Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2

[skizzerflake]

Got dragged in there tonight (I wanted it to be somebody else's choice), but not bad at all. Over the years, I've seen a lot of gala premiers in this about-to-be-rehabbed Senator Theater we went to. Its Art Deco architecture looks like the grand hall of the Wizard of Oz and seats about 900 and for events like this people come in costume, bring their own magic wands, etc. It had been sold out the previous day and I probably could have scalped my ticket for $50.

Back to the movie....better than I expected. I'm not a big Potter fan, but by now the actors have their characters nailed down. The script was pretty good, the FX animation was seamless, the pacing good and the story actually had a satisfying end. You have to be prepared for the overflowing energy of the 13 year old fangirls who are about to burst waiting for it to start and who cheer and scream for all of the noteworthy plot turns, but the theater has a sound system that can move the seasons so the screaming girls get drowned out. Given my druthers, I'd wait a couple weeks until the hoo-raw fades a little, but if you like adolescent fantasy, this ain't bad.

 

[mtrycrafts]

Well, it looks like they broke the weekend box office take at $169 million, surpassing the previous $158 million for Dark Knight.
We'll wait until the crowds die down.

Saw transformers this AM. Not may people in the theater

 

[AVRat]

I'm a HP fan but will be waiting for the BD unless a friend pops for an IMAX ticket since it has best location/screen for wheelchairs. Looking forward to it though based on the great reviews.

 

[gene]

I will probably get blasted for saying this but I don't get the Harry Potter obsession. I tried to watch the original movie 3 times and fell asleep all 3 times. I tried watching a few sequels and just never got into them. Meanwhile I love the LOTR series and all things SciFi and Superhero (except for Spiderman and Superman). Maybe its me but I have little desire to see the latest HP movie

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

I will probably get blasted for saying this but I don't get the Harry Potter obsession. I tried to watch the original movie 3 times and fell asleep all 3 times. I tried watching a few sequels and just never got into them. Meanwhile I love the LOTR series and all things SciFi and Superhero (except for Spiderman and Superman). Maybe its me but I have little desire to see the latest HP movie

Yeah, no offense, & sorry to the HP fans, but I think Harry Potter is one the worst movie franchises I have never seen!

And I have seen every darn one of the Harry Potter movies!!!

I find them extremely, extremely boring as heck.

What's the plot? Some no-mouth guy trying to kill this wimpy nerdy kid who gets his as$ kicked around in every HP movie?

And I need subtitles watching these HP movies since I can't bloody understand half of what they are saying.

My wife and her sister love Harry Potter, so of course, I'll be watching yet another boring-as-heck HP movie. The only good thing is that it should be the last HP movie EVER.

BTW, Spiderman and Superman also look like sissies and wussies.

 

[3db]

I will probably get blasted for saying this but I don't get the Harry Potter obsession. I tried to watch the original movie 3 times and fell asleep all 3 times. I tried watching a few sequels and just never got into them. Meanwhile I love the LOTR series and all things SciFi and Superhero (except for Spiderman and Superman). Maybe its me but I have little desire to see the latest HP movie

Nah..its just you..

Seriously though, we all have different likes/dislikes. I'm a fan of the series but will wait until the crowds die down...that should eliminate most of the screaming teens.

 

[Audioholics]

I loved it and thought it was the best of all the movies. It was also the most violent and visceral. Good conclusion that stuck close enough to the book to not disappoint.

 

[its phillip]

For those of you who don't like the films, try the books. They really don't take that long to read

With that being said, I'm not a huge fan of the films either. I haven't seen the last three or four.

 

[majorloser]

I loved it and thought it was the best of all the movies. It was also the most violent and visceral. Good conclusion that stuck close enough to the book to not disappoint.

The last film was definitely the best of the bunch. But without the rest of the movies for reference, you'd probably be lost. The picture and sound were also quite good in this picture. I can't wait to see it on Bluray just so I can watch some of the scenes closer to see what I missed.

 

[BoredSysAdmin]

 

[skizzerflake]

The last film was definitely the best of the bunch. But without the rest of the movies for reference, you'd probably be lost. The picture and sound were also quite good in this picture. I can't wait to see it on Bluray just so I can watch some of the scenes closer to see what I missed.

You don't need to know much to catch up on the plot. I don't know the books at all and missed the last couple flix, but all you really need to know is that Harry and friends are the good guys, the snake-faced guy (Valdemort) and his minions are the bad guys. It's pretty much like a grandiose gangster story - factional war in an alternate underground culture that considers itself to be above the laws of ordinary people (AKA, Muggles...us).

 

[3db]

I saw this in the theater last night and I walked away feeling rather impressed. Good action, lots of bass and use of surrounds, acting was supurb as usual for this series and the special affects were stellar.

 

[mike c]

i have a question re: wizard/witch battles.

when the bad guys shoot, they shoot with killing spells.
the good guys counter to nullify it, so they're practically shooting "good wishes" (basically shoving spells)?

i mean, even if i were a good guy and was being shot at with real bullets, i sure as hell would be shooting real bullets as well.

 

[mtrycrafts]

...

i mean, even if i were a good guy and was being shot at with real bullets, i sure as hell would be shooting real bullets as well.

You mean you wouldn't be using rubber bullets?

 

[Fenix]

I really liked the series. Sure they start of a bit on the kiddie side, but that's because the main characters are kids, and as they mature so do the films. It was an excellent conclusion and now I must read the books.

One thing that I should make note of. I have a very hard time hating a movie. Somehow I am able to clear my mind get a good grasp on what is being presented to me and enjoying it as is.

 

[jonnythan]

i have a question re: wizard/witch battles.

when the bad guys shoot, they shoot with killing spells.
the good guys counter to nullify it, so they're practically shooting "good wishes" (basically shoving spells)?

i mean, even if i were a good guy and was being shot at with real bullets, i sure as hell would be shooting real bullets as well.

They're not shooting "good wishes," they're mostly casting stunning and disarming spells. In the HP universe, the good guys don't use the unforgivable curses because they're illegal, very difficult to perform, and seem to require a certain sadism and hatred in the caster. The curses are "dark magic" and sort of require an evil or dark personality to use them effectively. Kind of like the dark side of the force, come to think of it. Powerful, strong, deadly, etc, but requires giving a certain part of your personality or soul to dark feelings such as hatred and greed.

 

[majorloser]

They're not shooting "good wishes," they're mostly casting stunning and disarming spells. In the HP universe, the good guys don't use the unforgivable curses because they're illegal, very difficult to perform, and seem to require a certain sadism and hatred in the caster. The curses are "dark magic" and sort of require an evil or dark personality to use them effectively. Kind of like the dark side of the force, come to think of it. Powerful, strong, deadly, etc, but requires giving a certain part of your personality or soul to dark feelings such as hatred and greed.

So in our world the type of people that use dark magic effectively would be politicians

 

[mike c]

They're not shooting "good wishes," they're mostly casting stunning and disarming spells. In the HP universe, the good guys don't use the unforgivable curses because they're illegal, very difficult to perform, and seem to require a certain sadism and hatred in the caster. The curses are "dark magic" and sort of require an evil or dark personality to use them effectively. Kind of like the dark side of the force, come to think of it. Powerful, strong, deadly, etc, but requires giving a certain part of your personality or soul to dark feelings such as hatred and greed.

thanks for the explanation. i understand why now ... but now also know why someone on their side always dies every movie

 

[jeffsg4mac]

I will probably get blasted for saying this but I don't get the Harry Potter obsession. I tried to watch the original movie 3 times and fell asleep all 3 times. I tried watching a few sequels and just never got into them. Meanwhile I love the LOTR series and all things SciFi and Superhero (except for Spiderman and Superman). Maybe its me but I have little desire to see the latest HP movie

I will only blast you on the Superman. Donner's Superman has never been equaled. The rest we agree on. I think I have seen two of the HP movies, and I lost intereset after the first one.

 

[jonnythan]

The movies are only interesting to me because they're the adaptations of the books, which are phenomenal.