Box Office Review - Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2

Since I stood in line for close to three hours last night to see this film, I had plenty of time to reflect on the Harry Potter series as a whole. As for the final film, it is fine. Even if you haven't read the books, you will definitely know what to expect from this last film. That's what happens when a series, especially one focused on pleasing its fans, runs for so long. Seeing as the films have taken a good ten years to come to an end, many people have grown up with the films. There are even many younger fans who wouldn't know life without the movies. With this nostalgia factor, I would compare the final film as well as the entire series to that of a classic rock band.

Fans of bands like The Rolling Stones/Rush/U2 don't go to their concerts looking to be amazed by something they haven't seen. They go expecting to hear the hits. When they do hear that one song that they really wanted to hear they get all excited. The same can be said about the Harry Potter series and its fans. Potter fans aren't looking to go see a film that is groundbreaking or takes risks, their going to see their favourite things from the series put up on a big screen. They want the hits, like Ron and Hermoine kissing, Neville being heroic, and other small things that in the long run don't necessarily make a film good. That doesn't matter though, the fans at the movie last night could have cared less if the movie was any good. They were there to dress up and cheer whenever two characters kissed, or if a bad character died.

I imagine this must be stiflingly creatively for the filmmakers. Knowing that a certain part can't be cut, even if it would improve the film exponentially, just because the fans demand to see it. This is where creativity dies and fan service begins. Deathly Hallows part 2 packs in so many characters that the only explanation is fan service. There are countless shots of characters from previous films that are shorter than short and could have easily been cut from the film if it wasn't for the die hard Potter freaks.

In summation the final Harry Potter film does its job. It ends the series giving fans what they want, even if, at times, it gets ridiculous. The end of the film which shows the characters all grown up, got uproarious laughter from the audience. There was no reason for this scene to be in the movie, and I knew from reading the book that it wouldn't work. Of course if it wasn't included, some people would be upset. The entire series is guilty of including scenes that don't work on film, and I see this as the main reason I have no interest in watching any of the eight films anytime soon.

As always if your a fan of the movies/books see the final movie, you will probably love it. If you are not a fan, just stay away. This final movie isn't going to bring in any new fans, but it will please a lot of old ones.

A Good Banana