HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS PART 2 (Rated PG-13)

It’s time to pay homage to Harry Potter, one of the most popular characters of literature and film in the contemporary world.

For the past decade, ever since “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone” entered the global consciousness, the young wizard and his friends have cast a magical spell on filmgoers.

But all good things to come to an end, and now the eighth installment of the series, “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2,” wraps up the franchise in a tidy package.

However, if you are coming late to the game and expect a neat summary of all that happened before, you are out of luck.

“Harry Potter 8,” as I shall call it, picks up immediately where the “Deathly Hallows Part 1” left off.

The good news is that “Harry Potter 8,” while packed with action, epic battles and tremendous energy, retains an emotional underpinning at its core that makes the young wizards amazingly engaging and compelling characters.

On the other hand, Ralph Fiennes’ evil Lord Voldemort kicks off the action with some grave-robbing of Albus Dumbledore’s tomb, searching for the Elder Wand that could make him invincible.

Meanwhile, Harry Potter (Daniel Radcliffe), and his pals Ron Weasley (Rupert Grint) and Hermione Granger (Emma Watson), are desperately trying to track down the remaining Horcruxes in which Voldemort has embedded pieces of his soul in his quest for immortality.

This mission takes the gang of three to a goblin named Griphook (Warwick Davis) who works at Gringotts Bank, where the malevolent Bellatrix Lestrange (Helena Bonham Carter) keeps a magical sword in a vault.

Pulling off a bank heist is a daunting task, seeing how the vault is protected by a vicious dragon far below the earth’s surface.

The underground roller coaster ride to the bank vault is not only thrilling, but it just may be the signature piece of the “Harry Potter” franchise that could result in a theme park attraction.

You might say that the quest to find Horcruxes involves Harry, Ron and Hermione in a most dangerous scavenger hunt, one fraught with the greatest peril that requires incredible ingenuity to escape harm.

Harry Potter’s singular connection with Lord Voldemort has caused the young wizard fear and pain, but it has also provided him with a unique insight into the mind of the Dark Lord.

As Harry and his crew destroy each Horcrux, Voldemort appears inexplicably more emboldened than weakened, like a wounded ferocious animal that emerges all the more desperate and even more dangerous.

Inevitably, the quest takes the young wizard trio back to the Hogwarts School, which had once been a safe haven but is now enemy territory, with Death Eaters in control and Dementors patrolling the perimeter.

Returning to Hogwarts poses tremendous risk because the school, under the thumb of headmaster Severus Snape (Alan Rickman), is a grim place, more like a prison than a school of magic.

Fortunately, Harry is reunited with his old friend Neville Longbottom (Matthew Lewis), a Gryffindor resident who has been subjected to the brutality of Snape’s reign of terror.

The Hogwarts School, a once stately edifice, becomes a fitting place for an epic battle between the good and evil forces of the wizarding world that escalates into an all-out war.

Spectacular in every way, the riveting battle scenes are visually realized in thrilling fashion when Voldemort’s legions storm the school.

As an aside, it should be noted that there is more to the story than pitched battles. Key flashbacks explain certain relationships that involve Harry’s mother, Dumbledore, Professor Snape and others.

Also satisfying is how “Harry Potter 8” works so many of the old favorites back into this final chapter, from Maggie Smith’s Professor McGonagall to Robbie Coltrane’s Hagrid to Gary Oldman’s Sirius Black, to name a few.

“Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2,” one of the best in the series, is an extremely satisfying and entertaining conclusion to J.K. Rowling’s vision. It is the summer’s must-see movie.

One final note: The screening I attended was a 2D presentation, for which I am thankful as too many 3D releases now seem calculated to maximize revenue rather than the viewing experience.

Tim Riley writes film and television reviews for Lake County News.