The End of a (Nerdy) Era

A week and a half ago, the finale Harry Potter film premier generated a record $169.2 million in weekend ticket sales in the U.S. and Canada.

"Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2" set a box office record for a midnight showing ($43.5 million) and for one-day sales ($92.1 million).

The film generated $476 million worldwide in the first weekend.

Such big numbers; it's easy to forget about the little individuals to whom this film meant so much.

One ticket-worth of that $476 million was from Sarah Woolsey, vice president and athlete of the . As quidditch is a wizard sport, part of Woolsey's lifestyle is quite literally based upon the Potter book series by J.K. Rowling.

This is her firsthand account of attending the midnight showing with her quidditch team, written a week after the premier on July 15, 2011:

The Harry Potter series is over. It still is a bit surreal that there won’t be any more midnight book release parties or movie premieres. It’s been a week since "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2" was released, and I’ve already seen the movie twice. As part of the University of Maryland’s Quidditch team, I am, almost by default, a huge Harry Potter nerd.

By about 7 p.m., we had established our place in the line to see the film. (There were only two people ahead of us.) When we walked into the building, the amused staff took pictures of us all in our crazy costumes. We clearly must have been an odd group, a mix of various students, and I was dressed as Professor Trelawney, the slightly crazy Divinations teacher.

During our five hours of waiting, we read stories aloud from the companion book Tales of Beedle the Bard, excitedly discussed the new competition series broom released, and waited with anticipation and trepidation as the time drew closer to midnight and, consequently, the end of our childhoods.

I really enjoyed the film, but after seeing it a second time, I had to wonder if my love for the film had more to do with the movie itself, or the emotions and atmosphere surrounding it, since it was The Last One that will be released. Regardless of why I enjoyed it, the last Harry Potter film is well worth seeing, especially if you need a bit of magic in your life.