Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2

I’ve grown up with Harry. I first picked up the book when only the first two were published and have continued the journey alongside him ever since.

Naturally, the countdown to the last Harry Potter film was filled with eager anticipation.

The film follows Harry (Daniel Radcliffe), Ron (Rupert Grint) and Hermione (Emma Watson) on their search for the remaining Horcruxes which leads to the Battle of Hogwarts and ultimately the final showdown between Voldemort (Ralph Fiennes) and Harry.

It begins where part one left off, with Voldemort taking the elder wand from the grave of Dumbledore before the journey takes off at quite a pace.

You aren’t given a chance to catch your breath from the moment the trio arrive at Gringotts until the end of the film.

In fact, it doesn’t feel like the film runs for 130 minutes! Before you know it the end credits are rolling!

There is no denying the film is visually spectacular. The imagery and special effects are breath taking, and to be honest, you really don’t need to see it in 3D to see it in all its glory.

The acting of the three leads, Dan, Emma and Rupert really is a testament to how much these three young actors have learnt in the last decade they’ve spent on the set of Harry Potter.

While their acting was good for untrained ten year olds when they began in the first film, the acting in this final film is “bloody brilliant” (as Ron would say).

The performances, with the exception of the OTT kiss between Ron and Hermione, are convincing and compelling.

The film has some light relief every now and then, particularly and surprisingly coming from Professor McGonagall (“I’ve always wanted to do that spell”) however much of the film is packed with action, fighting and a dark atmosphere.

As the pace and intensity of the film increases, the true heroes of the series emerge, tugging on heartstrings and inducing tears.

The performance by Alan Rickman as Professor Snape cannot go unmentioned.

For eight films he has played the dark villain. The Hogwarts teacher who seems to have made it his mission in life is to make Harry miserable.

This film shows Snape’s true colours. In a heart stopping performance, Rickman brings Snape’s story to life, and in doing so converts millions of Potter fans to become Snape fans as well.

Overall, the filmmakers did a good job staying true to the book, with the exception of a few minor changes.

One change that wasn’t minor, however, was the final battle between Harry and Voldemort.

I won’t give too much away about this as it is the final showdown on the film, however it is slightly different than the way it was described in the book.

I’m sure the filmmakers had their reasons for the change, but I found it left too many questions unanswered, raised new questions and didn’t round the story up as nicely as it had done in the books. Then again, this could be down to personal opinion.

Overall, the movie was beyond fantastic. In fact, the day after seeing it for the first time I booked tickets to see it again. It was just as good, if not better, on the second viewing.

Highly recommended.