The AVENGERS (movie): Review —- Spoiler Alert!!!!!!!!!

BACKGROUND:

This was probably one of the most anticipated film of the year! Since it was announced by Marvel Studies back in 2007 that they are considering coming up with a movie which will put together its previous heroes, Marvel comics fans everywhere became excited to see how  this movie will turn out. The other Marvel heroes have had their individual movies and fans seemed to be quite satisfied with how these movies turned, so the excitement of seeing all these heroes come together in one film with nearly all the original casts in tact was something to really look forward to.

Marvel made the ingenious plan of releasing an individual movie of the heroes to be able to establish their character, not to mention inform the “uninformed” who these heroes were so – Ironman (Robert Downey, Jr.), Thor (Chris Hemsworth), the Hulk (Edward Norton was the only character who did not reprise his role so the character of Bruce Banner was played by Mark Ruffalo), and Captain America (Chris Evans) each made their own appearance in the big screen and raked in some serious dollars doing so. The character Black  Widow (Scarlet Johannson) was also introduced in Iron Man 2 together with S.H.I.E.L.D. leader Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) and Agent Phil Coulson (Clark Gregg).

Other characters who also reprise their roles in the “introduction” films were Tom Hiddleston, Stellan Skarsgård and Gwyneth Paltrow reprise their roles from previous films as Loki, Erik Selvig (Professor of Theoretical Astrophysics) and Pepper Potts (Stark’s goodly and efficient former secretary and now CEO of Stark Industries…as well as Stark’s new hot girlfriend) respectively. Paul Bettany also returned to voice JARVIS, S.H.I.E.L.D.S. mainframe computer and operator.

MY REVIEW:

It was really a stroke of brilliance to first test the water with the individual films and see how the characters were accepted by the public before coming up a crossover movie. This way the individual characters were each given ample time to appeal to the audience in their own way, establishing in the audience’s mind their individual personalities thus making it easier for the audience to understand the intricacies that will be shown in the crossover movie.

Aside from the using the original actors who did the individual movies (except Hulk of course) what I most love about the movie was that it’s a marriage of all the storylines from the previous movies including the animated movies released by Marvel prior to the live action movies. It was must have been quite and effort and pure genius on the part of the writers to have been able to do this.  Ironman was a very techie character compared to Thor’s mythical and magical one. Another difficulty was to put Ironman with his unpredictable and unconventional persona with someone like Captain America who was all about duty and responsibility. Not to mention, that Ironman already has a standing clash with Black Widow (what can I say the man is an enigma..hahaha!).  Also, putting two hot heads like Thor and the Hulk in one would definitely prove to be quite a challenge. BUT IT ALL WORKED OUT  GREAT! The audience was made to understand that as much as these characters cannot stand each other, as different from each other as night and day…but given a purpose and a common enemy they can kick some major butt.

As a fan of the comic book where these characters first came to life and then the movies and the live action movies, I thoroughly enjoyed seeing certain points or instances wherein this  movie made  references either to the animated movies or even the comic book stories. Like the fact that Thor’s hammer obeys only Thor and that no one else is also to yield his weapon except  its master (I know, I know there was an instances wherein other characters were able to use it e.g. – “2099 Manifest Destiny” Captain America was able to use it; “Spiderman 2099″  was also able to use it…and Hulk was also able to lift the hammer in later animated movies….but that’s beside the point peeps! It’s a question of worthiness…oh and yes, yes Odin can yield the hammer but that’s because he was the one who gave it to Thor in the first place. I think we can say the All Father was worthy)  Also, the fact that Bruce Banner was eventually able to control the Hulk to the point of being able to turn when he wants to. This was lifted out of the comic series. Sadly, in the previous movies Hulk was depicted as nothing but an angry brute, where in truth in the comic series Hulk was able to interact with other characters and even other superheroes. Hulk was a personality by himself, he might talk like a child but he’s not a mindless brute.

The decision to bring Joss Whedon into the film was also a brilliant idea.  Based on information about Whedon, he was a fan of these characters in the comic series so fans are somewhat assured and with good reason that the movie will treat the characters with the respect they deserve.  Avi Arad (CEO Marvel Studios)  praised the decision by stating, “My personal opinion is that Joss will do a fantastic job. He loves these characters and is a fantastic writer… It’s part of his life so you know he is going to protect it… I expect someone like him is going to make the script even better”. (credits to Wikipedia on this quote)  It was good decision to bring in a “fan” to have some say on the film because he knows exactly what other fans are looking for.

As for the 3D rendering, I thought it was amazing! It lets you get involve but not so much as eye-popping effects as to hurt the eyes…it was done…right.

There were of course certain deviations from the original animated movies from hence this movie was based. Fanatics of the series would most probably react but as I told my dear hubby,who was protesting rather insistently that the origin of the tesseract was the forest where Black Panther was that the idea for the movie might be that the tesseract was stolen by Red Skull from Black Panther’s kingdom, captured by Captain America where he crashed the ship containing it in the ice; later when Captain America was retrieved S.H.I.E.L.D also found the tesseract. I mean, there will always be some deviations from the animated film/comic/book to the live action films but fans by now should be used to it and learn to take it in stride.

So, I guess all in all the movie – the plot, the storyline and the treatment of the characters were wonderful…it’s a wonderfully, amazing movie! Lots of angst, mixed in with the action and the conflict but done ever so beautifully and it well written enough that they able to infuse a comedic relief every so often mostly at the goading of none other can Ironman.( Let me just mention here and no one else can be as perfect for the role of Ironman as Robert Downey, Jr.)  As the fight in the movie progress and Hulk joins the team, you feel a certain kind of excitement at what’s coming next. Watch out for the tandem fight of Thor and Hulk, and don’t miss what happens after they trash those alien invaders. Oh and I forgot to mention Scarlet Johannson was hot as ever, she really rocks in this movie.

Oh! and don’t leave before the credits are done…I’m not sure if there are several ending to this film but ours ended with a view of  another world and the sight of what looked like Thanos.

STAN LEE CAMEO:

As always and as tradition have it, Stan Lee made an appearance on the film (like he’s always done with all Marvel series turned movies). This time he appears as part of the news report in the aftermath of the invasion doubting what really happened and saying that it was all part of a hoax.

FUTURE PLANS:

Well, I heard that there might be an Avengers 2 and certainly a S.H.I.E.L.D and Ironman 3 movie…at least that’s what I heard.

Revisiting Dante’s Inferno..

It’s been years since I last thought of the Dante Alighieri’s work, “Inferno” (or Dante’s Inferno) that is until my husband got so interested in this divine comedy after finding a trial version of the EA game of the same title. And so as he began searching for the game in nearly every game shop near where we live (took him almost a month to find a copy) I started re-reading Dante’s poem.

The poem was originally titled by Dante as simply “Commedia” or comedy referring to the medieval sense of the word as a story with happy ending as opposed to what we now know as a funny story. As characteristic of medieval work the poem is filled with symbolism.  The theme of contrapasso, a sort of poetic justice, is prevalent in the entire poem  where sinners are punished based on their sins while they are alive.  For example, the first circle of hell was called the Limbo where the unbaptized and virtuous pagans dwell in a deficient form of heaven; they know no joy or sorrow but instead stare in the beyond…unfeeling.

As Dante and Virgil descend through the bowels of hell, Dante is slowly confronted with the realization that he had made the wrong choices in his life. Dante was crusader, he killed and tortured people he believed to be heathens because his church sanctioned the deed. he believed himself righteous, justified and absolved – only to realize in the end that no man can forgive sin except for God Himself.  He realized that the priests lied when they said the murders he had done in the name of the church were already forgiven. In the end, a taking human life whether christian or pagan is still considered murder in the eyes of God.

 

Heroes of Olympus (Book 2): The Son of Neptune

The Son of Neptune is the second in the series of the Heroes of Olympus in which Rick Riordan has graciously given us back the characters we have come to love and feared we will miss after the end of the final book of the Camp Half Blood series – the Last Olympian.

If there was one thing I realized after reading Son of Neptune – its the fact that I am a bonafide Percy Jackson fan! *blush* I have read the five books of the first series and then moved on to read the first book of the Kane Chronicles – the Red Pyramid. Sadly, I found out that I actually refer Greek myths to Egyptian myths, it’s probably because I like the free-spirit and independent Greeks to the stoic and comformist Romans, I’m not sure; and that I like Percy Jackson over and above all the characters Rick Riordan created.  I guess it must be because of all his characters Percy was the one with the most developed personality. He did have 5 books behind him, more than enough time for Rick Riordan to fully develop him into a believable character. Add to that the fact that among all his characters Percy seemed have that solid combination of smarts, a bit of teenage angst and humor.

I read book one of the series, The Lost Hero, but even though I am, as a reader, is reunited with Grover and Annabeth and the book was exciting in its own way but even then you always feel like you want to know where Percy. I mean, I personally, kept expecting a clue to appear as to Percy’s whereabouts. I mean, even if he was not in the book the title still feels like it was referring to him, right? Although, now I realized it might also refer to Jason Grace as he was lost too, but whatever to me it means Percy being lost.

So needless to say that I thoroughly enjoyed book 2 of the Heroes of Olympus series..and I can’t wait for the next installment which unfortunately won’t be coming out until next year. Hmp! It’s like I’m back to waiting for Harry Potter again.  I must admit that as a character Harry Potter was better developed and a lot darker than Percy Jackson but somehow..Percy is filling the void that Harry left behind. I still miss Harry and I really wish there would be more books written about him or relative to the Potter series…BUT that’s a completely different story and blog all together. For now allow me to stick to Percy Jackson.

Book 2 (Son of Neptune) began almost exactly where book 1 left off. Almost because, in the first chapter of the book we were informed of what had happened to Percy in the last 8 months. While Jason Grace was running around with Grover and Annabeth trying to stay alive while the forces of Gaea came after them; Percy was asleep. Yes, he was put to sleep by Hera in her personality as Juno in order to keep him alive and when he woke up he had lost some of his memories (again a work of Juno) in order for him be open enough to the training by Lupa. After training for some time with Lupa, Percy was allowed to leave the wolf’s haven and go out in search of himself. Apparently, the lost of his memory was actually to keep him safe, and the same thing was done to Jason Grace however Jason was not put to sleep. I do not understand yet the reason for the difference in their treatment but what was clear what that it had to be done so that they would be safe from the other camp.

It was all Hera/Juno’s master plan. The exchange of heroes was need to unite the two forces and in turn have them help to save Olympus. Apparently, the Greek camp and the Roman camp hate each other with a vengence and that a member of the opposing camp would most probably be harmed if they happen to come across members of the other camp which was sure to happen considering that Percy was taken to the San Francisco where Camp Jupiter is and Jason Grace was taken to New York where Camp Half Blood is.  It is important to note here that the gods and goddesses seemed to be a lot more mellow and rational and less whimsical in their Roman state than in their Greek persona. Ares actually made a point of talking to Percy and he actually cared about his children as Mars; and  Hera was able to set her hatred aside and determined to help Percy in any way she can in her persona as Juno.  Percy naturally was apprehensive of the changes and continued to be so until the end of the book.

Now as we saw Jason team up with Anabeth and Grover, Percy the amiable guy as ever was able to team up with two exciting (or were they exciting because they were with Percy?) in any case he teamed up with Hazel (daughter of Hades) and Frank Zhang (the son of Mars). Both characters have very interesting and dark backgrounds which only add to the allure of the book. I am be getting ahead of myself here but it just seemed like Riordan seemed to write more exciting scenes when he write with Percy than with his other characters. Honestly, Red Pyramid nearly put me to sleep.

I will go into details of what happened in the book as I would really like whoever is reading this review to go out and read the books for themselves. However, I will say that it was an exciting and beautiful ride. The ending was satisfying enough as all the major issues in the book was resolved but it left some one bigger issues that needed to be resolve in another book. I mean, you feel contented and yet you can’t wait for the next installment. At least that’s how I feel.

The Iga and Kougan Clans: Shinobi (movie) vs Basilisk (anime)

My fascination with the Iga and Kouga clans started several years back. This was when I got involved in an online group game started by the Filipino-Japan forum I was in.

I found out that the two clans actually exists in feudal Japan and that they were warriors of amazing skills. Though I was not among those completely fascinated with the ninja genre I was completely enthralled with the historical facts embedded into the legends of the Iga and Kouga clans. It was in my search for more information about these clans that I found out about the anime series “Basilisk” which was based on the 1958 novel by Futaro Yamada titled “The Kouga Ninja Scroll”.

The novel was made into a manga series created by Masaki Segawa titled Basilisk, which was later followed by another manga series titled “The Yagyu Ninja Scroll”. The manga was converted into an anime series in 2005 under Gonzo studios. And later that year, a movie called “Shinobi” came out which was also based on the legend of the Iga and Kouga clans.  Much of the Kouga and Iga stories were embellished with exaggeration and fantastical tales of superhuman feats. However, some things  were kept factual such as….

> There exists in reality the Iga and Kouga and they were indeed skilled warriors.  Historical records state that certain individuals or families from the Iga/Kouga or modern the Mie/Omi regions were noted for possessing specific skills.

> The Iga/Kouga regions were generally accepted by historians as the birth of Ninjitsu or as it was properly called in olden times “shinobi”.  Because of their special skills the shinobi were often employed by the ruling feudal lords for their own purposes. Often when an Iga clan is employed by one side the opposing side is more than likely to employ the Kouga clan. Thus, the much read about rivalry between the two clans.

> Because of the remoteness of the regions they inhabit both clans were able to hone and perfect their individual special skills without regulations from the ruling lords. The shinobi warriors were made up most of ordinary people forced to take up arms to defend themselves against oppression from this or that lord. However it is not uncommon to find a disgraced lord among the shinobi, the region of the Iga/Kouga clan became a refuge for people who wanted to get away from the oppressive rule of the samurai nobilities.

> Both the Kouga and Iga clans were employed during the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate; the Iga were made the personal/closed in guards of the Emperor while the Kouga acted as the perimeter guards.

Movie and Anime

Both the movie and the anime series were closely adapted to the above stated facts. For this reason they have a lot of things in common and some pronounced differences.

Comparisons:

- Both the movie and the anime stated that the two clans were forced to enter into a “pact of no hostility” after Hotahori Hanzou invaded the regions and nearly wiped out the Iga clans. They were then employed into the service of the emperor. This was evident in both the movie and the anime however it was more comprehensively explained in the anime.

-  Danjou (Kouga leader)  and Ogen (Iga chieftess) were former lovers. They were star crossed lovers looking forward to the agreement between the clans to be meted out so they can finally reveal their affair to their families. However, a fateful attack by Oda Nobunaga with the assistance of the Kouga clan sealed their fate forever.  Without his knowledge the Kouga assisted in the attack to the Iga Tsubagakure, Ogen was unable to forgive him for the lost of her family and people thus ended their affair. But Danjou never gave up on achieving peace between the two clans so after the peace pact was made, Danjou allowed his adopted grandson, Gennosuke, to be engaged to Ogen’s granddaugther, Oboro. This however was not clearly stated in the movie.

- That Oboro and Gennosuke was actually engaged to be married prior to the fight to the death that happened between the clans.

- Among the ruling lords a conflict has started between the supporters of the two grandsons and apparent heirs of Tokugawa Ieyasu, the retired shogun. At the time, the ruling lords have also become concerned with the peace between the clans thus allowing both sides to hone their skills enough to perform almost superhuman feats. In order to hit two birds with a single stone, so to speak, Ieyasu decreed that a battle between the two clans shall decide who shall be designated as the next shogun following his son, Hidetada. The Iga shall fight for Iemitsu, the elder son while the Kouga shall fight for the younger son, Tadanaga. However shall win the battle will decide the next shogun when Hidetada retires.

- Ogen and Danjou were summoned to Sunpu castle and were told to bring their best warriors with them during the meeting with the shogun. There their warriors were made to demonstrate their skills. It was also then that Ieyasu told them of the planned contest to decide the next shogun and so both leaders were asked to list down on identical scrolls the names of 10 of their best warriors. In the movie, probably due to time constraints the battle consisted of only 5 warriors. The shinobi will fight to the death and the defeated/dead ninja’s name will then  be crossed out from the scroll using blood. Now, the viewer may think this is absurd but the shinobi actually looked forward to the battle. Even though they have been at peace for many years the rivalry between the clans were too deeply rooted in their blood that any chance of being able fight the other to the death was welcome by either side.

- Ogen and Danjou were the first casualties of the battle. They killed each other even before they left Sunpu and thus it was left to their warriors to deliver the news to their respective clans. In the movie, the scrolls arrive on both clans whereas the anime showed the pains and the treachery that took place even before the scrolls reached Oboro and Gennosuke.  Because the anime was longer it was able to better explain and elaborate many of the circumstances that the movie was not able to make probably due to time constraints.

- The movie failed to properly develop the characters in the series most especially, the kunoichi (female ninja). It failed to show the emotional attachments between Hotarubi and Yashamaru. I personally would have loved to see more of Hotarubi in the movie considering she was portrayed by Erika Sawajiri, but even if her appearance in the movie was short Hotarubi effectively served as the turning pointing for Oboro’s character. The movie also failed to show the relationship between Okoi and Saemon (siblings)…actually the movie only showed Saemon, Okoi was completely taken out from the film but it would have been nice to see how they would present her skills as her entire body is likened to a leech that sucks the blood on any exposed skin of the enemy that she is able to touch. Okoi is able to adhere her skin onto her opponent’s and then absorb their blood into herself; leaving her enemies as dried up husks. Upon completion, Okoi must then vomit out the excess blood before she can use the technique again. As more contact equals faster blood drain she is dressed in a more revealing manner than the other kunoichi with a hip length sleeveless kimono and shortened hakama. Needless to say, she is one very interesting character, too bad we didn’t see her in the movie.  Another kunoichi which I would have loved to see in the movie was Akeginu, she was the bodyguard and confidant of Oboro. A highly attractive woman, Akeginu  is representative of the historically accurate version of the kunoichi in her ability to use her sex appeal against the opposite sex. In combat, her technique enables her to secrete blood from her pores which she can then squirt into an opponents face to blind them or to create a fine mist which grants her the cover to move and attack in complete stealth. Her technique can also be used to “tag” an opponent who specializes in covert movement.

- Although we saw Koshirou in the movie as the hand scythe bearing Iga shinobi, the movie was not able to use or show his other ability. Koshirou’s technique enables him to create miniature whirlwinds with his breath which suck his enemies in and then shreds them to pieces.

- Other characters that were taken out of the film were Azuki Rousai. Rousai is a short statured man with an even shorter temper and is an elderly man with massive gourd-shaped head; he is a highly skilled martial artist whose punches and kicks are capable of felling trees and smashing rocks with one blow. As such, he’s one of the few characters who specializes in unarmed combat. Additionally, Rousai’s ninja technique enables him to stretch and contort his limbs in fantastic ways.  Another character not seen on the film was Jingoro, he is one of the few Iga ninjas who specialize in assassination rather than combat, preferring to sneak up on his opponents and being quick to flee once he suffers a disadvantage. He is also able to dissolve into a viscous semi-liquid form; enabling him to slither through the tightest of passages, ooze his way up vertical surfaces, and silently creep onto his target to deliver the killing stroke. We also missed to see Kazamachi Shogen, a grotesque and malformed hunchback with long gangly limbs and oversized hands and feet which grant him the agility and dexterity of a spider; and Jimushi Junbei, a living torso. Jubei lacks both arms and legs but is able to move by flexing his chest muscles to manipulate the armor plates sewn onto his tunic, allowing him to slither along the ground at extremely high speeds. He also has a metal tail attachment which he can use to deflect weapons and control himself as he moves. In place of arms, Jubei has trained his tongue to extend out of his mouth to manipulate objects as well as to draw and attack with the dagger he keeps sheathed inside his esophagus. He is gifted in astrology, which he uses to predict the Kouga’s future with surprising accuracy. His end is met by the revived Tenzen, who sees past his only weapon and slices him in half.

I will not divulge how the movie or the anime ended. This you will have to find out for yourself. I will however say that the ending differ greatly and will be up to you to decide which ending you refer.

The Deathly Hallows…explained

The story of the Deathly Hallows was told in the Tales of Beadle the Barb.

The Deathly Hallows were three powerful objects given by Death himself to the Peverell Brothers. According to the story, hundreds of years ago at twilight the three brothers – Antioch, Cadmus and Ignotus – were travelling the countryside when they came upon a turbulent river and were unable to cross. Being wizards they created a bridge over the river to enable themselves to cross. Death was angered that he had been cheated of three victims and so avenge himself to the brothers he pretended to congratulate them on being so clever. To show his appreciation he offered to give each of them anything they so desired.

Antioch being a proud and competitive man wanted to be invincible to battle and so asked for a wand that can never be defeated. Death broke a branch from a nearby tree and made the Elder Wand, a wand more powerful than any in existence.

Cadmus wished to resurrect his lost love, and so Death took a stone from the riverbed and created for him the Resurrection Stone, a stone capable of bringing the dead back to the living world.

Ignotus, the last brother was wary of the gifts, he realized the danger of the situation and requested a means by which Death could not find him. Grudgingly Death took the cloak off his back and gave him the Cloak of Invisibility, a cloak that hides its wearer and never lost its power through curses or age.

Thus, the three brothers received the Deathly Hallows.

In time the brother went their separate ways. Antioch Peverell travelled to a wizarding village where he boasted of the Elder Wand in his possession. His throat was sliced in his sleep by a wizard hoping to take the Elder Wand for himself.

Cadmus travelled back home and used the Resurrection Stone to bring back the woman he loved, but was dismayed to find that it was only a pale imitation of her: the dead did not truly belong in the living world. In the end, Cadmus committed suicide by hanging himself so he could truly join her.

Ignotus used the cloak to remain hidden from Death for a long time. When he was an old man, he passed the cloak onto his son, greeted Death as an old friend, and went with him to the next world. The cloak continued to be passed on from father to child among Ignotus’ descendants over the years.  The Peverell name was lost over the years through the male descendants but it continued to be passed on through family members. Harry Potter without knowing it was in possession of one of the Deathly Hallows as early as the age of 11. He was a descendant of the Peverell family from the line of Ignotus.

The Resurrection Stone too was being passed on to descendants of the family and was lost for ages until it resurfaced in the possession of the Gaunt family. It was later made into a ring, however, neither Marvolo nor Tom Riddle (Voldemort) knew of the value of the stone and Voldemort even made it into a horcrux. This was later destroyed by Dumbledore and then passed the stone onto Harry inside the snitch as one of the objects he bequest upon his death. Harry later used the stone to talk to his parents, Sirius and Tonks and Remus before he went off to face Voldemort in the Forbidden Forest. After which he dropped the stone in the forest floor and didn’t anyone except the portrait of Dumbledore in the headmaster’s office so no one will seek to fight it.

The wand however changed hands in the most violent ways. It was passed on to from wizard to wizard almost always through murder; for whoever snatches the wand from its over becomes its new master. Gregorovich, a Bulgarian wand maker used to own the wand until it was stolen by the young Grindelwald. Voldemort fought and defeated Grindelwald and so he took possession of the wand. Later, at the Astronomy Tower he was disarmed by Draco Malfoy and so Malfoy became the master of the wand but he never really physically possessed the wand. When Harry later disarmed Draco, even though Draco had a different wand in his hand at the time, the magic in it caused it to recognise Harry as its new master. Severus kept the wand in safekeeping, and it was laid to rest with the Headmaster’s body.

It eventually stolen by Voldemort at Dumbledore’s tomb but because he was not able to attain the wand by killing or over-powering its master he could not fully utilized its powers.

Possession:

The Deathly Hallows was never really in one person’s possession ever before ….until Harry.

Dumbledore was again to gain all of them but not all at the same time. Harry had them all in his possession and would have been invincible except that he chose to lose the Resurrection Stone, and broke the Elder Wand. The only one he kept was the Cloak of Invisibility which he might someday passed on to one of his children.

I’m betting it’ll be Albus Severus, the 2^nd son.

The Horcruxes …explained

I am actually doing this to help out a good friend of mine who hasn’t read the books and just saw some of the movies BUT wants to watch HP and the Deathly Hallows…so I hope I do a fairly decent job of explaining it. And if other people would benefit from it too…that’ll be great..

I am of the opinion that it will be quite hard for non-HP book fans to understand the full extent and implications of the final installment of the movie without knowing the background of underlying the plot.

HORCRUXES…what are these?

—based on JK Rowling’s own definition – “the receptacle is prepared by dark magic to become the receptacle of a fragmented piece of soul and that that piece of soul deliberately detached from the Master Soul to act as a future safeguard or anchor to life and to safeguard against death.“

The act of creating a horcrux splits the soul allowing the Dark Wizard to hide a fragment of his soul into another object. Creating a single horcrux allows the dark wizard to resurrect himself in the event that his mortal body is destroyed. However, creating multiple horcruxes damages the soul that physically disfigures the wizard and diminishes his humanity.

The creation of the horcrux can be reversed by its creator through truly feeling remorse, though the effects of this can apparently be painful to the point of being fatal. It can also be destroyed by another person but it can be extremely difficult.  It requires that the horcrux should be destroyed beyond repair. All known methods of destroying horcrux are deadly – for example one of the earliest known means of destroying a horcrux is by administering basilisk venom on the object, however procuring that is near impossible.

Voldemort created seven horcruxes. According to JKR herself there are still seven horcruxes hidden and that these are the ones that Harry and the others must find and destroy. This, it seemed does not include the soul he is using at the moment. In any case, Voldemort survived after the curse he casts on Harry was deflected by his mother’s protection and rebounded on Voldemort himself. He then survived by drinking unicorn blood which is also considered an evil act. His body solidified to its current state due to a ritual performed by Wormtail in book 4/movie 4 (Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire)

7 Horcruxes

1. Tom Riddle’s Diary – this was destroyed by Harry in book 2/movie 2 (Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secret) using a basilisk fang.
2. Marvolo’s Ring – destroyed by Dumbledore himself in book 6/movie (Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince) although it was not clear how Dumbledore destroyed the ring it poisoned his hand. Snape was able to isolate the poison on the lower part of Dumbledore’s hand but it will eventually spread throughout his body killing him.
3. Merope’s locket – Harry and the others found the locket in book 7 (Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows)/ movie 7 part 1 and destroyed the locket using Gryffindor’s sword; the sword was a Goblin-made artifact and thus was able to imbibe qualities that strengthen it. When Harry used the sword to kill the Basilisk in book 2/movie 2 the sword absorbed the strength of the basilisk poison.
4. Hufflepuff’s Cup – destroyed by Ron and Hermione in movie 7 part 2, again using basilisk poison.
5. Ravenclaw’s Diadem – destroyed by Harry, Ron and Hermione in movie 7 part 2, using both the basilisk poison and Fiendfyre.
6. Nagini (the snake) – killed by Neville Longbottom in movie 7 part 2 using the sword of Gryffindor.
7. Harry Potter – more particularly his scar. Destroyed by Voldemort himself when he performed the killing curse on Harry (Avada Kedavra) however, as Harry passed through that space between life and death his soul separated from Voldemort’s soul and so he was able to go back and live on.

The horcruxes had to be destroyed (all of them!) before Harry faces off with Voldemort because then the Dark Lord will be weakened enough to be killed. Harry Potter can never be as strong as Voldemort but as with any fight everyone has a weakness even Voldemort. This was the weakness that they have been looking for since book 5/movie 5 and was only revealed in book 6/movie 6.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows part 2…HUGE SPOILERS here!!!!

First off, I apologize that this took longer than I expected but RL caught up with me and I had to set aside writing my blog for a few days but anyways..it’s here now.

Harry Potter and the Death Hallows part 2 was probably THE most anticipated movie of 2011; it was the culminating piece to the 10-year run of the series and expected to create a big bang…and the movie did not disappoint. To say that the movie was enjoyable was probably the understatement of the year – it was memorable, enjoyable and all together magnificent.

The movie started right where it left off in part 1…it began even before the Warner Bros. logo appeared. Then it went right off to give a review of what took place during the last movie and dove right into the action sequence. The insertion of the now very familiar HP theme just at the moment when the trio decided to return to Hogwarts was done to create a feeling of nostalgia which greatly worked. Being a huge fan of HP from the very start, having followed the books (lining up in front of the bookstores when the next installment was supposed to come out) and then following the films…the scene pinched my heart evoking a reaction I can only describe as bittersweet.

David Yates did what many of his predecessors should have done – he did not try to compress a very complex and voluminous book into a 2 ½ movie but rather he took the time to stay “almost” religiously close to the original text and gave the story the width and berth that it deserved. True there were instances where the movie deviated from the book but those moments were few and tolerable, even to the point of being wholeheartedly welcomed. In truth, the movie clarified a lot of issues that the book was not able to do, and when it did deviate from the original text it was all for the betterment of the plot. Ultimately, Yates improved on Deathly Hallows.

In the film we saw what we would have wanted to see in the the book.  David Yates also gave us some of the things we would have wanted to find in the final installment of the book but didn’t. Here we saw Ginny, having broken up with Harry and yet the love between them was so obvious it was painful to see. Then even if you don’t see Ginny as much as you wanted to it was obvious that, at least in the film, she was a powerful witch and a very brave one too.

The film was basically dark and serious but there were moments of humor and these came from the most unexpected characters and at the most unexpected moments. We also saw McGonagall prove to us why she was Deputy Headmistress of Hogwarts. We all knew she was “supposedly a powerful witch, adept at Transfiguration” but who knew McG could kick ass – and a damn well good ass it was! Seeing McGonagall in a duel with Snape, I honestly grew nervous, not really sure who would win. Snape was a noted dueling master but who knew McGonagall could kick his ass! Wooot!!!!!!!

And then the scene..the moment that everyone was eager to see..the one that if the film makers did not include in the film you can be sure that fans will tear their hearts out and feed it to the dogs…maybe to Greyback ,who knew – Molly fighting with Bellatrix! Oh that moment when Molly said those memorable fine words “Not my daughter, you bitch!” the theater literally exploded with shouts and claps from the excitable audience. That was truly one of the highlights of the film. One of her sons had just been killed and she was in no mood to see anyone hurt her only daughter too!

And here we see the complexity of Snape’s character. It was rumored that all these years Alan Rickman kept a secret about the character that only he and JKR knew…and I guess this was it. Honestly, the scene of Snape’s death and the revelation of his memories did not affect me at all in the books; it lacked the right element somehow. But the movie brought it all out in full detail such that the scene was so emotionally packed. I was crying.

The idea that Snape could dedicate himself to protecting the son of the woman he loved just seemed so ridiculous in the book, however the way that it was presented in the film made it completely believable, even heart-rending. We were made to understand that few people ever got close to Snape, that he had loved Lily even when they were children and because he had little friends and almost no association with women, he loved her from afar. There had never been any other woman in his life except for Lily. He protected her even when he knew it would put him in danger, his affinity to Dumbledore had nothing to do with love or loyalty but rather he was indebted to the man from the day he promised to do anything if Lily and her family could be protected. He was willing to suffer as a double agent if it means protecting the woman he loves and those she loves. And yet there was nothing overly romantic or lovey-dovey sweetness about it, it was just plain devotion and pure love – it was tragic but beautiful.

Then came the horcruxes…Harry’s death was one the lamest part of book 7 for me and yet here it was presented and explained in such a way that it all became clear. How Dumbledore knew all along that Harry was a horcrux and in Snape’s words Dumbledore was raising him “like a pig to the slaughter”.  And yet again you are made to understand that it had to happen because without Harry they would never be able to find the other horcruxes. Voldemort needed to rise again to be able to be destroyed. And Harry has to die so that he could be separated from the part of Voldemort’s soul that was living inside him. It just all made so much sense all of a sudden.

And finally the last battle between Harry and Voldemort – the film wisely deviated here so that at the heat of the battle at Hogwarts you will rarely hear anyone use spells to fight. Now, in the book one of the parts that received the most criticism was the part when Harry defeated Voldemort with a simple Expelliarmus spell. The film brilliantly down played that part and rather had the characters fight without saying any spells. That was really a very, very smart move on the part of David Yates.

If there’s ever a spin off to be done on the story I wish they would make one about Neville and Luna, those two have developed into great characters but I just get this feeling that there was more to them. Neville finally proved without a shadow of doubt that he was a true Gryffindor, having been able to wield the sword of Gryffindor. And in the end killing Nagiri.

All in all it was a magnificent rendering of a very complex book and even more so since it was done in 3D. The subtle symbolism of farewell inserted here and there was really the proper way to say so long to the series. We were confronted with places and things we have come to associate with the Harry Potter story – we said goodbye to the Quidditch stadium as it burned to the ground, we passed through Hogsmead, the Sorting Hat all tattered and grimy but still useful, the boat house where the first years enter through….it was wonderful to see those places and things again.

The characters have grown up so much too over the decade, I guess that’s why I feel sort of cheated that Daniel seemed to have move on so quickly..but I guess they all deal with sadness differently. Emma immersed herself in her studies, Rupert will be taking a breather and Dan is drowning himself in his work.  I wonder when we’ll be able to see these actors and actresses again but whenever that  will be they will always be the magical trio of the Harry Potter fame for me.