Growing up with the young wizard Harry Potter (Daniel Radcliffe), who's not so young by the finish of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2, the second installment of the two-film finale to the popular movie franchise based on J.K. Rowling's series of seven books, involves wading through eight gargantuan movies and mountains of merchandise over the course of ten years.
Of course, that's nothing compared to the suspenseful scrapes and harrowing battles of Harry and his longtime friends Hermione Granger (Emma Watson) and Ron Weasley (Rupert Grint).
Loyal Harry Potter fans are happy with every new movie but casual fans stand true to their beliefs that many of the Harry Potter films are bloated disappointments with the exception of standouts Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban and Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.
Thanks to a riveting and action-packed series finale, Harry Potter makes a grand exit worthy of the fantasy legend he's become. Radcliffe, or Potter, deserves a spectacular finish and director David Yates and his army of technicians, craftspeople and special effects wizards deliver.
While the exceptional production values are no surprise - Harry Potter films are always beautiful to watch - it's worth noting that Deathly Hallows: Part 2 is the rare Hollywood blockbuster that truly takes advantage of 3-D and looks better for it.
Yates, with his fourth Harry Potter installment, makes the long journey all worthwhile with an exciting finish packed with exciting escapes on the back of a dragon, the warmth of camaraderie as Harry's fellow Hogwarts students and staff come to his aid and a scary battle as Harry's arch enemy Lord Voldemort (Ralph Fiennes) brutally attacks Hogwarts in order to kill Harry face-to-face.
Harry (Radcliffe), Hermione (Watson) and Ron (Grint) pick up exactly where Deathly Hallows: Part 1 left off searching for the magical Horcruxes, the keys to Voldemort's immortality. They worry that Voldemort may be too powerful to defeat now that he possesses the powerful Elder Wand taken from Albus Dumbledore's (Michael Gambon) grave.
After an escape from the lower vaults of Gringotts, the wizard bank operated by goblins, the heroic trio of Harry, Hermione and Ron sneak back to Hogwarts and prepare to battle Voldemort and his evil followers. By the film's climactic battle, Yates and screenwriter Steve Kloves reveal all the key secrets to the story. Who is the true owner of the Elder Wand? Is Voldemort's ally Severus Snape (Alan Rickman) good or evil? What happens to the Sword of Gryffindor once the goblin Griphook (Warwick Davis) gets it from Harry?
All the surviving, supporting players return for the final film but a few stand out. Maggie Smith is larger-than-life heroic as Minerva McGonagall as she leads the students to protect Hogwarts. Alan Rickman is menacing and wonderfully complex as Severus Snape; arguably the best of all the Harry Potter characters. Ralph Fiennes makes Voldemort a classic villain not just because of the incredible make up effects but mostly due to his chilling voice and frightening performance.
Rightfully so, Daniel Radcliffe rises to the occasion with a brave and emotional performance that complements the steady support given to him by Grint and Watson, not just in Deathly Hallows: Part 2 but over the past ten years.
Finally, by the time Yates brings us to Rowling's famous coda, some 19 years later at London's King's Cross station as Hogwarts Express prepares to leave with a new class of future wizards, Deathly Hallows: Part 2 does what all great finales are supposed to do. They leave all of us, whether fanatical fans or casual viewers on a emotional high wanting more. By the credits, we're already missing Harry Potter; arguably the franchise's greatest achievement.
Distributor: Warner Bros
Director: David Yates
Scriptwriter: Steve Kloves, based on JK Rowling's novel "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows"
Cinematographer: Eduardo Serra
Editor: Mark Day
Cast: Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint, Ralph Fiennes, Helena Bonham Carter, Alan Rickman, Maggie Smith
Running Time: 130 minutes
Producers: HeyDay Films
Rating: PG-13
Release Date: July 15, 2011