The early reviews are in for the eighth and final film in the Harry Potter series—and the consensus is Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 is magical. The last Potter film made its world premiere in London, and British and trade papers are raving about the movie, calling it "exciting," "thrilling," and "epic." No wonder it currently has a 100% rating at Rotten Tomatoes. Highlights:
- Todd McCarthy of the Hollywood Reporter calls it a "massively eventful finale that will grip and greatly please anyone who has been at all a fan of the series up to now." He lavishes praise on the film, noting that "all that's missing is an official 'The End' after the final image."
- The Guardian's Peter Bradshaw writes that "the Potter saga could hardly have ended on a better note." He marvels over the "colossal achievement" of the film series, whose characters grew older "in real time" over the last decade, and notes that the plot "has so much more zing," giving scenes "a power that comparable moments in earlier movies did not have."
- Philip Womack in The Telegraph calls it "monumental cinema," and "a film about the triumph of the weak." But his strongest praise comes as a backhanded compliment: "Perhaps the greatest triumph of this final film is its ability to overcome the deficiencies of JK Rowling’s writing."
- Variety's Justin Chang is one of the few to quibble with the film. While he thinks it "surges ahead with tremendous urgency, superb spectacle and powerful, even overwhelming emotion," he finds the climax "emotionally muted and disengaged," and writes that "its anemic execution would be forgivable only if the entire series had not been building to this moment."
The film opens worldwide July 15. (In other
Potter-related news, Daniel Radcliffe
reveals he had a drinking problem.)
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