Fan Focus: Caitlin – October 31, 2010

CAITLIN
Age 20 – Canada

First off, how did you become a Harry Potter fan?

How I became a Harry Potter fan has a bit of a story to it. The beginning of my Harry Potter addiction is actually a funny story full of coincidences. It’s all my mom’s fault. When she tells me I am insane for liking Harry Potter, I remind her that it was her fault because she bought me one of the books. Well, at least I think it’s funny. So, here we go: On the morning of November 12th, 2001, Caitlin was still sleeping when her mom came into her room. “HAPPY BIRTHDAY!” her mom, brother, and sister exclaimed! Caitlin sat up in bed to see her mom carrying in a tray with her breakfast and her birthday presents. Caitlin opened the small package first. It was a pretty little ring because she had turned 12 on the 12th! Caitlin thanked her mom and put the ring on. She picked up the other package. Caitlin knew that this package was a book! She opened it and saw that the book was called “Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets” and there was a old looking car with two boys in it on the cover. She couldn’t wait to get started, but she had to eat her breakfast first. After she ate, she eagerly started her book! The boy in the book had turned 12 as well, so she was very excited! She couldn’t put it down! her mom called her for lunch and she took the book with her to eat lunch. Hours later, her mom called her for supper just as she finished it! When Caitlin went to eat supper, her mom said that her friend Steve called and asked if she wanted to go to see Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone in just under a week. Caitlin called Steve back and said yes! On the day the movie opened. Caitlin, Steve and their friend Ben went to see the movie. It was an hour and a half drive so to pass the time, Caitlin, Steve and Ben played a Harry Potter trivia game. Caitlin and Ben kept arguing over how to pronounce Hermione’s name. Ben kept saying Her-Mi-Own and Caitlin insisted that it was Her-My-Oh-Knee. When they got to the theater, they waited in line. They got in early because they had gotten advance tickets! Caitlin and Ben were still arguing about Hermione’s name when the room went black and the movie started! It turned out that Caitlin was right and she couldn’t wait to get home to tell her parents that they just HAD to buy her the rest of the books. And that is pretty much how it all started and I have never been the same since! 😛

It has been over three years since Deathly Hallows came out and we found out how the series ended. Do you have the same reaction to the ending now, as you did then?

I was 17 when the Deathly Hallows came out and I will be turning 21 soon. I read it all in one go and cried for most of it. I think I still have mostly the same reaction as I did when I first read it. Except that now when I read it, I know what’s going to happen so it only produces slightly less mild jumping up and down and hyperventilation. When I first read it, lets just say I was a ball of emotions. When I finished it the first time, I loved the ending. I know that there was a lot of controversy with the epilogue and that a lot of people didn’t like it. I have to confess right now, I LIKED the epilogue because #1. It gave a glimpse into Harry’s future and it didn’t leave us hanging and #2. Jo gave us a whole other era to write new fan fiction about! 😛 Also, It gives you a bit of how the couples ended up. It confirms the main ones and crops up a couple of new or different ones. The main ones being Harry and Ginny, and Ron and Hermione. I was SO GLAD that it ended up this way! I almost always knew these characters were going to get together. I knew Harry and Ginny would since COS and Ron and Hermione probably since POA. I was just so flippin HAPPY! I still get shivers when Harry goes into the forest to die. I still literally jump up and down when Harry blasts Voldemort. I still give a cheer when Molly goes “Not My Daughter you B****”. I still cry my eyes out when Dobby, Hedwig and Fred die. One thing that I really like about the Deathly Hallows now that didn’t really mean anything to me when I read it the first time was Lily and Snape. I was so preoccupied with Harry fighting Voldemort and wondering if Harry was going to survive and who was going to die, that I didn’t really give a lot of thought to this relationship. I read the book a second time and realized that Snape was actually quite an important character. If he hadn’t called Lily a Mudblood, hadn’t told Voldemort about the prophecy, or asked Voldemort to spare Lily, what would have happened? Would Harry even exist? There are so many questions that go through my mind! Now I love when Harry discovers what really happened between his mum and Snape. It make Harry realize again that love makes people do crazy things and that love can be a very powerful influence. Yes, I jumped on the “What are you talking about? Snape was good all along..” bandwagon, but what a cool band wagon to be on! I love the Deathly Hallows so much! I think it’s my second favorite out of the series. The first is a tie between COS and HBP.

The Deathly Hallows split was announced last month. If you read the spoiler, what do you think? Where would YOU split the movie?

I said to myself that I was NOT going to read it, and then I did. I only read about where the split was. I think that is a somewhat appropriate place to split it because when “Someone gets the something” (Trying not to spoil anyone here, but if you have read it, you’ll know what I mean!) I think it is a turning point for both this character and them tone of the book. The character finally has what they want and now thinks they can do what they have waited for so long to do. I also think that doing it at this point brings a lot more action into the first movie than it would if it stopped when the snatchers caught them. I can’t really explain it too much without giving it away so I think I will stop it there. If I had a choice of where to split it, I may have split it where the snatchers find them and corner them and have it end there. I know that is a popular opinion and was a theory for awhile as to where it may be split, and I liked this. But the way that it is apparently being done should be okay. I think the part they chose to split it at is quite overlooked as an option by most of the fandom and that may be a factor in why they chose that spot. Who knows? It would be quite hard to decide where the split is going to be. I think it will turn out wonderful! I have faith in the people who make the movies!

Did you watch the Deathly Hallows trailer? If so, thoughts? If not, why not?

Of course I did! I watch any trailer I can get my hands on! 😛 The latest one to be released is the Deathly Hallows Part 1 Trailer. I thought it was AWESOME! It was a lot of stuff we’ve seen before, but there were a few things added in. I liked that when the wedding was ransacked, Harry tried to make his way towards Ginny (What can I say, I am a bit of a fangirl! :P). Then Lupin shoved him back.. What the heck Remus? Well, I suppose he had to for the sake of the story… Anyways, I really liked how everything looked at the wedding, I can’t wait to see the whole thing! I do agree that Dumbledore’s tomb looked quite plain, but I don’t think he would have wanted anything elaborate. It was described in the book as very simple, so I am okay with it. I also liked the shot of the 7 Potters! I think that will be a GREAT part! The facial expressions that Daniel Radcliffe has are too funny. He has the characters quite down!! I got my first glimpse of Bill Weasley! I got a closer up one a couple of days ago. His face could do with some more scars, but overall… He looks very much like a Weasley, and cute to boot! So I would have to say good job casting! Another shot I LOVED is when Harry and Hermione find his parents in the graveyard. I think that Harry and Hermione have a very strong bond and that they see each other as a surrogate sibling of sorts since they are both only children. Hermione also feels like she has lost her parents because of them being away and not remembering her. Ron, on the other hand, lives quite a sheltered life and learns to appreciate his family in a very sad way. Yet another one is when Harry says that nobody else was going to die for him. The resemblance of Harry in the movie and Harry in the book at that moment was uncanny! I am very excited and also very sad for this movie to come!

Deathly Hallows: Part 1 is now less than two months away. How are you feeling, knowing that this movie marks the beginning of the end?

To be honest, my emotions are quite mixed. I am very excited for a new movie, but I know that after this that the end is coming. It’s like my childhood is ending with the end of these movies. I have been a fan for almost 10 years. That’s all of my teenage years and then some! Harry Potter has become a very big and important part of my life. I will never So I feel very happy and excited and on the other hand, I feel empty and sad. I will be going to see both of them in theatres and bringing a GIGANTIC box of kleenex with me! I will be going to see the over and over and over and over and over and, well, you get the picture! 🙂

Are you doing anything fun: having a party, dressing up, etc., for the big premiere of Part 1?
For Sure! I probably won’t have a party since I am in university and live on campus! But I vowed that I would try a couple of butterbeer recipes, listen to all of the mugglecast episodes that I need to catch up on, dress up and probably go see the movie opening night with a couple of friends! and then go see it again, and again and again! I am VERY excited!

Is there a particular scene that you are looking forward to the most? One that you are dreading?

I am looking forward to the whole movie, well, movies! I am just going to put scenes from both that I am looking forward to! I can’t wait to see: -The 7 Potters – I saw a picture of Hermione in her room so I am assuming that she is getting ready to put that memory charm on her parents. We haven’t seen much of Hermione’s home life so I really want to see this! -Mollywobbles -Ginny actually kissing Harry! – I really want to see Harry and Lupin’s fight at Grimmauld Place! That will probably make me cry a teeny bit! -The ministry -Ron’s jealousy horcrux hallucinations about Harry and Hermione (I am VERY interested in how this one will turn out! I am going to be VERY excited!) -The flashback to Lily and Snape (The Prince’s tale!) because in any movie I watch, I love having flashbacks from the past. I have no idea why, but I just love them! -Hermione attacking Ron 😛 I think that this is the part that A LOT of fans have been waiting for, myself included! There will definitely be squeals coming from my seat! -“Not my daughter you b****” -Harry going to the forest to die. I think that this is a very big part of the book (It’s one of my favorites!). When Harry knows what he has to do and for the first time ever, he is scared for himself. The kleenex and the hyperventilation will be out at this part! -The epilogue, I really can’t wait to see what it looks like! I know what some of the kids look like so I am very excited to see how it works out! I will probably be crying at this point as well. -And so much more! I can’t really pick just one! There are so many moments that I love in the book and my wish is that every single one of them would be included!

Is there anything else you would like to add?

I just want to say thank you for choosing me as fan of the week! There are many theories out there that have been proven wrong or proven true. I tried my best not to have my own theories so I wouldn’t be let down or something. I have read some theories from other people and have found them to be very interesting. Most of the things that I have come up with either have become cannon or cannon was better than my initial thoughts. Although, there is one thing that I still believe. I still think that at some point Neville and Luna got together. I think they are very cute together and automatically just paired them together since OOTP! I am still in denial that Luna married a random dude with a weirder name than her! She was supposed to marry Neville! In my mind, she did! I think that Mugglenet is TOTALLY AWESOME! I go to Mugglenet for my daily dose of Harry and have been doing so for quite some time! I hope that everyone keeps up all the FABULOUS work! And I can’t wait for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows; Part 1!