Twelve Down And Two To Go

We have survived the hype surrounding both the movie release of Harry Potter And The Order of The Phoenix and the book release of Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows. I must confess, however, that my friend Rachel and I went to see the movie the day after it was released (in a multiplex theater that was about one-third full). We also both finished the book within three days of its release. Rachel received her ordered copy on Saturday and finished it early Sunday afternoon. I picked it up late Sunday afternoon and finished it Monday night (well, actually, the wee hours of Tuesday morning).

Did they live up to the hype? Perhaps. Order of The Phoenix was not the best movie I have ever seen, but it was certainly far from the worst. And Deathly Hallows was a fitting end to the series. I will not write much about the book, as I still see multiple copies in the hands of people on the train during morning and evening rush hour, in restaurants, in parks, at the beach... I will say that I thought it could have been "tightened up" a bit, especially in the long middle section. I felt it suffered from trying to fill in too many details from the whole series to the detriment of the plot of the final installment itself. I will also say that given all the hype surrounding the death of "major characters," I was surprised by who was actually killed off and who was not. In spite of that, I still enjoyed it immensely. I will say no more for the duration.

So the series has come to an end, but there are still two movies left to be made and released. Two more opportunities for the media to hype the Harry Potter...ummm...phenomenon, for lack of a better word. I am looking forward to the last two movies, because I am interested in how the directors will choose to handle them--what will they choose as important, what will they cut out, how will they use special effects to bring the printed word to the screen, and how much will the actors have grown and changed since the last time we saw them on the big screen?

So the series has come to an end, but that does not mean we, and others, will not continue to enjoy it in the future. All we have to do is make a short trip to our own bookshelves or down to the library to visit Harry, Ron, Hermione and the others at Hogwarts any time we please.

Peace,
Jeffri