Entering adulthood with Harry Potter
- By Lauren Russell
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China.org.cn, August 17, 2011
Thirteen years ago, dad brought a book called Harry Potter home for my two younger brothers and me. He heard on NPR that this book about wizards was a hit in the U.K. The three of us would pile on dad in my youngest brother's bed as he read one chapter a night in a horrendous British accent. It pained us to have to stop and go to bed.
Eventually, finding out what happened next in the story trumped reading the books together, and I would sneak a read during the day. One of my brothers soon picked up on what I was doing and would read ahead as well. Whoever had the book had to hide it while the other was dragged to the distractions of the Muggle world, such softball practice or karate lessons – or lose headway a few chapters ahead in the book.
When the books were made into movies, I reread them a few times to freshen up on the story every time before making way to one of its earliest showings. For one movie premiere three friends and I made and wore black sweatpants with "Harry Potter" written down the side in glittery letters. As dressing up for the premieres becoming more of the norm, my brother and I would take on the appearances of Hermione Granger and Draco Malfoy, whose hairstyles we pulled off to perfection.
I was studying abroad in Florence, Italy, when The Deathly Hallows Part 1 premiered, and when Part 2 came out, I had been visiting a Chinese friend in Shenzhen, China, after wrapping up my summer internship in Beijing. I saw Harry Potter once with Italian subtitles, once with Chinese subtitles, and in much more spacious theater rooms than you would find in the U.S. Although It was disappointing to not be able to wear my Harry Potter premiere uniform for the final installations of the movies, but I now have a bridge between my childhood escape to another world and my two college experiences of living in different sides of this world.
With each premiere, from books to movies to theme park, those who have caught Potter Fever connect with millions of others afflicted worldwide. While I can no longer tell you who the headmaster of Hogwarts before Dumbledore was or Hermione's detailed class schedule in her third year – ignorance my 12-year-old self would have been ashamed of – I still remember where and when I bought each book and who sat beside me during each of the movies.
Harry Potter, to the first generation readers who have gone from fantasizing about foamy, sweet butterbeer to discussing the Harry Potter movie actors over a round of PBR, it's not just a large-scale mania. When I needed to forget the humiliation of the older kids laughing at me when my voice cracked in my church play solo, I remembered Harry was the freak at school who spoke Parseltongue. When talking to boys started giving me the jitters, I could relax thinking Harry and his friends needed dates to the Tri-Wizard Tournament. When a Chem 102 exam drew me to tears, I found comfort knowing Harry also stressed about his O.W.L.S.
And now, at 21 years old and entering my senior year of college, the questions about my life after graduation is becoming increasingly urgent. It's reminding me that, in a best case scenario, I'll be working 9 to 5 and living somewhere for more than 9 months. The stability – or worse, instability – of the grown-up world is scary.
But then, without completing his magical degree, Harry defeated The Dark Lord and lived to marry his wizarding school sweetheart and see his children off to Hogwarts. If Harry, Ron and Hermione can be successful, mature wizards, I can be a successful, mature Muggle.
With Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2, the final installation of the movie series gives a complete closure to the millions of fans who have been anticipating the movie's delayed premiere in China. The character development is mild compared to other movies in the series, but the fast action and animation keep the viewer entertained and on edge. It closes the curtain on the series well, but those who haven't already been hooked by the many twists of the epic might still leave the theater without understanding the Potter mania.
In the earlier installations, Harry and his friends battle the Dark Arts while also balancing schoolwork, relationships and the awkwardness of growing up to which everyone can relate. In this finale, less-fanatic viewers might not empathize with many of the supporting characters, nor do the supporting actors have very many screen time. Everything is Harry and Lord Voldemort, and the division between good and evil is clear-cut and unrelenting. However, the battle scenes are the best of the series, and the final stand stays true to the book.
Movie adapted from novels walk a fine line to keep enough of the original material that the readers don't feel gypped, and the exclusively moviegoers follow the plot and don't lose interest with an overly-long film. The book version of Deathly Hallows is a 700-page epic. By splitting the film adaptation into two parts, it retained enough to keep Potter fans of all literary avenues satisfied. Small changes that readers would notice seemed appropriate and understandable for the visual version of the story.
The romantic developments in the film, possibly because the actors started working together pre-puberty and have a hard time feigning interest in each other, are a little awkward. Hermione and Ron's loving moments feel forced, and Harry and Ginnie Weasley's moments lackluster, though at least the viewer sees that their favorite wizards fell in love with each other.
Watch the movie to see the ugly, dark characters you've come to hate receive justice, and the brave, affable characters you've come to love get their happy endings – with a few exceptions, of course.
Lauren Russell is a junior?at?University of North Carolina in the United States. She spent three months in Beijing this summer as?an intern with China.org.cn.
Opinion articles reflect the views of their authors, not necessarily those of China.org.cn.
