Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 (4 1/2 stars out of 5 stars)
Directed by: David Yates
Written by: Steven Kloves
Starring: Danielle Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint, Ralph Fiennes, Maggie Smith, Alan Rickman
The film opens as the Deathly Hallows Part 1 ended, Voldemort gains the elder wand, and Harry, Ron, and Hermione are on the beach by Fleur and Bill Weasley's safe house. The rest of the story is for the viewer. The final chapter in this series of films is about the epic battle of Harry vs. Lord Voldemort.
The journey of these films has been interesting. The films have captured the general elements of the books (some better than others) but there have been a lot of plot points and specific things that fan have missed. With four different directors, unlike the Lord of the Rings trilogy there has been no cohesive vision or direction. The smartest move these films did was continue with David Yates for the last four films. Yates got his grove with Half Blood Prince, and then knew how to create the end to this series. The thing I appreciate most about his direction is that you can tell he cares about these characters, the films, and he actually has grown in his art form and become a better director.
I think whether you were a fan of the books, a fan of of the movies and not the books, viewers will be blown away by the climax of this film. Daniel Radcliffe has grown into a stunning actor, and he was brilliant in this film, I dare say he deserves attention in the best actor category at the Academy Awards. The film is a technical marvel, as usual they succeed once again with their score (the brilliant Alexandre Desplat) and cinematography. This film has wonderful art direction, and the best visual effects in any of the eight films. The thing I enjoyed most was the fact that Maggie Smith was used more, and she was just brilliant!!
I was blown away by this film, it was so good it made cry, laugh, gave me chills, and there was satisfaction that the series ended well. As a huge Potter fan I had my bones of contention. Many of the characters the deaths at the end (yes people die, but I will not say who) felt rushed anti-climatic. I loved Alan Rickman, and thought he played Snape flawlessly in all eight films, but felt that he was underused. I am not ah huge fan of Rowling's epilogue from her book, and it felt a touch awkward at the end here but with minor flaws the film left me empty. Empty because I will miss the magical world of Harry Potter, but this film went above and beyond in closing things off at the end.
1 comment:
Alan Rickman was awesome!
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