And finally, we are here, the final film of the Harry Potter series. Ten years after the first one, we have followed Harry Potter from being the boy who lived, to THE BOY WHO IS SO ANGRY HE SPEAKS IN CAPITAL LETTERS (at least in the books), to the boy who has to defeat he-who-shall-not-be-named, presumably because Voldermort has had a superinjunction taking out to stop everyone knowing about his dodgy nose job.
Following the excellent part one, which stands up with films three and five as the best in the set of eight, Deathly Hallows part 2 starts much slower and a bit tediously. I would have liked a quick re-cap at the start but it's straight into goblins and swords and wands and beaches, but it's not long before the story kicks in with a witty performance by Helen Bonham-Carter as she pretends to be Hermione pretending to be her character. Yes. It's easier to follow than you think.
It's then onto Gringott's bank for a thrilling break-in and break-out, before returning finally to a dismally lit Hogwarts for the battle against Voldermort that takes up the rest of the film.
DH2 - as I'll call it from now on for ease, don't think it's some sort of form for applying for job seekers allowance - is a super adaptation of the second half of the book. From the scenes inside the wizarding bank to the battle of Hogwarts, the action scenes and CGI are flawless throughout but it's the emotional impact of the film that will stand the test of time. Whether it's the kiss between Hermione and Ron, the beautifully shot and edited memories of Snape, to the thought of characters we've been with for fifteen years appearing on screen for the last time, you'll be one of only a few if you're not wiping tears away from under your 3D specs a couple of times throughout the film.
DH2 has been adapted from the book very well. With much of the exposition and slower scenes dispensed with in part one, it's down to a lot of action in this one. The only issue I have with the film - as I had with the book four years ago - is that the 19-years-later epilogue tagged onto the end is not enough explanation of what happened to a lot of the characters. Either let's see everyone and where they are or leave it open ended.
Where the epilogue does work, though, is the make-up and clothing that really works in making the characters look nineteen years older.
Though not as good as part one - mainly thanks to the humour of the Polyjuice scene and the beauty of the story animation near the close in the first part - you couldn't ask for much of a better send off for the film series as you get with DH2. It's a touching film that ties everything up neatly and delivers a pleasant mix of action, CGI, drama and emotive backstory that means the two hours speeds by, even if the bolted on 3D is not as impressive as it could be, though seeing it in IMAX as I did certainly adds to the power.
8/10
