Movie review:
I think this last installment was just excellent. It was kind of weird the way it started off because besides being a sequel, it’s a continuation of the story from exactly where the 7.1 movie stopped. So they had to briefly recap a few things, but I think they did a good job. This one was definitely more action packed, they got things done rather than had to hide and figure out what to do. I loved the part where they snuck into Gringotts, having Hermione impersonate Bellatrix Lestrange was hilarious. Plus escaping on a dragon!! Epic. It’s sad in the movie because they don’t have time to get into Dumbledore’s past, his messed up sister, how he was buddies with Grindelwald. and how Harry doubts him. I love when they sneak back in to Hogwarts, it was a little sad because they couldn’t have everyone everyone back in the movie; like Oliver Wood, he comes back. But it shows Neville taking leadership and being in charge of their rag tag rebellion. Professor McGonagall is amazing in this movie. OMG, so I don’t think this part is in the book. Snape calls a meeting of all the students and tells them he will punish them if they know anything about Harry Potter. Harry is there all along and has put on a Hogwarts robe to blend in. He steps out, and he and Snape start to duel. But then Professor McGonagall steps in and starts battling Snape. She takes out the Carrow siblings and causes Snape to flee. It’s awesome because you know she’s a powerful witch, but she doesn’t show it too much, plus you think she’s rather old, but everyone in the theater cheered for her when she won. And she even had a great line to say to Harry, “Potter, It’s good to see you.” And then the whole Weasley family shows up to help defend Hogwarts, plus the rest of the Order, so we get to see Tonks and Lupin and Fred and George. I also love when McGonagall enchants the suits of armor to guard the castle and then gushes to Molly Weasley, “I’ve always wanted to do that spell!” Love her. I think the other award for best performance goes to Neville. He really gets over his fears and takes a leadership role. He faces a forest full of werewolves and talks back to Voldemort himself. Plus I kind of like it that Neville gets to kill the snake Nagini. They kind of change how this happened in the movie making it more of a battle than just stabbing the snake, but it’s kind of awesome. I also liked how they portrayed Harry saving Malfoy from the fire in the room of requirement, but it’s kind of an eye-for-an-eye thing, and afterward, Harry has bigger things to worry about than whether Malfoy is good or bad or gets punished or what. I was kind of shocked at Snape’s death scene because they showed Nagini just striking him again and again; Harry, Ron and Hermione are listening outside and you can hear Snape's body being thrown against the window. Kind of graphic. When Harry gets Snapes memories and looks at them, I think it’s a little different in the movie than in the book. I think they could have done a better job showing Snape and Lilly being friends, but they only have so much time in a movie I guess. The movie made me forgive Snape a little more, I still don’t fully believe he was a good person in the end, much less someone worth naming your son after! Also, Voldemort is super creepy whenever he laughs or is really pleased about something. Plus, when he takes Malfory back on his side he kind of gives Malfoy a hug and it’s very disturbing. I even felt bad for Malfoy. One thing I was disappointed with was the scene where Harry finally kills Voldemort. They are flinging spells back and forth at each other and the final spell to finish him off is kind of understated. The whole theater was a little thrown and didn’t realize he was dying for a second. So we didn’t hoot and holler as much as we could have; Voldemort was dead and they should celebrate!! One of my favorite parts was when Bellatrix Lestrange went after Ginny Weasley. Molly Weasley steps in and it’s one of the best lines of the book. I was really hoping they kept it, and they did! Molly stares Bellatrix down and yells, “Not my daughter you ‘b-word’!” We all cheered for her. There’s a sweet moment where after the battle you see Filch trying to sweep up the rubble of the school. It shows he really does love Hogwarts and it also shows that the characters in the movie plan to move on with their lives. I think I liked the final scene in the movie more than the book, the whole 19 years later at the train station. It wasn’t as hokey and too cliche like I thought the book was a little bit. The only thought I had was that it was too bad they couldn’t end the movie the same way the book ends, with the line, “and they lived.” I did get sad when the death eaters started to demolish Hogwarts. And I did tear up a little when they showed Fred Weasley dead, and especially when they showed Tonks and Lupin lying dead next to each other looking like they were trying to hold hands. It wasn’t as emotionally traumatic as it could have been. I think it was more so when I read the books. It was a fantastic movie, and I really appreciate that the director didn’t make all the fight scenes really shaky and choppy, it’s not what we HP fans would’ve wanted. It was a great end piece to a decade long story in the making and I think these last few movies truly represented the books very well. I love the world of Harry Potter and very much enjoyed this last movie. I can’t wait until it comes out on combo pack dvd so I can buy the complete 8 dvd set!!
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