The first week back at school is stressful. Between unpacking all my belongings and knick knacks, dropping an entire paycheck on textbooks and going to class for the first time in months, the fact that I’ve been assigned Editor’s Pick has been the most worrying. My close friends know that I don’t consume a lot of media. I watch the same three shows, listen to the same artists and if you ask me if I’ve seen a movie, there is almost a 100% chance that the answer is no. Whenever someone suggests I watch a show, I pretend that I’m eventually going to watch it, knowing fully that I never will. My lack of fluency in pop culture and modern media is, frankly, embarrassing. I wrote about “Gilmore Girls” last fall, so what am I going to write about? While planning a potential movie night with my friends, it hit me. In the least-nerdy way possible, I’m going to write about “Harry Potter.”
I may not have seen many movies, but I have seen every “Harry Potter” movie a minimum of five times. Although the first movie came out in 2001 (before I was born), I feel as though I grew alongside the film’s characters. I first started reading the series and watching the movies when I was eight, and Harry, Ron and Hermione are 11 years old in the first book of the series, “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone.” Watching the characters mature in real time allowed me and other members of Gen Z to connect with the story on a more personal level. Although adventure, magic and the battle between good and evil is a large component of the series, “Harry Potter’” is also, at its core, a story of friendship and growing up in a rapidly-changing world, themes which my generation can largely relate to. Although many of my friends also grew up with “Harry Potter,” fans of the franchise span across generations. For example, my dad likes to recount the first time he read “Harry Potter” when he was staying at a Jesuit’s house and picked up “Sorcerer’s Stone” from a bookshelf.
The official “Harry Potter” soundtrack is pivotal to my fondness of the book and movie series. John Williams’ and Alexandre Desplat’s contributions to the cinematic universe are undervalued. Not only do the scores compliment the films and enhance the viewer’s experience, but they’re so iconic that listening to a specific soundtrack score can transport the listener back in time. When I listen to “Leaving Hogwarts” or “Reunion of Friends,” I remember how important and formative this fictional world was to me as a child. I’m reminded of the late nights I spent staying up past my bedtime reading my Kindle, the excitement when I finished a book and my dad popped the movie disc into the DVD player and the first time I encountered a curse word in “Deathly Hallows” and had no clue what it meant. Because of my personal attachment to the series, the soundtrack is my go-to when it comes to studying. Listening to the “Harry Potter” soundtrack brings me a sense of nostalgia and comfort that’s much needed when I’m trapped in Walsh Library working on an essay or a difficult reading.
“Harry Potter” is the perfect movie series to rewatch whenever you’re yearning for that ache of nostalgia, an ideal book to reread over a holiday break and a soundtrack with the perfect ambiance for when you need to study. I love everything about “Harry Potter” and if that makes me a nerd, then so be it.
