Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2

Better than the previous film, but if the result of a long wait for something is just this pace-weary and conversationally ridiculous ending, I'm not accepting it. The last Harry Potter is dark mainly because in 3D there is sometimes nothing to see. I am not a reader of the saga, so cheap nostalgia does not apply to me, and I calmly enjoy non-originality, non-ingenuity and a nice-looking, but routine design. The Harry Potter saga remains for me, even after the "grand finale", an overpriced audiovisual illustration of a book series that, after Cuarón's departure, has lost any lasting overlap in my heart space. (11/07/2011)

After watching The Lord of the Rings trilogy, I could without hesitation read the book version. After watching the Harry Potter film series, I wouldn't even think about trying to read the book. It's not really important whether the eighth and final film of the series is better than the previous or sixth one; in my case, I have long been tired of this film series and I only endured it for the sake of my children. The final installment is actually the only one I saw in the movie theater, all the others on a television screen. The previous films usually received three stars from me for their production and special effects, but in the final installment, the whole series concentrates on the misery that suffers from being drawn out, genre stereotypes, immaturity, and routine. Many problems come from Rowling's work itself, such as the poor handling of characters and emotions, which should bring conflict and the end of some (anti)heroes. As a viewer, I want to be there when the villain gets what he deserves and I want to enjoy his end, but here the characters disappear somehow casually and many crucial things for the story are just thrown in. If there are any catchphrases, they don't work, the dialogues are pathetic and sometimes turn into stiff phrases, the whole thing is emphasized by the sometimes arrogantly pathetic music, and this film couldn't captivate me in any way. I had to take a break during it to go to the toilet and I didn't care at all what was happening in the movie theater. Even the action, which is not lacking in the final installment, is filmed impersonally. If I compare it, for example, with the Battle of Helm's Deep in The Two Towers, where there was a bloody merciless fight that resembled the great battles of ancient and medieval times, and, in essence, it was nothing less than whether genocide would take place or not. Here, everything is artificial and very digital in every respect. Either you see a crowd of anonymous characters, or a black blur of struggling wizards flashes by. Those who are not familiar with the books will sometimes have quite a problem understanding the logic of what they see (in fact, the book has a number of logical inconsistencies). The film's current 167th place in the rankings of the best films and a very decent rating are simply the result of Pottermania and what this series means in contemporary pop culture, rather than the result of film artistry. Two stars may be harsh, because a huge budget, of course, provides a tempting spectacle in the form of grand production and a barrage of special effects, but if I compare it, for example, to Stardust, that film emotionally propelled me to the stars, while this one kept me sunken in my seat and I barely managed to stay awake. If this is supposed to be one of the most significant blockbusters of this summer, then this year has certainly not been very good. Overall impression: 45%. (16/07/2011)

A generic fantasy colouring book that benefits from the dark undertones of The Dark Knight and The Return of the King. The inspiration of those masterpieces is blatant in places and at times it seems that the viewer will finally find their own way in all that copy-pasted and uninventive darkness (where is the childlike playfulness and originality of the first and second films?), but the finale is a flabby, artless affair. I can understand that just as the Harry Potter books and films age and evolve, so do their audiences, but keeping they’ve been far from successful at quality bar at all frequencies. (14/08/2023)

It's definitely almost a star better than the first part (but I'm still giving it the same rating since it just doesn't deserve 4 stars). Yes, we've got the conclusion of the grand Harry Potter saga, we get to see a lot of old friends flash by, except that... everyone's barking, nothing is done properly or realistically, and the music isn't that great either – kind of a mousy wallflower (here of all places, when it's supposed to be so epic!). For being 130 minutes long, the film went by very quickly for me – a plus. Unfortunately, a lot of scenes came across as kind of weird, hollow, there was bad continuity (for example the sequence of Hermione – snake – Ron, then in the next shot the snake – Hermione and Ron; I’m wondering how Hermione got past the snake...), even the scene that made me shed a tear, all of the action was so tastelessly interrupted that I couldn't even properly enjoy the feeling of grief, sorrow... what a pity. And then the fight with Voldy. I mean, it was ridiculous; even his death – are we back to the first one again? Despite my dissatisfaction with all the individual flaws, it was a decent film overall, but I wouldn't have had to go see it in theaters (which I did), the DVD would have been enough. For how I expected the film to be a climax, it didn’t quite land. A better 3 stars, just so I’m not being mean. Btw. I am a fan of the saga; I just don't want to watch something all blinded with sentiment. (09/09/2011)

The last Potter suffers from being split up. While part 1 of 2 (the intro) works even without a finale, part 2 of 2 (the finale) without an intro doesn’t taste so good anymore (when I watch both parts in a row, this problem will probably vanish). And there’s a lot to fit in, so most things are just said rather than shown, and so for instance Dumbledore’s villainy is cut down to just a couple of sentences. But this is just a problem with the screenplay and Kloves’ pruning that we are already used to from before. Otherwise, Yates handles Harry’s last adventure pretty decently, it’s just a little obvious that he doesn’t have time to focus on those deaths as much as he would like to and important characters fall like flies in battles that we never see. But it’s all about Harry, anyway. Primarily about Harry. That boy has trodden a damn long journey, and we have with him and fundamentally the finale isn’t a disappointment. Excellent actors, Alan Rickman was given some room at last, stealing the best scenes of the movie and even Ralph Fiennes as Voldemort duly enjoys himself (the same way I enjoyed Neville being teased - magic, this was always a missing in the Potter movies). I have to admit that the saga got me in the end. I used to think those books about a boy with glasses were ridiculous before someone persuaded me give the movie a try at the movie theater in Nový Jičín ten years ago. Today in the same theater, but ten years later, I told myself that I had done right to go watch the movie in the end. You've been raising him like a pig for slaughter! (18/07/2011)