Add Magic to your Halloween Weekend with Harry Potter

If you've never treated yourself to a Harry Potter movie marathon, then Halloween is the perfect time to start.

You'll want to set aside the weekend, though because all eight films in one day would be quite difficult.Totaled up all eight films would take you nearly 20 hours to watch without breaks. My suggestion is to break it up into the Pre-Voldemort and Post-Voldemort eras, or simply cut it in half.

Start with the first film and carve out 10 hours to watch the first four films on Saturday. If you start at noon, you'll finish up just after the sugar rush ends. Just remember chocolate before bedtime sometimes leads to nightmares.

Sunday, if you start again around lunch you'll finish up just in time for bed. If you've never seen the films, you're in for a treat. Not only do they aptly tell Rowling's stories from the books in an exciting way, but it's fun to watch them back to back to see how different each director's vision was for the film.

The first and second films are directed by Chris Colombus who also directed such family films as Mrs. Doubtfire and A Night at the Museum. His whimsical story-telling fits right in with Harry's entrance into the magical world.

The third film, directed by Alfonso Cuaron, depicts Harry's transition into his teenage years complete with a bit of a temper, and the film strays a bit from the book but correctly sets the tone of the story.

In the fourth film, Mike Newell directs Harry through the ominous Tri-Wizard Tournament. Shaggy hair is all the rage, and the kids learn to dance and begin to develop feelings that are more than friendship for one another.

The last four films had one man at the helm. Director David Yates expertly depicts Harry's fight against the Dark Lord. From Umbridge to the penseive, the Deathly Hallows to the Final Battle, the films get increasingly ominous. The films get darker as Harry gets older, but Yates manages to keep friendship and love at the center of the story, as Rowling did in the books.

Make sure you stock up on popcorn, pizza and raid the candy stash, because you're in for a total of 19.65 hours of time in the wizarding world. Happy Halloween!