Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows part 2

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows part 2

Starring: Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint, Alan Rickman, Maggie Smith, Ralph Fiennes, Helena Bonham-Carter, Matthew Lewis, Bonnie Wright etc.

July 15, 2011 / July 17, 2011

"After all this time?"
"Always"

As the lights dimmed and the opening music along with the Warner Brothers logo appeared on the screen my eyes were wide with excitement. The moment had finally arrived after eight long months of waiting for the highly anticipated conclusion of the Harry Potter saga and I felt like a child at their first movie...the pure joy that enraptured my entire body.

Within the first ten minutes we see Voldemort aquiring the Elder wand, Harry sitting by Dobby's grave and Professor Severus Snape looking out over the grounds of Hogwarts as a clan of students marched orderly into the castle. It was an erie sight to see how different Hogwarts had become under the new Voldemort Regime. Reminiscent of Nazi Germany. And within that first ten minutes, I knew that this movie would be an incredible epic finale.

I was right. There were no dragged out scenes, it flowed smoothly and had a few moments where I found myself laughing. In a war film, which this movie essentially is, it's nice to have a few light moments to break the sadness. And there was sadness, lots of it. Characters we have grown to love were lost in the final battle, and tears were shed, on more than one occasion. Characters have emerged as heroes, and most importantly one character found his redemption with the audience, and with the son of the woman he loved.

By far the most beautifully shot and emotionally draining scene was (SPOILER) the death of Severus Snape, and the scene recollecting his memories. As I mentioned in my previous blog Snape has and will always be my favorite character, not only out of the Harry Potter characters, but of all time. To see how he loved and cared for Harry's mom, Lily, and how he lost her to Harry's dad, and then to death...to watch his emotional breakdown as he found her body lying on the ground, to this moment just makes me cry. It is heartbreaking and Alan Rickman gave one of his best performances (although the makeup to make him look 16 years younger was terrible) and it is my favorite scene of the movie.

The entire film was perfect, and everything that I wished and hoped it would be. I wouldn't change a thing about it and am so happy with how the saga ended. A nice closure as we watch Harry & Ginny and Ron & Hermione watch as their children go off to Hogwarts. A truly beautiful moment as Harry tells his son (Albus Severus Potter) that whether he gets into Gryffindor or Slytherin, it wouldn't matter...that he was named after two headmasters, one from Gryffindor and one from Slytherin, and both were great men. An equally beautiful moment as Hermione zips up her daughter's sweater and gives her a hug and a kiss on the forehead.

I give this 10 out of 10 stars