By Claire DeFrancisci
The movie theater buzzes with excitement as the lights dim and applause breaks out as the Warner Brothers logo takes over the screen. The familiar theme song you’ve been waiting for fills your ears. It starts to sink in that this is the last Harry Potter film ever to come out.
J.K Rowling has been enchanting the world with the stories of Harry Potter since 1997. This past weekend the final installment to the book and movie series, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2, came out in theaters. The book was split into two separate movies to ensure that no important parts of the books would have to be cut out of to save time. July 15 at midnight Harry Potter fans of all ages gathered at local their movie theaters to say goodbye to the well-known series.
In this final film, the protagonist Harry is finally coming face-to-face with the villain, Voldemort, to fight to the death. All secrets are revealed and loose ends tied to finalize the life story of the young wizard and his friends.
The midnight premiere of the anticipated ending was a place full of both laughter and tears from fans of all kinds.
“I think even if I didn’t read the books I would still like the movies. The two people I’m here with tonight have never read them before but they’re still here because they think it looks cool,” said sophomore Maria Torres, who has read all seven novels.
Many fans believe that Harry Potter will continue to be a popular series in the future, “I think [Harry Potter] will live on because the books are so well written and the movies are so extremely accurate to the books,” said Providence student Alex.
Contrary to popular belief, although the book and movie series has come to an end, J.K. Rowling continues to expand the Harry Potter franchise. In October a website called Pottermore, an interactive and unique website that is free to use, will be launched. On Pottermore members will be able to purchase all seven novels as E-books and audiobooks, and read more on the background of Harry Potter from Rowling herself. In addition, there is now an amusement park located at Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida, called The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, allowing fans to step into Harry’s world.
“It felt like you were really an actual wizard. It really did bring the story to life,” said senior Brittany Bowen regarding the theme park.
The most magical aspect of Harry Potter is that the reader grows up with the characters. Starting the books at a young age, and growing up with Harry makes the reader think of Harry as more of an old friend, rather than a fictional character. Books like this don’t just end; Harry Potter will live on for generations to come.