Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2
Year: 2011
Director: David Yates
Starring: Ralph Feinnes, Michael Gambon, Rupert Grint, Daniel Radcliffe, Alan Rickman & Emma Watson
Runtime: 130 mins
BBFC: 12
Published: 19/10/20
Director: David Yates
Starring: Ralph Feinnes, Michael Gambon, Rupert Grint, Daniel Radcliffe, Alan Rickman & Emma Watson
Runtime: 130 mins
BBFC: 12
Published: 19/10/20
I had half a mind to just start this review halfway through and end it anti-climactically but I felt as though I might as well put a bit more effort into this than went into Deathly Hallows Part 2 or I would simply be no better than it.
That’s certainly a harsh way to frame the film, but as I mentioned in my Deathly Hallows Part 1 review the problem stems from the fact that the film just starts in the middle of everything that’s going on and as a result doesn’t really work as a film on its own merits. That being said it is one of the better examples of how to split a novel up into two parts.
Voldemort has found the Elder Wand and now possesses the most powerful wand in the wizarding world. Meanwhile Harry, Ron, and Hermione know the location of the next Horcrux, Bellatrix’s vault in Gringots.
Deathly Hallows Part 2 seems to have this issue of bringing up new information or Deus Ex Machina’s every few minutes so that our heroes can reach their goal. Now whilst the Harry Potter series has always been one that leans into conveniences to allow our heroes to succeed, the story had always been relatively good at leaving breadcrumbs throughout that our heroes would return to later on. This happens once during Deathly Hallows Part 2 where Ron & Hermione return to the Chamber of Secrets to use a Basilisk fang to destroy a Horcrux because they remembered that Harry used one to destroy Riddle’s Diary many years ago. The rest of the time the gang are just successful due to plot convenience. Magical objects appearing just when they need them to, or being able to access vital information from dying characters memories mere minutes before they need it. As a result it’s an extremely anti-climactic ending where the stakes are almost nil because with the kind of luck our characters are having it is quite literally impossible for them to fail.
The final battle which takes up the bulk of the second half of the film also feels underwhelming. The scale feels small and we’re never really given an opportunity to see which of our beloved characters die or survive. Plus the final showdown between Harry & Voldemort is just boring to say the least. They cast one spell each and then Harry overpowers Voldemort because Neville destroys the final Horcrux.
That’s certainly a harsh way to frame the film, but as I mentioned in my Deathly Hallows Part 1 review the problem stems from the fact that the film just starts in the middle of everything that’s going on and as a result doesn’t really work as a film on its own merits. That being said it is one of the better examples of how to split a novel up into two parts.
Voldemort has found the Elder Wand and now possesses the most powerful wand in the wizarding world. Meanwhile Harry, Ron, and Hermione know the location of the next Horcrux, Bellatrix’s vault in Gringots.
Deathly Hallows Part 2 seems to have this issue of bringing up new information or Deus Ex Machina’s every few minutes so that our heroes can reach their goal. Now whilst the Harry Potter series has always been one that leans into conveniences to allow our heroes to succeed, the story had always been relatively good at leaving breadcrumbs throughout that our heroes would return to later on. This happens once during Deathly Hallows Part 2 where Ron & Hermione return to the Chamber of Secrets to use a Basilisk fang to destroy a Horcrux because they remembered that Harry used one to destroy Riddle’s Diary many years ago. The rest of the time the gang are just successful due to plot convenience. Magical objects appearing just when they need them to, or being able to access vital information from dying characters memories mere minutes before they need it. As a result it’s an extremely anti-climactic ending where the stakes are almost nil because with the kind of luck our characters are having it is quite literally impossible for them to fail.
The final battle which takes up the bulk of the second half of the film also feels underwhelming. The scale feels small and we’re never really given an opportunity to see which of our beloved characters die or survive. Plus the final showdown between Harry & Voldemort is just boring to say the least. They cast one spell each and then Harry overpowers Voldemort because Neville destroys the final Horcrux.
The performances in this film feel weaker overall than in the last two films, mostly because there aren’t many opportunities for dialogue. The film goes from action sequence to action sequence and by the end of the 2 hour 10 minute runtime there’s only been a handful of scenes were our characters aren’t in battles. Yes this is the climax of the entire series, but because the film drops you into the middle of something and only provides you with the battles it feels extremely hollow and the least ‘Harry Potter’ out of the entire series.
That being said it’s not a bad film. Much of the lead up to the final battle is enjoyable, and there are elements of the final battle which I quite like. I wish the fight between Molly Weasley and Bellatrix had lasted longer, but these magical battles never seem to last more than a couple of spells so I don’t really know what I was expecting. I also quite like the epilogue, adds a nice footnote to the series with it ending where it all began whilst also allowing potential for more films if WB so decided to adapt the stage show, The Cursed Child, into a film.
I don’t have an awful lot to say about Deathly Hallows Part 2. It feels like a rushed conclusion to such a long series, which is weird considering it had been given more attention than almost any other film. When watched back to back with Part 1 it does alleviate some of the issues I have mentioned here, but when looked at on its own Part 2 is little more than a whimper rather than the explosive finale it should have been.
That being said it’s not a bad film. Much of the lead up to the final battle is enjoyable, and there are elements of the final battle which I quite like. I wish the fight between Molly Weasley and Bellatrix had lasted longer, but these magical battles never seem to last more than a couple of spells so I don’t really know what I was expecting. I also quite like the epilogue, adds a nice footnote to the series with it ending where it all began whilst also allowing potential for more films if WB so decided to adapt the stage show, The Cursed Child, into a film.
I don’t have an awful lot to say about Deathly Hallows Part 2. It feels like a rushed conclusion to such a long series, which is weird considering it had been given more attention than almost any other film. When watched back to back with Part 1 it does alleviate some of the issues I have mentioned here, but when looked at on its own Part 2 is little more than a whimper rather than the explosive finale it should have been.