, with some important characters being bumped off. The film builds up brilliantly to the ultimate climax between Harry and Lord Voldemort, with characters like Neville, Professor McGonagall and Molly Weasely playing major parts.
Having been a true-blue die-hard Potter-maniac for 10 years now, 'Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2' HAD to be spot-on in its execution to get a thumbs-up from similar million others, and yet had to be elaborate enough to make it understandable for the movie-fans of the series. DH-P2 scores full marks in adapting J.K Rowling's final book as accurately as possible, with the few changes actually making the film better. Steve Kloves finishes off in style with his bang-on, sharp script that clears all ambiguities he'd left in the previous adaptations. The cinematography of the film, although not as breath-taking as previous installments, manages to create the perfect atmosphere for the finale. The release in 3D, however, does not create any particular jaw-dropping effect, with the exception of the initial gringotts-dragon scenes. The music of the film is considerably improved upon (compared to DH-P1) by Alexandre Desplat, with the right mix of hard-hitting orchestrations and soulful melodies to counter both the fierce-action and gentle emotion in the film.
Director David Yates, who started his stint with 'Order of the Phoenix', successfully steers the series to its epic conclusion, with his most brilliant film till-date. Of the performances, all actors give their characters their best final shot, especially Helena Bonham Carter as the eccentric Bellatrix Lestrange. The principle characters of Harry, Ron and Hermione are given the perfect send-off with accurate performances by Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint and Emma Watson. Daniel manages to restrain himself at the crucial moments, and it only shows the amount he's grown as an actor since that first film 10 years ago.
The film however belongs to Ralph Fiennes and Alan Rickman. While Fiennes manages to bring all-out evil in his no-holds performance as Harry's evil nemesis Lord Voldemort, Alan Rickman as Professor Snape does magic to the film in the shortest screen time, a la' Antony Hopkins in Silence of the Lambs. It may possibly be one of his career-defining performances that should be awarded with, at the very least, an Oscar Nomination for Best Supporting Actor. Though the Harry Potter series has always received the cold-shoulder by the Academy, 'Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2' may very well break the mould with a nomination/s in the top categories.
As fans across the world bid adieu to the most loved phenomenon of this generation, they couldn't have hoped for a better send-off to the series than 'Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2'. For sheer spine-chilling awesomeness and absolute heart-thumping brilliance, I'd give the film a 4.5/5.
Adios Potter!