Harry Potter 7.2: When Light Stands before Darkness
In just three days Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part Two has raked in over $162 million dollars, largely in part to enormous amount of people who viewed the midnight release. Once again, the beloved franchise breaks its own records and makes a few new ones, including the worldwide opening weekend record according to Box Office Mojo.
The film begins where Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part One ended: Voldemort is in possession of the Elder Wand and our heroes Harry, Ron and Hermione have just buried Dobby, the House Elf who helped them escape the clutches of Bellatrix LeStrange. In many ways the situation is grim and the odds are overwhelming, but Harry and his two friends know that there are only three of the cursed items left. With their goal to stop Voldemort still in sight the trio carry’s on; determined to see it through to the end.
This time the search takes them to Gringott’s bank and Hogwart’s. When the three of them return to the school, they learn that Sevurus Snape is the new Headmaster. Harry does not hesitate to confront the man responsible for Albus Dumbeldore’s death. After a brief altercation between Snape and Professor McGonnagle, the new Headmaster flees the school. By then however, Voldemort has gathered an army and comes knocking at the doorstep of the castle in search of Harry, completely aware of where Harry’s search for the horcruxes will take the young man. Thus, Hogwart’s becomes the final battlefield in this war between good and evil.
With little time to spare, Harry, Ron and Hermione race to destroy the final horcruxes so that they may end Voldemort’s campaign of terror. Amidst the battle, new heroes emerge while others meet their end. Yet even amongst death and destruction, love is reaffirmed and in one case, finally requited.
Harry learns that he will need to make the ultimate sacrifice in order to save everyone else. As he bravely goes on alone to face the very man who seeks his destruction, Harry finds that in addition to his love for Ginny, his two best friends and schoolmates and their love of him; the love of his departed family members has always been with him. Armored with the strength he draws from this knowledge, Harry takes a stand against evil though it may cost him his life.
A magnificent end to what has been one of the most popular franchises since Star Wars. Stellar performances by Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint, Ralph Fiennes and Alan Rickman. Surely the Harry Potter movies will be loved for generations to come. Those generations will learn the message that the rest of the world has been shown these past ten years: Love is the most powerful of all magic and they will also come to know that when light stands before darkness, it is light that prevails.
Harry Potter 7: Darkness Before the Light
Yet another Harry Potter movie has descended upon the moviegoers of the world. Remarkably, but not surprisingly, the seventh installment to the franchise has managed to out earn the previous six episodes. In just one weekend; according to sources such as Box Office Mojo, the film has already made over $125 million in the United States alone, breaking the franchises own records for opening weekend earnings.
At any rate, this is not about how well the movie is doing, but the film itself and my response to it.
For the record, I agree with the overall consensus that Harry Potter Seven is dark because of the looming shadow that is Voldermort and his fearsome Death Eaters who seek to oppress and destroy those who stand in their way. Although there is a sense of almost overwhelming doom throughout the story, there are moments of humor and blissful reverie contrasted by the muggle murders, and disappearances of half breeds. One of which is a very sweet, tender moment between Harry and Ginny-a stark opposite to the heart wrenching trials our hero is about to endure.
For most of the film, Harry and his two best friends, Ron and Hermione are on the run from Voldemort’s followers, while at the same time they decide to hunt for and destroy the remaining horcruxes. The trio manages to commandeer the third horcrux through a brilliant infiltration of the Ministry of Magic now under Voldemort’s control. This particular part of the adventure provides much of the humor in the movie as the three literally take on the likenesses of adults who work at the Ministry. Once they have hold of the small, but ominous charm, our would be heroes soon discover that the cursed item has an affect on each of them as they wear it- not unlike a certain ring in another popular film franchise-causing each of them to experience anger or depression to a heightened degree. Thus, they hasten to find how the item can be destroyed.
Overall, Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows Part 1 is very well put together and does an amazing job setting the stage for part 2. It is akin to the first act of a tragic play, or the first few chapters in a masterfully written novel. Whether you have read all of the books or have only watched the movies, Deathly Hallows Part 1 will have you on pins and needles waiting for the ultimate outcome after seeing the last scene. Surely, the darkness before the light.
I enjoyed the film because it gripped me from the beginning and once again brought me entirely into Harry Potter’s world as it teeters on the edge of a dark abyss. I felt for Hermione, Harry and Ron as they battled the odds, barely escaping death time and again only to watch as others perish around them. For me, Deathly Hallows Part 1 only proves that the story of Harry Potter is as intricately crafted as a tapestry on a wall to be admired for years to come.
CinemaPeek 