Immune to Potter magic

I MUST be the only film critic in the world who wasn't excited about seeing this movie. Before you judge me, allow me to explain. I have never read a Harry Potter book or seen any of the previous big-screen adaptations and my knowledge of the plot comes entirely from a conversation with the editor of this newspaper.

Have I been living under a rock for the past decade, you ask? No, I've just been so exasperated with the relentless hype that surrounds the series that I decided to avoid it altogether ... To avoid setting myself up for disappointment if it fails to meet my expectations? No, in all honesty, I can just think of better ways to spend two and a half hours than watching Daniel Radcliff pontificate about how best to wave a stick around.

Alas, I bit the bullet and finally sat down to watch my first Potter film - The Deathly Hallows with an open mind and baited breath.

I'll happily admit that it would have been a good idea to have read one of the books or seen one of the preceding five films, but in all honesty, I don't have that kind of time, nor do I have the desire to contribute to JK Rowling's immense wealth.

I am happy that Rowling's books are encouraging people, especially children, to read and that thanks to her, the fantasy genre is getting some well-deserved attention. However, Harry Potter is not your only choice.

This is a bizarre film to say the least. There are long stretches of dull tedium (and jargon Potter's army of muggle fans will fully understand) but, with that said, there are moments where you can't help but be intrigued.

To set the scene, the Ministry of Magic has been dissolved and taken over by what can best be described as ultra conservatives who want to see muggles (humans with no magic powers) wiped off the earth.

This doesn't sit well with Harry or his friends, the beautiful Hermione (played by Emma Watson) and Ron (Rupert Grint). They set about trying to uncover a collection of magical trinkets that need to be destroyed in order to make the world a safer place.

Amidst all of this, the forces of evil are after poor Mr Potter and will stop at nothing to see him dead.

While Harry and his friends embark on a perilous journey to unearth the magical trinkets and destroy them, the evil Voldamort is seeking a stick (or wand depending on how into this fantasy world you are) that wields immense power, capable of killing his spectacled nemesis.

GulfWeekly editor, Stan Szecowka told me that Voldamort is the equivalent of Darth Vader from Star Wars, so it's easy to understand why he wants Harry dead. The film pivots on the timeless tale of good vs evil and deals with several universal themes that we can all relate to such as love, despair, friendship and sacrifice.

I will offer the Potter series a begrudging bit of praise for the fact that it manages to subtlety teach children about the perils of racism.

Pure-Blood = Those born from witch and wizard. Half-Blood = Those born whose either parent is a Muggle and other is witch or wizard. Mud-Blood = Those born to Muggle parents - Muggle born.

The film creates a striking juxtaposition between the struggle involving muggles and wizards (and all those in between) that is reminiscent of the appalling racism experienced in our own history. It's always sad when one race believes they are superior to another, not realising that all blood is red.

However, as for the rest of the story, I felt my mind wonder more than once because of the ridiculous length of the movie. How anyone, let alone a child, could sit there and patiently pay attention for two-and-a-half-hours is beyond me. Sorry Rowling, but I'm immune to the magic of Harry Potter and while I've got your attention ... a ginger kid with TWO friends, are you kidding me?

I understand that people are really attached to these films because they have either read the books as a child, to their children, or are just fascinated because the characters have grown up before their eyes on the screen, but to quote a critic who said it much better than me: "I can conceive how people might feel attachment to Harry Potter, supposing they have never read the quality fantasy novels that permeate the literary world ... but that's like loving McDonald's because you've never had lobster."

Showing in Cineco, Seef I, Al Jazeera Cineplex and Saar Cineplex