A weekend of wonderful movies

This weekend was the opening of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Pt. 2.  It was "the end" of an epic story.  It was fabulous and I cried and laughed and smiled and cheered and then cried some more.  I loved it and will be going to see it again on Tuesday.  Competing against this summer block buster (that broke tons of weekend opening records) was a quaint little film called Winnie the Pooh.  My children asked to go.  I obliged.  I was not disappointed.  I cheered, I laughed, I smiled, and I even got a bit weepy a time or two.  It was fabulous and reminded me of the Pooh that I had grown up, even with John Cleese doing the narration.  I felt like I was eight years old again sitting in my pajamas watching Winnie the Pooh and the Honey Pot.  Christopher Robin was perfect, Pooh (still voiced by Jim Cummings who has done the voice since Sterling Halloway passed away in 1992 and in all honestly I can't tell the difference).  Eeyore was lovable and Tigger was bounceable as always. 

But the big movie this weekend was Harry Potter.  I can't believe how blown away I was by the movie.  I was on the edge of my seat the entire time and I felt complete at the end.  I didn't feel that there was anything left out that was very important.  I cried when they crowd at Hogwarts realized that Harry wasn't dead and George turned to his now absent twin to tell him.  I cheered when Molly defended her daughter.  I whooped when Neville beheaded Nagini!  But most of the time I was gripping my middle child's hand as she grasped mine and neither of us daring to breathe.  Both of us glancing at each other as we feared what we knew was coming.

The night was hot, but it didn't stop people from dressing up and being jubilant in line.  Even I dressed as Professor Sprout (that's my hat to the left).  I was accompanied by a Hufflepuff student and Gilderoy Lockhart.  It was fun and festive and I'll miss getting to do it again next year.  It still hasn't set in that there aren't any more movies coming out.  But for the past nine and a half years we have enjoyed seeing the movies and getting to be part of the Harry Potter world.  I look forward to Pottermore and can't wait to see what all that will hold for us.

Until then we will just have to go see other movies.  On my agenda for this fall are the following:  Hugo (based on the book The Invention of Hugo Cabret), Sherlock Holmes (yay!), Captain America, Cowboys versus Aliens, Rise of the Planet of the Apes, The Three Musketeers (I'm a sucker for period pieces), The Muppets (come on, it's the Muppets!), Coriolanus (Ralph Fienes and Shakespeare; do I need to say more), The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (without subtitles this time!), and War Horse.  So let's go to the movies!