Excellent: 9.5

Rating: 9/10 (27 July 2019)

Ah, the end has arrived. The final chapter of the one of the most beloved and lucrative film franchises in history has come to a close at last. And what style it does this with. The only real weakness I can identify in this film is the fact that there really is no introduction to the characters of any kind. However, I understand this decision completely, because one really must see all seven previous films to care about the characters as much as they should. If one has not seen the prior installments, then one will not like this movie as much as they should. Oh, well. Their loss. There are a few reasons why this film is the best of the series. The directing style is probably the biggest change, with many artfully-placed shots highlighting exactly what needs to be at any given time. This is one of the last movies I expected to give a serious compliment to the director for, but I have been forced to eat my words. The art style is the next. It is in complete and utter service to the story, as it is almost ceaselessly bleak and dark. Major characters die on both sides. Evil triumphs for a spell (pardon the pun). War has arrived in the wizarding world. The final reason is the acting, which is easily the best of the series. Each actor and actress seems to have realized that they would never be revisiting these parts, so felt that they had to go out with a bang. And what a noise they made! All of these elements by themselves are not what makes this film so great. None of these aspects individually are anything truly spectacular. However, the fact that all three are so consistent in terms of quality throughout the entire thing make this film a noteworthy one. While there are no standout scenes like the one in Part 1 with our trio being chased through the woods by Death Eaters, this actually speaks as to the overall quality of the final product. The reason there are no outstanding scenes is because there are never any falterings, and dips in terms of the elegance or substance of the filmmaking. The overall tone of the film is another differentiating factor, and is one of the things that most people won't even really notice until the movie is over, that there is virtually no comic relief anywhere in the film. Instead, there is an almost relentless onrush of battle scenes which are so well done that they are worth the price of admission alone. Seeing the movie, it is obvious how much the cast and crew cared about this series, through all its ups and downs over the decade of the franchise's existence. It is thanks to this obvious dedication and commitment that truly makes this film and landmark title. Not in terms of cinema by any means, but in modern culture. Only a handful of other films are ones I can say the same for. And if you check my other reviews, they really aren't that hard to spot.