Harry Potter and that time all I cared about was Snape

[stresseater]

Pseudo-liveblog/crying gif party:

• On my way to the cinema, Marchin' On starts playing in my head.
  
  
• Before the movie starts:
  
  
• Opening sequence and OHMYGOD WHY ARE THERE TEARS IN MY EYES. YATES WHAT ARE YOU DOING TO ME.
• Gringotts break-in adventure times.
• Return to Hogwarts and ASDFGLKJ; everyone hanging out in hammocks.
• Harry confronts Snape in front of the whole school. SNAPE'S FACE IN THIS SCENE.
• BATTLE OF HOGWARTS:
  
  
• Fred/George moment. Lupin/Tonks reaching out to each other. People getting their BAMF on. You think you are emotionally ready for these things but YOU NEVER ARE.
• Cup and diadem destroyed, hurray!
• OH GOD. WE ARE IN THE BOATHOUSE. THIS IS IT.
• Elder Wand not working for Voldemort blah blah blah, not its true master, must kill the person who killed Dumbledore, etc.
• And then Nagini attacks Snape
• AND NOTHING ELSE MATTERS
• BECAUSE SNAPE IS DYING
• HE GIVES HARRY HIS MEMORIES AND HARRY HAS LILY'S EYES AND I 100% CANNOT
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
• FRED, LUPIN AND TONKS IN THE GREAT HALL
  
  
• THE PRINCE'S TALE
• "After all this time?"
• "Always."
  
  
• HARRY GETTING READY TO DIE
• "You'll stay with me?"
• "Always."
• (UGH UGH UGH. Beautiful Snape/Lily parallel from Kloves.)
  
  
• Basically, it's just never-ending tears at this point.
• King's Cross: the non-info-dump version.
• Harry coming back to life
• Narcissa no longer caring if Voldemort wins
• REALLY, THE MALFOY FAMILY IN THE NEXT FEW MINUTES. I'm not sure everyone will like it but I thought their last moment was really powerful.
• NEVILLE LONGBOTTOM, YOU BRAVE, BEAUTIFUL PRINCE YOU.
  
  
• Harry reveals himself!
• Elaborate Harry/Voldemort fight sequence, then an actual duel with wands
• Bellatrix and Voldemort explode (?)
• I have issues with how this was done but this is not the time to gripe
• Because the next scene is solemn but hopeful and perfect in its own way
• The war is over
• They've lost so many people but it's finally over
• So bittersweet, someone hold me
  
  
• Epilogue not as ridiculous as it was in the book, thank Yates. In fact, if you can get over "Albus Severus" and the aging prosthetics (which is not as distracting as you would think), the last scene is downright beautiful.
• Long story short: I loved it. And Alan Rickman OWNS this movie.

More coherent thoughts and now that I have calmed down, a few complaints:

• Bit disappointed that the Dumbledore backstory and Harry's struggle with it never made it into either Deathly Hallows film. Then again, if JKR's gonna cram everything in in the last book, there's bound to be some stuff left out.
• Kelly Macdonald was a fabulous Grey Lady.
• Like I said above, I have issues with Voldemort's and Bella's deaths. I don't quite understand why they exploded. Is that Yates' way of showing they have no soul? Because they still do, even if it's beyond damaged. They're human/mortal and I think it's important that they die as humans. Because that's part of what makes them horrible. Although both of them are predisposed to evil and prejudice, essentially they started out just like us and made very bad decisions along the way.
• I was hoping for more epic battle moments for individual students and Order members, Lord of the Rings style.
• I'm glad they cut Harry's final speech but I would've wanted everyone to see Harry defeat Voldemort. Biggest showdown in the history of the wizarding world and no one seems to care.
• Pleased with the McGonagall scenes overall (mostly because of Maggie Smith), but the duel with Snape could've been so much more. Also, raise your hand if you wanted to see Harry defend McGonagall's honor. But there's just not enough time.
• I'm glad they showed Ron and Hermione destroying the cup in the Chamber of Secrets. As for the kiss - it was a very nice moment. I don't ship Ron/Hermione at all in the books but it always makes more sense to me when I see Rupert and Emma play them.
• MALFOY FAMILY WALKOUT FOR THE WIN. It bothers me a little that Lucius and Narcissa seem a bit distant at the end of this film but it feels in-character for them so it still works.
• Snape's death was definitely the high point of the movie for me. Brief LOLWTF moment when he told Harry to take his tear. But then it was all, "You have your mother's eyes," and I was a GONER. The hell is wrong with Alan Rickman. Does he take pleasure from ripping people's hearts out? Part of me never wants to see him cry again but let's be honest, I'll be watching this a second time for that scene alone.
• The Prince's Tale is not everything it was in the book, but that's expected. First of all, I thought James was already short-changed enough in the books. In the movie, it's even less clear why Lily ended her friendship with Snape, so people who haven't read Deathly Hallows might not understand why Lily ended up with James. Heck, I've read it and it's still not clear to me, because there's just not enough of James in the official canon. (This frustrates me to no end.) Anyway, my point is they gloss over the terrible things Snape did, which makes the reasons for his guilt and remorse less clear. Second, the reverse-aging makeup or whatever the hell they used on Alan Rickman was a bit distracting. That said, I loved his performance. I always have, pregnant pauses and all. It's not so much that he's 100% faithful to Snape's characterization in the books but that he's made the role entirely his own. I can't see anyone else as Snape.
• Snape going to Godric's Hollow after James and Lily are killed was a nice touch. I know, I don't agree with Snape being woobie-fied either, but the whole thing works as a scene in a film. Direction, music, editing (!!!) - beautifully done.
• Kloves shipping Neville/Luna made me laugh because OHMYGOD WHAT A SNEAKY TROLL. And I mean that in the most loving way because I like Nevilla/Luna.
• LOVED the epilogue. Hated it in the book, but Yates/Kloves kept it simple and understated which was a beautiful way to end this movie.