[1] Photo supplied. For some of us, tomorrow will be Harry Potter Day.
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2, the eighth and final film in the series of screen adaptations of J.K. Rowling's novels, will make its way to video tomorrow.
The same day, in the US, Warner Home Video will release a set of all eight Potter films, although it appears it will be a bare-bones set of the movies without the extensive extras that have accompanied some individual releases.
[2] Deathly Hallows 2 will be offered as a single, standard DVD ($39.99) and in a combo pack with the high-definition Blu-ray, the standard DVD and a digital copy ($44.99). There will also be various gift-set packages, including one with both the Deathly Hallows films in a collectable case ($82.99).
Extras on the single DVD will include deleted scenes. The Blu-ray will add a conversation with Rowling and Daniel Radcliffe, who played Harry in the films; a piece on the movie's goblins, from casting through makeup; a making-of piece; and a look at the women of Harry Potter.
As I said when the movie hit theatres, it does exactly what fans of the books should expect. It offers a respectful and precise rendering of the last part of the final novel, right down to the book's coda. It has some marvellous performances, particularly by Alan Rickman as Severus Snape and Ralph Fiennes as Voldemort, and impressive, effects-laden sequences.
But the movie suffers at times from flaws in Rowling's book, notably a long, talky stretch late in the film. There are a couple of romantic clinches that break the rhythm of grander moments - as if to say that disaster and carnage are bound to make adolescents excited in other ways. As much as I loved parts of it, at the end of Deathly Hallows 2 I felt more respect than exhilaration; while the movie ably replicates the book, it does not quite transcend it.
The complete movie collection, meanwhile, will be on standard DVD ($107.99) and Blu-ray ($144.99).
And, as if Potter fans were not devoted enough already, Warner has tried to intensify interest by saying that "new shipments of all eight Harry Potter films on Blu-ray and DVD will cease on Dec 29". But that may not mean this is the last time the films will be on video.
The Digital Bits website has reported Warner "is planning a massive Complete Harry Potter re-issue in late 2012, and is trying to pump up demand for it". The 2012 set will apparently add bunches of extras. But, as Digital Bits said, "If you're among those few who haven't already purchased Potter on BD or DVD, and you want to dive in sooner rather than later, act before 29/12 or put your plans on hold for a year".
• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 is released on Blu-ray and DVD here on November 16.
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