Mischief Managed...

...sadly.

So I finally saw the final film installment of Harry Potter last weekend and I must say I'm crushed. After nearly 10 years of these movies being in my life, its hard to except that its finally over. Though I do believe the spirit of the boy wizard shall never falter as long as there is still one soul alive who loves him! The Harry Potter septet by JK Rowling is by far one of the most moving and important series' of the 21st century (with Lord of the Rings as its 20th century predecessor). Why?

When I was in Elementary school I DESPISED reading. It was new and time consuming. The only books I ever read were Eyewitness and I Spy Books- you know the ones I'm talking about. Anyway, by the time I was in 5th grade, four of the Harry Potter books were already out and starting to pick up speed in terms of popularity. Then, all of a sudden- BOOM. First movie. I have always been a sucker for fantasy movies so I was willing to watch it with a friend. From that day forward I was hooked. Not only do I love movies, but if movies are book adaptations I love to see how movie magic interpreted the words on a page into fantastical imagery.

My friend offered me the first book to read to see if I liked it and again, I was hooked. I read all the Harry Potter books available at the time and reveled in the fact that three more were to come- that only got thicker.

After Harry Potter I read many more books- including the Lord of the Rings Trilogy in 7th grade (both series made their film debut in the same year and I received both as movies on VHS the following year of 2002).

I am not the only person that the Harry Potter series lit a new fire under I'm certain. Getting the younger generations to read is become increasingly more difficult in this day in age, with all of the new and time consuming technology available today. Now I'm not saying the Internet and cell phones are trash compared to books- believe me I love my beast computer- but what I am saying is the exploration that books inspire is important.

Before if you wanted to learn something you would get a book- now you go to google. You used to have to get up, travel somewhere, find your book/buy it, probably find an extra book that catches your attention, read it, return it/shelve it, and probably get another interesting book. You see how you explore? You get out of the house, burn a few calories etc. And for me, books gave me the power of vocabulary. If I came across a word I couldn't figure out based on context clues alone I would go EXPLORING inside a dictionary- a book that EVERY household should have. What better way to show the world that you are well educated, than to spout off at least one $20 word a day?

Another aspect that makes the Harry Potter series so amazing is its progression with its fan base. True people of all ages love these books, but it started off as a children's book- and defiantly didn't end as one. It was full of many themes that really need to be addressed more often to the world populace. First you have the hero, Harry Potter who is humble and loyal to his friends- two amazing qualities that to few people possess. Then you have the female heroine Hermione Granger, who proves that a girl in a story doesn't have to be the damsel, and can continue on strongly without the help of a boy (take the hint Bella Swan). Then of course you have the theme of good vs. evil- but with strong emphasis on the fact that it can be conquered with less violence and more intelligence.

And the fact that a large christian group hates on Harry Potter is absurd and pathetic- especially since their only logic is that it "represents" unholy witchcraft. I mean the biblical symbolism probably wasn't intended by JK Rowling (I might be wrong), though it shines through. I can't say I'm a christian by any means, though I do feel that SOME ideals within its bible are logical and good to take in stride. The symbolism include the lion (Gryffindor/ God), the snake (Slytherin/Satan), evil with a want for power (Voldemort/ Satan), a humble hero willing to die for the cause (Harry Potter/Jesus).... can you see it now? If anything this story preaches bravery in the face of evil and loyalty among friends more than it ever mentions magical spells. I think the haters are just missing the point.

So bravo JK Rowling. And a handful of bravos to the productions teams responsible for making the books into movie screen magic. My life has been changed by you all. All of the films were just exacuted so well- and for all of you people griping about the fact that they "left out parts" or "changed some things around" just remember that if they made movies exact to the T as the books they would be hours long, and the reason they change some things around is because not everyone is cool and reads the books before hand and dont always get the punch line.

So go see Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows pt. 2 right now! And if you have already seen it go see it again!

Btw bring a tissue D: