My own words are tasty. Very tasty. For that matter, so is that foot in my mouth. Nom nom nom.
Now, for those who don't know that I'm not a cannibal or not actually certifiable, let me explain my previous statement: I was sure - 100% bloody sure - that HP 7.2 was going to be a not to great movie. 100%. The first one wasn't bad, and I was expecting the same sort of "meh" factor for this one. Plus, I'm remembering the book and how bad and cliche' it was, Voldemort and how bad of a villain - no, he is a baddie, the book version doesn't even get that title after how badly (not in the evil way) he was done - he was, how annoyingly Heathcliff Snape was/is, and that whole stupid King's Cross scene. So I am really not expecting much except for some greatness from Molly Weasley. But when the movie ended, I said nothing. Another things to know about me: the moment a movie, ANY movie, is over I launch, both mouth and mind, into critic mode. No film is safe, and yet as the credits scrolled down the screen, I sat silently as the theater chatted around me and cried. Yes, I cried. I cried multiple times. It was great. It was the end of a phenomenon. A long awaited end.
So, good, bad, awesome? Yes, I think so. Oh, and a new category: meh.
Good (Voldmort, lighting, Molly Weasley):
As stated earlier, I really disliked Voldemort in book 7. JK Rowling set him up to be, easily, one of the greatest villains of all time in all mediums. Seriously. I would have placed him up there with Heath Ledger's Joker, Doctor Doom from the Fantastic Four comics--he was epic; and then we get to book 7. He becomes paranoid, nuts, and bizarre. Not villainous at all. Honestly. But in the movie, David Yeats actually made him better than he was in the books. He wasn't insane or ridiculous or anything except when he killed Harry (by the way, that line should have been whispered, NOT shouted), and I was very, very happy and how human he became as the horcruxes were destroyed. In previous movies, Ralph Finnes played him as this inhuman demon, but as parts of his soul kept getting killed off, something in his face, in his eyes became more human. Props to Finnes who, until this point, I thought was the weakest part in the films. So, Voldemort was redeemed for me in this movie.
Somehow, movie 6 got nominated for an Oscar for it's cinematography. I always wondered how because you couldn't bloody see the cinematography because of how bad the lighting was. Not so in this film. The lighting was mostly perfect. One scene was off and that was Harry's death, aside from that, I liked it. Even the ghost of Helena Ravenclaw was done nicely. Good job lighting guys!
Molly Weasley. I know what you're thinking, "Why isn't she in the 'Awesome' category?" Well, I'm wondering why too. Why wasn't that moment with Bellatrix given more time? Honestly, cut some from the beginning or the ending or King's Cross, but NOT from this moment! Goodness. Aside from the fact was it wasn't done justice, it was still wonderful. Ah, Molly, how we love you.
Meh (Ginny, Fred, Snake):
Ginny was, as usual, meh. I mean, so much meh. Does anyone really care about her in the movies? No. Not really. She not a great actress and you don't get to know her well enough to really connect with her. So, Ginny Weasley, I say "Meh!" to you!
Don't kill me. I like Fred, I cried when they got to the scene when they showed his body, but this gets a "meh" because it wasn't done right. Yeats could have played this up SO much more. He tugged at the heartstrings in the movie with this scene when he should have played them like a harp.
Nagini was not bad. When she kills Snape, she's great, but her death scene...meh. I mean, Hermione throws a rock at him? Really? And then Nevill just...what? No. No, no, no, no. Not cool enough. (Oh, small related aside: when did Voldemort get the powers of the Imhotep from "The Mummy"?)
Bad (ending, pacing, sword of Gryffindor, Lupin and Tonks):
I start with the pacing because the problem with the pacing started at the beginning of the movie. It was slow. I understand that they were picking up from where the last movie ended and that they probably wanted it to feel like the audience just got back from an extended intermission and they succeeded at that much to the film's detriment. Yes, I understand that it's a part one and part two, but the opening felt...belabored. Too much talking, moreover, too much rather pointless talking that I didn't care about. Too many dramatic pauses. I didn't like it. Everything up to Gringott's (and even arguably part of Gringott's) got too much time. They could have used it at other places. Like with Fred's death. Or Lupin's. Or the Last Battle. None of those moments got their due. Helena Ravenclaw got too much time too.
Speaking of stuff done wrong, the ending was...anticlimactic. It was not so good. Voldemort just dissipating was lame. And the battle was not surrounded by people, there was no talking, no nothing. It didn't work. It just wasn't as big, impactful, dramatic, epic--it was too simple. It did not do justice to the characters nor the situation. I mean, I wasn't a fan of the last book for a number of reasons, but I liked the movie more than the book and was, as a movie goer, disappointed in the last battle. Visually, I wasn't happy.
Alright, the sword of Gryffindor. Minor point, but they didn't explain how Nevill got it or how it left Griphook's possession or anything. Ball, dropped.
Now, I love Lupin. I dressed up as Tonks for HP premiers. TWICE. And so I am annoyed at how they did not do their death's justice. Honestly. At all. NO justice. You see them sort of not hold hands in one shot and then you see their bodies next to each other...what? No. No, no, no. You can't do that to James's friend, no sir.
That being said, they also failed with Bellatrix's death. Just saying. Not big enough. not dramatic enough. At least it got shown though. Blimey.
Awesome (Snape's death, John Williams, cinematography, Alan Rickman, McGonagall):
Alright. The cinematography was awesome. I loved it. Big shots, dramatic shots, sweeping shots--my only complaint is that they didn't do the sort of shot that had in the teaser posters. But aside from that, the shots were great, especially in that courtyard where, oh, well, everything happened. And the stairs--the first time we see them was great. The cinematography will most likely be up for an Oscar. Just saying.
McGonagall, oh how I love her. She was just...awesome. When she took on Severus, or when she enchanted Hogwarts, or "Boom"--NICE. She has always been one of the coolest characters both on screen and off and so to see them really make her significantly awesome was really good of them and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I cheered for her. (Mind, I cheered for like, half the film, but I cheered for Minerva McGonagall.)
Now, I don't know whether to talk about Snape's death or Alan Rickman because, while they may seen to be the same thing, I'm really talking about two different things. Let's go chronologically then, just to choose.
So, Snape's death. Yes, yes, yes, Alan Rickman was good. Great, whatever, wrong paragraph. This bit here is about how impressed I was with how they portrayed his death. It was graphic, queasy, vicious, and totally, perfectly evil. I am currently in the process of writing a book, and my villain is someone I need to nail because a story is only as good as its villain and so for Yeats to not only do Voldemort better than Rowling, but to make him really, completely evil and just, depraved in such a violent way is a very, very strong character choice--one that I not only enjoy, but whole heartedly endorse as a writer. It was stellar. Good bloody, pun intended, job, Yeats--good job.
Now, Rickman. So, more confession time: I love Alan Rickman. He's great, but I would not have cast him as Snape. He's both too old and does not show enough emotion with his voice. He vocalizes a lot of emotion, but he doesn't show it; however, when he broke down in the Pensive scenes, I teared up. It killed me a little bit when he showed that level of pain. It was excellent. Very excellent. Another good job, sir. Good job.
And so now we come to what, after the scene with the three good Mauraders and Lily, made me cry the most: John Williams's music. Now, I liked the music. It was good. I was unhappy that the movie didn't open with "Hedwig's Theme"--bad move. But when it ended with the music that ended movie one--I cried. Again. A lot. As a musician, a Harry Potter fan, a movie lover, and an English major who appreciates it when a storyteller goes full circle, and a John Williams's fan it was perhaps the best choice in the whole movie for me because it brought it all back to the very beginning when I was just nine. I still remember when I first read the book and so for them to bring back Williams's musical cue redeemed all the problems in the movie for me.
That being said, I'm not going to just wrap up like I normally do. Why? Because I can look analytically at the movie all I want and discuss it from this, that, and the other point, but it doesn't do justice to how I feel about the film.
I remember walking into the theater at about 11:30 PM Thursday night, dressed as Narcissa Malfoy, tired, slightly annoyed, and very ready for Harry Potter to be done with. I have read the books, seen the movies, listened to the scores, read fan fiction, written fan fiction, drawn characters, done a podcast, written music to the book, gone to midnight events for both the books and films, dressed up, cried--I was a die-hard Harry Potter fan to say the least. (Blimey, that's bloody sad.) But I was past it all, done with the madness, ready for the insanity to be done with, but after seeing the eighth movie, I remembered what I loved about it and I know that while I may be past it, while I may be done with it, and while I an still exceedingly glad for it all to be ended, Harry Potter will still have a special place in my heart, but it is done. It was a good time that I am glad to be done with and to move past, but I enjoyed movie eight a lot. I cried a number of times and practically sobbed aloud a times.
So let us raise a glass one last time to Harry Potter, the boy who lived.
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