Harry Potter und die Heiligtümer des Todes - Teil 2

I saw this at a preview screening in London.

Deathly Hallows part 2 ends this incredibly well produced saga with tremendous grace and a beautifully orchestrated climax that I am sure will satisfy both lovers of the books and films.

If you have read the books as I have you will be glad to know major key moments are intact. Much is missing but I won't dwell on that, no point, its how well this movie plays out and for me it rolls wonderfully between excitement, thrills and emotional drama towards a satisfactory (though a slightly rushed) conclusion.

There are at least 2 sequences so powerful that I defy anyone not to at least stifle a tear or choke a little. One of those sequence is an exquisitely executed flashback that is pivotal to the whole story.

I have to say, that despite the woes we book readers have when elements (big chunks of it too) are omitted from the movies, much credit still has to go to Steve Kloves for adapting the books for the big screen, cleverly weaving, changing and even adding new big elements to give a kinetic flow to the narrative and here it all comes together superbly.

David Yates assured direction has nurtured our young actors in the last 4 films to blossom into even more adept actors who convey their characters with natural tones without overacting. Daniel Radcliffe had to carry this movie more than any other and has done so brilliantly complemented with great support from his two companions, Emma Watson and Rupert Grint.

Pretty much all the characters we have met in all the movies have made an appearance in this finale but one actor stands out, Alan Rickman. His portrayal of Professor Snape has always been a joy to watch (if a little novel) but here his scenes will leave a dramatic engraving in my memory. Here he elevates his portrayal of one of the most complex character in young adult literature to an unforgettable piercingly emotional one.

Another actor who really shines in the few scenes that he has, is Matthew Lewis as Neville Longbottom who we see gradually transforming over the past films from the clumsy bullied boy to a brave warrior in this final film. Many other British thespians of the series also have their few moments to shine especially Maggie Smith's Professor McGonagal who was a delight to watch as she takes charge of the defence of Hogwarth School.

As for the spectacle of the battle and showdowns, while not at the scale of Lord of the Rings, I honestly cant think how it could have been done better as the film makers have intertwined heart stopping action with dramatic progressions in the narrative. Its actually more visceral and dynamic than the rather smaller scale battle of the brilliant novels (not to take anything away from Rowling's writing).

Do I have any gripes? Yes I do. Although I applaud Steve Kloves for a difficult screenplay adaption...I think he could still have done better at explaining some odd anomalies that only readers of the book will understand. This might annoy you if you haven't read the books. But its a small gripe because what we get is delightful.

What an amazing achievement to faithfully bring Rowling's epic saga to the big screen with the same cast and largely the same crew, maintaining the brilliant quality right to the end.

Oh my god, its only just sinking in, this was the end....but what a great great end.

This movie could not do any better, it ended the Harry Potter series with a bang. It is a good balance from the first part of The Deathly Hallows. The first part was more of a drama, while part two was action packed left and right. This may be my favorite movie of the series, though all of them are equally amazing. I have read the books, and there are definitely major changes in the movie, but I find they fit perfectly well with the story, even if it isn't the original plot. Even for those who haven't read the books (why wouldn't you?!), it is equally enjoyable. This movie, along with the rest in the series, will be loved for years and years to come.

I quite luckily got the chance to see this at an early screening on July 7th.

First impressions of the film? Brilliant.

Director David Yates, who also directed the 5th, 6th and 7th films is back to direct the final. This pleases me because these 3 films are my personal favourites out of the 7 that have come out so far so I think it's fair to say that I was expecting big things from this. I'm very pleased to say that he's pulled it off ending the series in a fast paced, well written final act.

The film (in case you're wondering) picks up straight after where Part 1 ended, Voldemort (Ralph Finnes) has the most powerful wand in his possession and he's finally ready to succeed in what he tried to do over 15 years ago. He finally has the power to kill Harry Potter. I won't go into much more detail in what happens as most people will have read the book and I don't want to drop spoilers! Harry (Daniel Radcliffe), Ron (Rupert Grint) and Hermione (Emma Watson) need to seek out and destroy Voldemort's remaining Horcruxes. This is the only way that will give them a chance of stopping He Who Must Not Be Named.

Their final journey takes them to places we may not have seen recently or remembered, places such as Gringotts Bank in Diagon Alley and Hogsmeade. Along the way they encounter a variety of creatures, both friend and foe from dragons to spiders, death eaters to old friends and of course, the Dark Lord himself. Will Voldemort Succeed? Or will good trump evil? For those who haven't read the book this is your chance to find out.

What I especially love about this film and Part 1 is the direction in which they've taken, adding more cheesy lines and (for example in Part 1) that dance sequence. I feel that these small touches bring the films closer to our hearts and help us to connect with the film a lot more. Sure they leave out a lot of information that the books provide but that's the same with all film adaptations! They've got the main story down and where they've deviated from the book it has been for the best. Not everything written down on paper will translate into visually appealing footage.

Part 1 to me also felt unfinished (well it was only half the book I suppose!), I mean in the way that it was long and never seemed to climax. Sure at the end of Part 1 Voldemort gets the want he so badly seeks for and leaves then the films ends on a giant cliffhanger. Part 2 definitely adds the rest of that epicness that so many other films have towards the end. It's full of action! I definitely believe that both Part 1 and 2 are best viewed with a short as possible gap in between them. Otherwise it's like watching the first disc from one of the extended editions of The Lord of the Rings and not watching the second disc for another 6 months!

This paragraph is about the visuals and 3D. Skip to the final paragraph for final thoughts.

Visually the film is stunning from an effects point of view. From the trailer alone you can see that this film has quite a lot of action in it, crumbling buildings, hundreds of spells and lots of fire. Everything looks great, from the wand duals to the dragons it all is fantastic. Also this time around it is being showed in 3D and is the first (and (probably) last!) potter film to be shown in this way. Now I was very sceptical about this, especially since they announced that the films (originally both parts) would be converted from 2D to 3D instead of being natively filmed in 3D. I believe that what they should have done was what they did with Part 1, scrap the 3D. I'm going to say that it's not great, at times it's pretty good, but never great. For the most part it's okay. I'm going to compare it with the last blockbuster film to come out in 3D, Transformers: Dark of the Moon. The 3D effect is not even close to looking as good as what that film (shot in 3D) had. So I'm going to tell you now, 2D is the best dimension to watch this film in. Having said that if you still want to (or have to) see it in 3D by all means do, the 3D doesn't take away anything from the film, but it doesn't add much.

I will end by saying that I definitely recommend this film for everyone, especially Potter fans. The ending that many thought could easily be done wrongly has been done right. Then when you think of Part 1 and 2 as the same film I believe that they are easily the best Potter films. This truly is a fitting ending for the boy who lived.

One of the best series I've ever seen with an amazing conclusion.. A bit emotional saying goodbye to all the characters after 10 years.

Wish I could forget the whole thing and watch it again for the first time. Would do anything to rewatch it in theatres.

Recommended.

I am a huge fan of the Harry Potter books, they're all so great and magical. But I didn't think the film series were perfect at all, but they were still great movies. With that, I was extremely excited to see the end of the film franchise, and impressed with the trailers. So I had high expectations. And thankfully it did not disappoint, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part II, blew past my already high expectations and I was enthralled!

The whole movie looked spectacular! The cinematography extremely well done, the art direction was incredible. The movie was beautiful to look at, the visuals were spectacular and truly Oscar worthy! The set designers, cinematographers really need to be awarded for their work, because it looks like they spend of time and money on the look of the film.

The cast of the film was pretty much perfect, they should all be applauded too. Emma Watson, as usual is and great and she'll have a bright career ahead of her. Rupert Grint is pretty much great also, he is a fine actor indeed. Daniel Radcliffe did an amazing job and was very memorable as Harry Potter. Although I think Ralph Fiennes was the star of the film, he did unbelievable job as the evil, crazy Lord Voldemort, I think he deserves an Oscar Nomination for his role. The rest of the cast were also great too.

We all grew up overtime with the series, we followed the adventures of Harry Potter for around 10 years, I think. It seems very weird that there will be no more Harry Potter films to look forward too. I will miss the franchise very much! However I am happy the series got an amazing ending. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part II is not only the best film in the series, but it will probably be one of the best films of 2011. Everyone should see this film, even if they don't like past Harry Potter films.