Anyone who is even a casual reader of this blog knows that I am a huge Harry Potter fan. Seriously, it borders on unhealthy, this obsession I still somehow have. And this summer marks the very last time that it's going to be (marginally) socially acceptable for me to gush over all things HP. (This doesn't mean I won't continue to do so, it just means that it will be all the more annoying to everyone around me when I do). Anyway, the final film comes out in just a few weeks' time, and I thought I'd take a look back at the previous seven films, the last ten years of this big-screen phenomenon, and pick out some of my favorite moments.
Harry, Ron, and Hermione have the meet-cute of a lifetime on the train to Hogwarts.
Our Trio's First Scene Together!
Harry and Ron bond over a mutual fascination with each other, and their love of candy (because really, who doesn't love candy?). Hermione introduces herself with more snobbery than 99% of eleven year olds on the planet-- good thing that turned out to be a misdirect. I loved the way each of them acted in this scene; the personalities of the three characters were well-articulated even in their first moments together. Oh, by the way, Hermione? That boy you're passing judgment on? The ginger kid with the dirt on his nose? Yeah, you're gonna marry him.
Harry's Big Game
The quidditch scene addresses our wondering of how the hell they would convey this wacky sport on the big screen. I have to say, I'm still amused by just how brutal it was made to look here (three of Harry's teammates are down for the count by game's end, and no one seems terribly concerned), and given the limited technology of 2001, the whole thing is pretty darn impressive for its time.
Mirror Images
Our Harry takes a nighttime stroll in his newly acquired invisibility cloak, and comes across a treasure in a secret room. This scene is probably my favorite in this book, and definitely my top 10 of the series, for the simple poignancy. Harry is an eleven year old boy, and as such could be hoping for any number of silly things, and yet his dearest ambition is to see an image of his parents one more time. My heartstrings had officially been tugged when I read this scene, and the wide-eyed longing with which baby-Dan Radcliffe played this scene was just perfect. And of course, it's from this scene in both book and movie that we learn one of the most important lessons Dumbledore will teach us: "It does not do to dwell on dreams, and forget to live."
Life-sized Chess! Ron sacrifices himself!
This scene, apart from being so darn exciting in the book, is a huge moment of achievement for all three members of the trio. Ron steps up to the plate in a big way, leading the team to a victory that neither Harry nor Hermione could have achieved; Hermione realizes that her brand of intelligence isn't enough in every situation (though admittedly it comes through in many of them); and Harry faces the fact that he can't be the only one to make sacrifices all the time (of course, he seems to forget and re-learn this lesson in all seven books). And amid all the epiphanies, there's of course the really cool visual of giant chess pieces facing off in a battle to the death.
"I'm not going home, not really."
Harry finds his place at Hogwarts and we, like him, eagerly await the journey back. I love that the film ended on this note, with John Williams' beautifully composed score swelling optimistically as the train rolls away. It just seems to perfectly sum up the feeling in Harry's heart when he leaves this first year of magic and so many new discoveries. There's also a bit of a bittersweet note-- Harry knows now what he's returning to, and what he's leaving behind. Fortunately, this time it's only for a summer.
Stay tuned for part two, when I dig through the denseness that is Chamber of Secrets for its best moments.
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