07/21/2011
Review by David Anthony
The Harry Potter Franchise has reached its end. Readers and viewers alike should be pleased at the ways in which J.K. Rowling’s modern classic has been translated to the screen, gothically enhanced by 3D. HP audiences will warmly welcome this final opportunity to glimpse Ron, Hermione, Snape, Harry, and, of course, you-know-who, he-who-must-not-be-named, the Dark Lord, Voldemort, in the mother of all wand-wielding wars. Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, more than a location, is itself almost a character as well. Everything in this series seems animated, in the original sense of possessing an animus, a spirit, thus some discernible living quality. And apart from good and evil, Harry Potter remains very much about life and death.
It is hard to fathom how deeply this tale has impressed itself upon the consciousness of such a disparate fan base across the globe, in both book and film form and in the lively articulation between the two. While it took shape the phenomenon stood all but unfazed by the sands shifting around it, as page books were chased by laptops, kindles, tablets and other readers, to the point where a wise, web-savvy Rowling has incorporated technology into perpetuating the legacy of this legend of legerdemain.
This uncanny concatenation of circumstances would make anyone believe in spells. The long lines of would-be witnesses, 72, 48, 24 hours before the doors open to HP7 themselves speak volumes of its appeal, and those who waited it out have something to tell their grandchildren. That this could have been sparked by a writer imagining worlds of wonder and then marketing the end product in such a masterful way may be a miracle of our age. Moreover, because children and childhood are at its center, these narratives thrive on a built-in intergenerational appeal set to keep aficionados occupied for years to come. Tapping that inner child lets us all suspend disbelief to fully join the fantasy. Deathly Hallows, Part Two is so successful chiefly due to a deft blend of story, acting and special effects, each combined to form a seamless synergy.
I would not pretend any objectivity here; I have been captivated by these sagas since my first exposure to them, and never miss a chance to see them in any way possible.
So if it is on my home television when I walk into a room or channel surf, I will find hard to walk out or to share mental space with anything else that might need doing. So it was that watching this one on the big screen with the 3D glasses proved a boon to me, a treat that transported me to another time in my own life and consciousness when watching a film in the middle of a day was not a guilty pleasure but a way of learning. The nicest thing about The Deathly Hallows, Part Two is that it can be both.
Fort the KUSP Film Gang, this is David Anthony