Only One Can Live

On Wednesday evening I finally got to see the last Harry Potter film. Long anticipated by many, upon its release in mid-July it was declared the 'end of an era.'

I first read Harry Potter when I was 15. My youngest brother had been given the first three books for one of his birthdays and he read and reread them, especially Harry Potter & the Prisoner of Azkaban, his favourite. Eventually my dad prised it out of his hands and handed him a copy of The Hobbit which he devoured with equal rapidity. And then he read and reread both that and the Lord of the Rings trilogy thereafter. Even though he had temporarily discarded Harry Potter I was curious about why he loved it so much. I was bored one day in the school holidays and I thought I would pick up this 'children's book' and read the first chapter, and then put it down when it got tedious.

Well, I read the first three books in a week. And my brother and I were close to fighting with each other when the fourth came out. I LOVED them! J K Rowling is a great storyteller, and from start to finish of each book I have been caught up in Harry's adventures and desperate to know the outcome each time.

Therefore it was some trepidation that I agreed to go and see the first film when it came out on cinema in 2001. I had initially made the decision not to see it but curiosity eventually got the better of me. I was not impressed. It didn't help that my friend and I had chosen to share a packet of Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans in honour of the occasion and I managed to nearly choke on a horseradish flavour one half way through the film, which I struggled to recover from until after we'd left the cinema! Afterwards I decided that I wouldn't bother seeing anymore of the Harry Potter films because they just couldn't do the books justice.

That was until Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire came out on cinema during my third year at university. The peer pressure of my fellow academics meant I agreed to endure a trip to the cinema as long as I was allowed to pour scorn on the film for all its inaccuracies. I had to quell instant rage from early on, when Hermione and Harry talk about Sirius without referring to him as Padfoot, oh the crime! But then Patrick Doyle captured my imagination with his beautiful soundtrack, the cinematography and special effects were fantastic, and against my better judgement I just couldn't help enjoying the film. Oh. Dear.

I had to then borrow DVDs to watch the two I had missed, and then ensured that I got to see all of the others on the big screen as well. I always waited until the films had been out for about a month. This was partially to allow the hysteria to die down, but mainly because I liked the films, I didn't love them.

And that is still true now. The films, in my opinion, will never be as special as the books. But they have come a long way. I realise that I can enjoy the films as good films if I cast aside my own ideas of the books. I apply that to other films so why not Harry Potter? I'm a Roman historian and yet Gladiator is one of my favourite films - I can't help it! Even though I know there are things that aren't quite right with it historically it is an awesome film!

So seeing the Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part Two was something I had looked forward to, and thoroughly enjoyed (apart from the loudest popcorn munchers in the world sitting behind us who had clearly never seen any of the other HP films let alone read the books - uncultured swines!), and will probably add it to my DVD collection eventually. It wasn't the end of an era for me. But I'm glad I gave the films a chance in the end, it's been fun to be part of the excitement, and now I can enjoy watching them when I fancy a good epic that isn't as long as Lord of the Rings (clearly the greatest epic films of all time).

Now I want to re-read all the books again as it's been ages since I have. They are amongst my all time favourite books, and however beautiful and captivating the scenery, acting, soundtrack etc of the HP films they will never take away the World of Potter that I have imagined through reading the books.

Photo courtesy of Google Images.