Written By: Dan Geer

In Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1, we experienced a film that, while quite enjoyable, struggled to exist on its own as a single-film entity since the story had been intentionally cut off right before the climactic final act when things really take off. It was certainly a bold move for the creative minds behind the Deathly Hallows films to just give the audience half of a movie with Part 1 and expect us to enjoy and critique it without a real ending. They succeeded well enough, but it made it really difficult to judge the film by itself when the story was incomplete.

When all is said and done, Part 1 can not be truly appreciated without Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2 – the epic payoff to not only all the slow-paced meandering we endured with Harry (Daniel Radcliffe), Ron (Rupert Grint) and Hermione (Emma Watson) in the last film, but to the entire series as a whole. Everything we have experienced with these characters over the last decade has all led to this film, and I am pleased to say that it is indeed a very satisfying conclusion to what has to be the most ambitious film series ever created.

Because this is literally the second half of a larger film, Part 2 wastes no time re-capping what happened in Part 1 and simply cuts right to the chase. As expected, our three heroes are still hunting down the remaining horcruxes containing fragments of Voldemort’s soul, as they have to destroy all of them in order to wipe him out and restore peace to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and the Ministry of Magic. But this time the mission isn’t nearly as slow-going and tedious as in Part 1, since we figure out quite quickly where the rest of the horcruxes are and how to destroy them. Not only that, but the pace of the mission kicks into high gear with a clever balance of melodramatic character moments and thrilling action sequences that unfold during an epic battle at Hogwarts between the good guys and an evil army lead by Voldemort himself.

It is such a breath of fresh air to return to Hogwarts and see familiar faces and surroundings that take us back to when times were more innocent and carefree – unlike Part 1 where such familiarities were mostly absent (for good reason, of course). Even though Albus Dumbledore is dead, and the school has been tyrannically taken over by the evil powers that be, we’re given a glimmer of hope that things could once again be good through a welcome reunion with the students and teachers that have had enough of the oppression. Once Potter returns to Hogwarts to fight the good fight, they stand by his side, stopping at nothing to make sure that he completes his quest to destroy Voldemort (Ralph Fiennes). Because we have grown so attached to these characters over the last decade, their willingness to die in the fight against evil makes us want to cheer them on until the very end. There is just something so satisfying about seeing old friends like Professor McGonagall (Maggie Smith) or Molly Weasley (Julie Walters) getting fed up with all the abuse and kicking the crap out of various villains.

This film is essentially a two-hour climactic fight to the finish that satisfies on not only an entertainment level, but an emotional one as well. Even though this is the second, more exhilarating half of a larger story, it still manages to pull back from the action here and there to make sure that the characters we care about the most get their due by giving us those special quiet moments that allow the audience to breathe and the characters to shine. Daniel Radcliffe, Ralph Fiennes and Alan Rickman in particular have their fair share of standout performances that really deliver the goods for their characters. After a decade of Harry Potter films, not only do the characters need this, but the audience does as well. This film does a wonderful job at hitting just about every emotional note that an epic conclusion of this scale should hit without feeling too uneven when combined with all of the spectacular visuals and action.

Having said all that, the ending suffers ever so slightly due to the film having a shorter running time than the rest of the Potter flicks. While it does the job of wrapping up the series well enough, I personally felt there needed to be something more. After all the time we’ve spent emotionally investing in these characters and their journey together over the years, we really need more time to wind down from all of it. An ending similar to the one in The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King would’ve been more fitting. As it stands right now, it only does the bare minimum to wrap it all up and never really rewards us with an ending that takes its time to bring it all to a close. This series deserves better in that regard, and I would have even been fine with tacking on just a couple more scenes that may not have been in the book, just so long as they were true to the spirit of the story and its characters and gave us time to catch our breath after such an intense final act.

But this is a minor quibble when taking the rest of this beautifully brilliant film into account, and it will feel even more satisfying when watched with Deathly Hallows – Part 1. The film really brings it all full circle and gives us all the thrills and excitement that you’d expect from the final chapter in a colossal eight-film epic. It could have been slightly more, but in the end, the Harry Potter saga has been given the best treatment we as fans could ever ask for. We’ve been treated to eight wonderful films starring great actors that grew into their roles and stuck with the series until the very end (except, of course, for the late Richard Harris, who was replaced by Michael Gambon). From those with top billing like Radcliffe and Fiennes, to actors with relatively minor roles like Matthew Lewis (who played Neville Longbottom), they all completely embody these beloved characters visually and emotionally. That is truly an amazing accomplishment, and so is the series as a whole. This final film is the last great testament to all that the creative talent behind this incredible story have been able to give us, and we can rest assured that the Harry Potter saga will be enjoyed for generations to come.

Rating: (out of four)