Harry Potter and the 'Deathly Hallows Part 2': A Decade Long Adventure Draws to a Close

I was 9 years old when the Harry Potter phenomenon began.

Now, as a 19 year old about to begin my second year in college, I felt like the same 9 year old that was just hearing about the series years ago.

Before the movie began, there were dozens of Potter fans milling around the lobby in wizard and muggle garb alike, conversing with fellow fans as if it were Hogsmeade, only instead of chocolate frogs and butterbeer, with popcorn and soda. As the midnight hour drew nearer, more and more people began filing into the theaters, growing anxious for the final installment.

The film picks up just as the last left, with Lord Voldemort clutching the Elder Wand, one of the Deathly Hallows. And remember, this is a feature film, not the newest episode of Glee, so there is no "here's what you missed" opportunity, so be prepared to jump head first into the film.

Now, before too much can be given away to all you Potterheads who have not read the books, let me just preface the remainder of this blog post by saying that HP 7.2 may not have been the longest film in the series, but it certainly packed a lot in without having too fast of a pace that was incomprehensible, but only left out what I consider to minor details.

So let us start with the basics.

The cast: Daniel, Rupert, Emma, Matthew, Bonnie, James, Oliver and Tom, our favorite troublemakers and rebel rousers are nothing short of incredible in their final film all together. Having basically grown up together, they have the most amazing chemistry on screen. But even more than that, they have really learned everything there is to know about each of their characters and make the film the success that it is today.

The sets: In this final chapter, we find Harry, Ron and Hermione leaving their lives as vagabonds behind and returning to many of their old stomping grounds. The Great Hall, the Room of Requirement, the Forbidden Forest, and even Kings Cross Station, easily some of the most crucial sets in the series, are all revisited, and play even bigger roles, having the most critical scenes in the film taking place. And in the climactic battle scenes, we find our beloved Hogwarts crumbling before our very eyes. But even as it is under attack, it still maintains its character and dignity as it should, never looking as though it’s just another sound stage in Hollywood with painted walls peeling off of the drywall.

The concept: Wow, where do I even begin? Let me start by saying that only the most talented of writers can write something as complex as Harry Potter and still know exactly how to tie it all together ten years later. J.K. Rowling is that writer. Having been exposed to the books and films from an early age, I grew up with Harry and the gang, and even I struggled keeping everything straight, whether it be remembering all of the Weasleys or knowing how on earth to navigate through the structural marvel that is Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry without the Maurder's Map.

Nevertheless, Rowling (and screenwriter Steve Kloves) has really outdone herself this time. Every question that has ever been left unanswered is explained in the final installment. The only question you might be left with is if it can really be over.

And as disappointed as I am to know that there will never be another book to sit up reading, or another midnight premiere to wait in line for,  I revel in the fact that what Daniel Radcliff said at the London premiere is right, “Each and every person […] who will see this film and who have followed these films over the last ten years will carry this story with them through the rest of their lives and it will affect what they do.”