Midnight Harry Potter Screenings Sell Out South Shore Cinema

A little more than 14 years ago, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone - later renamed for American publication - hit bookshelves to immense acclaim and fanfare.

At the stroke of midnight Friday, the beloved series enters the beginning of the end with the release of its eighth and final film.

In the history of midnight screenings, few films have surpassed the Harry Potter series. The seven previous installments in the series have grossed hundreds of millions of dollars on their opening nights and have gone on to earn billions during their theatrical runs.

That trend will hold up at Oak Creek's , where all of the midnight screenings are at capacity. Tickets are still available for the 11 remaining 2D and four 3D showings on opening day.

Anticipation for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2 has eclipsed that for all previous films in the series, so it should come as no surprise that most midnight screenings have already sold out. However, the Landmark Oriental Theatre on Milwaukee's east side still has a few hundred seats left for its midnight showing.

The experience will no doubt be bittersweet for many Potter fans.

When the final book hit shelves four years ago, there were sad feelings everywhere, but the mourning wasn't all bad. Fans were given something of a reprieve - for as long as the movies were still being made, it didn't truly feel like the end. Splitting "Deathly Hallows" into two films delayed the bitter farewell a little longer.

But all things must pass, and here we are, facing what can only be called the end of an era. All Potter fans can hope for is that the finale will be a grand and spectacular one worthy of the series. Early reviews for the film indicate as much, with it receiving nearly universal praise.