Summer Movies: Goodbye Harry.

There are major spoilers ALL OVER this post. I assume by this point most people reading this have read the books. Also, there's movie spoilers as well, so tread lightly if you don't want to know.

I came into the series a little over its halfway point. Book 5 had just come out the summer before and Holly had finally convinced me to give them a try. And so began "Mr. & Mrs. Dursley, of number four, Privet Drive..."

It feels so strange to look at that sentence knowing where it eventually ends up.

I was not sold on the first book. I thought the end was crazy and creepy and great, but I wasn't sold. But I read Chamber of Secrets anyway, and then what really hooked me was Book 3 - Prisoner of Azkaban.
It was not only a great read, but it also brought along Sirius Black. Who I ended up loving dearly.

And then Goblet of Fire was amazing and wonderfully wild. I couldn't imagine being a reader having to wait years in between the two books - I couldn't imagine the return of Voldemort without being able to immediately pick up the next one. I read through 4 & 5 voraciously.

But then I reached the end of Book 5.
I remember mentally watching Sirius Black fall through the veil as I scanned the pages. Devastation. I had just proclaimed to Holly how Sirius had become my favorite, even throughout the solemness of Book 5. It was actually really late when I reached that point - probably 2:30 in the morning - and I remember running the few steps down to her door, seeing the light still on and busting in demanding answers. She merely sent me back to reading. Sob. Sirius. This could not be.
This continued the unfortunate recurrence of all my favorite characters dying. That spell has since been broken - also by Harry Potter - but I still get leery.

(Later, I would find a shirt online that I bought and still enjoy: In Sirius Denial. True.)

Then it was my first wait. And began the heavy theorizing with friends. And curiosity. The checking of Mugglenet daily waiting on news of the next book.

I'll be honest - I don't actually remember how I bought book 6. I just remember when the cover was first revealed and Holly & I discussing what it could possibly be. Besides the Birdbath of Doom.

My favorite memory of Book 6 is actually how I finished reading it. Holly & I were at our apartment and she had finished it a few hours beforehand. I was sucked into the final few chapters and had read all night. The sunrise was just beginning to peek out, so I went for some fresh air. And happened to be sitting by the pool in the morning light while reading the chapter about Dumbledore & Harry get attacked by the creatures in the water at the cave.
I don't recommend reading that chapter by a body of water.

Book 6 was okay. It was not my favorite, but we felt like it was necessary. We figured it had to be a slower book to make way for the finale. We waited.
And waited.
And obsessed. And theorized.
And waited.
And checked her website.
And waited.

And was at the midnight release party at the local Waldenbooks with Holly & Brad, in line, having ordered our copies weeks before. This was it. Although there were still a few movies to come out at this point, the wait would essentially be over. One way or another we would know how it was going to end after all our discussion.

I have to be honest: I was pretty bitterly disappointed.

In truth, I would like to go back and reread the series again. I feel like now that I know where its going and without the years of waiting and wondering and questioning, that I would probably like it a lot better. I just expected so much more than chapter after chapter of walking through the woods. There were some great elements - my favorites include the entire scene at Godrics Hollow where Harry finds his parents graves, in the forest where his family walks him to his death, Neville having his moment, etc. It just wasn't what I expected at the time.

All that being said, I loved the seventh movie(s). Really. Sure, I can nitpick it, but don't misinterpret that as disliking it. I felt like they handled the final battle really well- for the most part, you got to actually see all the action instead of being forced to watch fast cut sequences of battle. The moment in the cemetery and the moment in the forest with his family are both incredibly lovely.

This is one of the few occurrences where I will tell you I feel like the movie served the story better than the book. But again - I haven't read it since that first time and I know I do need to go back and reread it. I know several people who love the last book. I'm totally willing to give it another chance without all the hype.

There are two things I really missed. One, I wish they would have left Neville's moment alone. Sure, he does eventually kill Nagini. But by stretching it out and not giving it to him at the moment where he's just had his throwdown with Voldemort I felt kind of took away from it. He was equally my favorite character throughout the books alongside Sirius (and Luna slighly underneath them) and I was so thrilled to see that moment in Book 7.
And for a brief moment in the movie I thought they were actually going to give that moment to one of the others and I was going to be ticked.
The other thing is actually not one of my favorite moments in the book, but I know it is to a lot of the fandom and I feel they did it a disservice. Molly's "Not my daughter" went by so quickly that I didn't even realize Bellatrix was fighting Ginny until Molly flipped around. They should have given that moment some more weight. It simply went by too quickly.

Outside of those two things, the only thing I really missed was one tiny detail from the final battle. And that was Trelawney throwing her crystal balls in the fray. I know it wouldn't have fit the feel of the film, but that was my favorite part of the final battle in the book. :)

One of my favorite moments of the movie, however, (outside of those just mentioned) had to be when the professors were beginning to lay down the defenses for the school. I just loved the visuals. I loved watching the professors getting to do their thing. I loved seeing them work together. And I loved McGonagall's "I've always wanted to do that spell!" :)
(Also, riding the dragon out of Gringotts was pretty cool.)

But I was not a fan of the epilogue. Again. Both in book and movie, I'm just not a fan of that. I've invested myself into your world and attached myself to your characters for seven books...for what? A four page epilogue? That's all I get about how all this ends? (I don't actually remember if it was only four pages. It felt like only four pages.)

After downing the seventh book so much I feel I need to add a disclaimer: I still love Harry Potter. When the dust settles from this final film, and whenever I'm caught up on books, I do want to go back and rediscover its magic and all the beautiful world and characters. Its still one of my favorites. I just felt like it went way too far off track from how it had been set up at the time.

And truth be told, I'm glad to see the final film. I know it means its over, but that's okay. It feels like the end of something special, something a lot of people worldwide enjoyed as one and now its come to a rest.

So farewell Harry Potter. I'm glad I met you at your height. I'm glad I joined the fray. I'm really grateful for all those long nights up talking with friends about how you might end or who might make it even if that means you drove me crazy some of the time. I wouldn't have traded it.

And thanks J.K Rowling for letting Neville live. Because by that point I was really beginning to develop a complex.

Lots of love.