Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2

The anticipation is almost over, well 8 hours ago and it was the longest 8 hours I ever had. This last installment of the Harry Potter franchise has taken much of my time for anticipation alone. Last night, i declared to myself to have a marathon of all the movies and ended only with Prisoner of Azkaban since my eyes could not resist from closing into deep sleep. However, I managed to watch Part 1 before heading to the cinema for the FINAL installment of the series in which I grew watching.

As every second comes close to the opening of the movie, I can't help myself to be excited to see how the pages of the book will turn into images in the silver screen. As the Warner Bros. logo flashes in the screen coming closely little by little in our 3D glasses one could not help but be mesmerized. We are again flashed back to Part 1 where Voldemort acquires the elder wand from Dumbledore's tomb and the title sequence begins.

The experience is breathtaking. When we say finale, the movie mean it well. As the plot uncovers until to the final battle of Hogwarts, the tension which is being built up can be felt. It merely shows that the final Harry Potter does not linger with its cuteness during the Sorcerer's Stone, this time, we mean battle. When you read the book, the final battle of Hogwarts seems to pass so fast, there are so many things that are happening, in the movie, we see an epic in the making. Deathly Hallows Part 2 now holds the throne that Return of the King once taken. What struck me most is that even with all the tension, the movie was able to dwell on the emotions of all the characters. There has been quite a lot of deaths in the movie, I am just surprised that Fred's death was given a little less of importance. On other hand, Snape's death scene and the Pensieve scenes has been one of the most heartbreaking among all others. As a reader, it is important that Snape, being one of the most important characters must be given justification in the finale, in my own opinion, HE IS THE FINALE and my salute goes to Alan Rickman who had been not only great but purely exceptional in the entire series. Towards the end of the battle, Deathly Hallows has redefined "breathtaking" that not even Transformers can define.

This finale is also a reunion of almost all of the characters who were present on the last 7 films. We see once more Professor Sprout, who was only seen on Chamber of Secrets, Trelawney, Madam Pomfrey and all other professors. This is one of the best asset of the franchise: casting veteran actors for the supporting cast, and what would you get? An ensemble that matches what you have read in the book. Professor Mcgonagall is kick ass in this finale as she assumes the role of the Headmistress as Snape was forced out of the castle. Ralph Fiennes provided us with a Voldemort who is both effective and realistic. Helena Bonham Carter who has literally translated Bellatrix Lestrange's madness. Michael Gambon's Dumbledore who was not that lovable at first but manages to take on the role since Half Blood Prince. These supporting cast stole the show.

The end of the series is a bittersweet moment for a Potter Fan like me. No one but a fellow Potter fan would understand the feelings I had during the movie, and I personally would give my gratitude to its director David Yates for translating a book that has been part of me. As the last words written in the book, All is Well...

GRADE: A++