Until about three weeks ago, I had no relationship with the Harry Potter franchise. Never read the books, never saw any of the movies. So I decided to catch up with all of the older movies and see the final film in theaters. And though some of those earlier films are hit-and-miss, I don’t regret my decision at all; the entire experience was unquestionably worth it just to see Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 wrap up this series in such an impressive way. People (myself included) throw around the word “epic” fairly often, but this movie is deserving of that description, instantly becoming my favorite of this franchise.

[It's nearly impossible to review this movie - or the entire Potter series, for that matter - without at least acknowledging the similarities to Lord of the Rings, another wildly successful franchise with a "hero's journey" story at its core. To list every similarity would be counterproductive for the purposes of this review, but suffice it to say there are many.]

Deathly Hallows: Part 2 picks up immediately where Part 1 left off, and thankfully has far more action and importance than its neutered predecessor. To the cynical outsider looking in, it would appear that Warner Bros. split the last book into two movies for no other reason than to make more money (a task at which Part 2 has excelled so far). But I’m actually glad they went down that path, considering how Part 2 feels like it’s stuffed to the brim as it is; audiences surely would have been cheated out of this film’s awesomeness if the writer had to cram the dullness of Part 1 into the same film. As long as Part 2 delivers – and trust me, it does – then I think it’s justifiable that we suffered through the spinning wheels of Part 1 as a pure setup for this finale.

Steve Kloves, who wrote the screenplays for all of the movies except for Order of the Phoenix (my previous favorite of the series, coincidentally), did a great job wrapping everything up and bringing closure to a series that spanned such a lengthy amount of time. Even among the minor characters, no one felt shortchanged, and the Big Three of Harry, Ron, and Hermione were given the send-off they deserved. The flashback sequence was a particularly inspired bit of writing (taken, I’m sure, from Rowling’s original novel), allowing for the dramatic reveal of Snape’s past. And to avoid spoilers, I’ll simply say I really enjoyed the way the elbents of the Deathly Hallows were used in the story.

The younger cast members improved dramatically during their ten year run bringing these characters to life, and this was a high point for each of them. I can’t wait to watch the trajectories of the main casts’ careers move forward from here; Radcliffe, in particular, I can envision becoming a Ron Howard-type: someone raised in front of the camera, but evolving into a serviceable filmmaker in his own right. I also loved seeing lower-tier characters like Neville Longbottom make an impact here in Part 2, coming full circle from his introduction as the laughable loser back in The Sorcerer’s Stone. The arcs of the Malfoys – both young and old - were also fun to watch as the movies progressed. (Villains who are THAT dramatic are always awesome.) One thing is for sure: now that this franchise is finished, cinema has lost one of the finest ensemble casts ever committed to film. It’s hard to beat names like Gary Oldman, Jason Issacs, Richard Harris, Maggie Smith, Alan Rickman, Helena Bonham Carter, Ralph Fiennes, John Hurt, Jim Broadbent, Warwick Davis, and Emma Thompson when they join forces.

The visual effects in this movie were top notch, an unlike so many effects-heavy movies these days, these never elicited winces or scoffs from the audience. Director David Yates’ team worked wonders here, honing The Battle of Hogwarts into one of the best set pieces of the year. Yates’ vision has stayed consistent both with movies he’s helmed and the ones he hasn’t, recreating sets in Part 2 (the Chamber of Secrets, Gringotts, etc.) and in the process providing a great sense of geography and familiarity with the world of Harry Potter.

There’s not much else I can say without giving away massive plot points, but I think Tyler (my co-host on The Not Just New Movies Podcast) and I are planning some sort of retrospective discussion on the entire Harry Potter franchise sometime soon, so keep a lookout for that in the coming weeks. It’ll take a bit of reflection for me to be able to rank the Harry Potter films alongside my favorite movies, but as far as epic hero stories go, this saga is pretty damn impressive. Until next time…

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In August 2000 it was reported that Alan Rickman was in talks to play Severus Snape in a movie adaptation of the Harry Potter books. Now, 6 movies later (with 2 still to come) and nearly 10 years on Alan Rickman has completed his filming on Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, and the Harry Potter franchise as a whole.

The actor acknowledged the milestone during an interview with the International Herald Tribune (via SnitchSeeker) while discussing his future projects, which includes directing a play called Creditors.

Snape is one of the best characters in the series in my opinion, and fans of the book will know that in Deathly Hallows all will be revealed. We’ll find out why he is the way he is, why he has a dislike for Harry, and why he killed Dumbledore at the end of Half-Blood Prince. Stuart Craig, who has been the production designer on all the Potter films, revealed that he actually shed a few tears following the shooting of a pivotal scene involving Snape, so it looks like Alan Rickman has given another amazing performance for the final film.

It may be the end for Rickman (apart from possible reshoots later down the line) but there’s still over a year to go before the final film is released, and 7 months before Part 1, so fans have that to look forward too. A period of mourning and depressing will no doubt follow when its all over.

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They are both British, they both play great villains, and they are both going to be in Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland. According to christopher lee web Christopher Lee’s role has not yet been disclosed, however johnnydeppreads say that Alan Rickman will play the hookah smoking Caterpillar.

The casting updates have been pouring in recently. A few days ago Crispin Glover was cast as the Knave of Hearts, who is put on trial for stealing the Queen of Hearts’ tarts and is defended by Alice.

Composer Danny Elfman also announced recently that he will be working on the music for the film.

The cast is looking pretty impressive so far:

Mia Wasikowska as Alice
Johnny Depp as The Mad Hatter
Helena Bonham Carter as The Red Queen
Anne Hathaway as The White Queen
Alan Rickman as The Caterpillar
Martin Sheen as The Cheshire Cat
Matt Lucas as Tweedledee and Tweedledum
Crispin Glover as The Knave of Hearts
Eleanor Tomlinson as Fiona Chataway
Christopher Lee in an unknown role.

Burton will be using a combination of live action and performance-capture technology to tell the Lewis Carroll story. It will also be in 3D.

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