Thanks for the decade of MAGIC, Harry!

Rating: 9/10 (20 July 2011)

Saving the BEST for last ... the final film of the Harry Potter saga (8 films over a ten year span!!!) is rather monumental in what it achieves.
By far the most grown-up and mature of the films (which, after the last couple, IS saying something), HP and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 has a high death toll (readers of the books won't be shocked by this) and the entire film is a fitting farewell to one of the world's most favorite literary and cinematic heroes of ALL time. *sniff sniff*
Who'd have thought the tale(s) of the bespectacled boy wizard, Harry Potter (Daniel Radcliffe), and his two best friends Ron Weasley (Rupert Grint) and Hermione Granger (Emma Watson) -- first-conceived on a pub napkin! -- would have made for such gripping celluloid? The Deathly Hallows Part 2 has EVERYTHING wanted in a good film (action, drama, romance, suspense, good dialogue, chemistry, great characters, some hearty laughs and some stifled tears). This film -- as directed by David Yates (he has directed the final 4 Potter films) -- is a tribute to such a fine character (and ALL of the supporting players LARGE and small), a tribute to Ms. Rowling, and a tribute to the millions (billions?) of loyal Harry Potter fans the world over.
In addition to our dependable trio, Deathly Hallows Part 2 gives ample (enough) screen time to several Potter supporting players. Neville Longbottom (Matthew Lewis) FINALLY gets to shine/step-up like his three classmates; Professor McGonagall (Maggie Smith) gets a Yoda-Moment (awesome-ness!!!); Mrs. Weasley (Julie Walters) gets to deliver the book/film's BEST line of dialogue; the batty Bellatrix LeStrange (Helena Bonham Carter) vamps evil craziness as her master, Voldemort (Ralph Fiennes), seethes hate. Ever-so-brief glimpses of Hogwarts classmates and professors (like Emma Thompson's Sybil Trelawney) is also pleasing to loyal fans of the previous films. The most notable new addition to the cast is Kelly MacDonald who -- as Helena Ravenclaw -- gives House Ravenclaw their most-important role in the entire film franchise (just-in-time, I'd say).
It may sound dumb; but this final film is EPIC on several levels ... and that "epic-ness" is different for every viewer -- and that is one of the reasons Potter is so special (his/the film's "connection" is different for every fan). This franchise is no fantasy fluff ... it has graduated (with honors!) to classic cinema that will endure for all time.
Seeing this cast grow-up in front of us has been both a marvel and a treat (with nary a Lohan-moment amongst them!!!); and it also makes many of the faceless deaths in the film more resounding as we realize most of them were mere children who's bravery and heroics cost them their lives as they stood-up for GOODNESS in a world wrought with evil (damn you, Voldemort!).
There are moments in this film that make the audience feel proud of the heroics on screen and ALL of it makes us thankful. Thank you, Harry Potter ... thank you for forever. You've made magic happen.