The end of an era for British filmmaking- and what a good show it was!

Rating: Null/10 (4 August 2011)

Firstly, do not go and watch this film expecting to see the pages of the book replicated word for word and scene by scene- if you do this you will inevitably be disappointed and therefore I am not going to compare the film to the book. I should also point out that I am a huge fan of the series and have grown up watching these films, and expected great things from the grand finale. Did it live up to these expectations? Are you sitting comfortably? Good, then I shall begin.
Let's start with the positives. There are so many throwbacks to earlier films that bring back a hint of the magic that brought the series to life all those years ago, and as a fan it is great to see many of those characters that disappeared into the shadows return for the final curtain, despite a handful of these being killed off. Speaking of the cast, they are (excuse the pun) spellbinding- especially Ralph Fiennes who keeps the malice and evil of Voldemort whilst letting some of that vulnerability play through as Harry and co hunt down the elusive horcruxes. I relished every scene Fiennes appeared in because you literally cannot help but be captivated by his performance. Daniel, Emma and Rupert have also come so far with their acting career and these last couple of films have let that talent shine through. A particular scene near the end comes to mind when the looks between the three of them say so much through so little. I give credit to all three of them.
The film is relentlessly packed with action, after the first 15-20mins (where the story is set-up for the following raid of Gringotts) it is pretty much non-stop and each moment was very enjoyable and exhilarating. The Battle of Hogwarts takes up a large percentage of the film, during which a particular character's secret back story is revealed (which was done very well I might add, but I won't give anything away for the sake of those that haven't read the book).
The climax does not disappoint and, going back on my word at the beginning, for those who do fall into that category of people who want an exact replication of the book- of course it leaves things out and the way things unfold changes slightly so it works for cinema and so the filmmakers could achieve that elusive 12A rating.
Moving onto the nitty gritty details of the film- visual effects are great but if, like me, you know what you're looking for the CGI stuff does stick out like a sore thumb, but for those who remain oblivious (sorry I had to get that pun in there!) it is seamlessly integrated with the live action.
The cinematography is amazing, showing Hogwarts in a much more dynamic manner than before- because in this film, the gloves are well and truly off for everyone. Alexandre Desplat's scores are just so good that words cannot describe them, I loved the whole feel he brought to the Harry Potter world with the music in Part 1, and he steps up to the mark again with Part 2. The direction from David Yates was again brilliant, getting those emotional moments just right and the action scenes adrenaline-pumping and awe-inspiring. Steve Kloves also deserves a mention for managing to squeeze all the important parts of the book into two films, whilst sacrificing that which was not necessary or practical for cinema.
I should probably stop talking about it now before I give anything away, but first we have the small matter of the negatives. To be quite honest, they aren't really very many; they could've given Julie Walters a few more lines just because she's so entertaining, but come on- this is the dramatic climax, we aren't here to have a laugh. But there are a few fantastic lines and funny moments from the likes of Maggie Smith, David Bradley, Rupert Grint and Matthew Lewis. Ralph Fiennes also discovers a sense of humour! The biggest negative however is that they bothered to convert the film into 3D. I watched it in 2D after reading a few reviews and opinions of some friends, and I can honestly say there are only a few shots that 3D would have been a benefit to- so save the extra money and stick to 2D. Who needs an extra dimension when 2 was perfectly fine for watching the rest of the series in?
The reason I gave it a 9/10 is because of that 3D issue, but in 2D it's a 10/10 from me. On that note, I'll end this review before I write another 3000 words and give away the whole plot. I hope this review has been helpful to you, enjoy the film should you decide to watch it. This film is the end of an era for British filmmaking, and the start of a new beginning for it's leading cast.