Okay, I was champing at the bit to see this movie. I counted the days for months....I counted down the hours for days....and all I can say is that I am left wanting.

I guess my biggest dilema is finding a way to enjoy the movies at an individual level, as opposed to spending the whole movie picking out what's different from the books. I have never understood why they insist on cutting so much out of the movies!!! Have they not learned that HP fans are just as enthusiastically OCD as Star Wars fans (for example)? I am sure that HP fans would sit through a 3-5 hour movie if it followed the book. Look at Braveheart, and Lord of the Rings. for goodness sake! Excuse me while I step off my soapbox....

I enjoyed the fact that they went out of their way to be true to the books in the scenes they did use. The casting for Umbridge was impeccable. While I did end up liking the character Luna on the big screen, somehow I didn't get quite that "spacey" of an impression of her from the books. I think they did a good job with the thestrals, and grawp. I even liked the new and improved dementors. Much scarier this time. I also have to give them props for how Umbridge finds the room of requirement. I wasn't sure about it the first time I saw it, but hindsight....

I was very dissapointed in the fireworks scenes, and with the weasley's exit. I didn't like them leaving out St. Mungo's. They cut too much out in the interactions of number 12 grimmauld place. Kreacher and his relationships should have been shown, as well as his interaction with Dobby. Neville finding the room of requirement??? And Cho being the one who snitches? The final battle between Dumbledore and Voldemort on it's own was pretty amazing, but nothing like the book!!!

I was looking forward to the statues moving, and the round room with all of the doors.....much more magic in the book than in the movie!!!