I'm back. It's easily the best of the four. Great dragon scene, much longer than in the book.
I would hope so. It's very visual. And if you're spending that much money on effects, you want to get your money's worth (without sucking the energy out of the rest of the film).
I saw it last night with my 8-year old. We left the movie, at his request, just after LV returned, but then we came back in and saw the last few minutes. It was fun to watch but I was disappointed in how some of the plot went awry. I always expect some changes, but the fact that Barty Jr. remained alive seems to indicate--to me, at least--that the next two movies are going to diverge even further from the books.