dragonfire88's Full Review: Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
Plot Details: This opinion reveals major details about the movie's plot.
I had heard about the Harry Potter books for a long time. I checked the books out several different times and thought they sounded really good, but for some reason I didn't get them. I would read the back and think how interesting and good they sounded to me, but I would always put them back. I had been hearing some things about the movie for a while, and lately, that really got my interest in the books up. But I still didn't get them. Then I got the first book in the series for my birthday in October. I loved it and was immediately hooked on Harry Potter and his world. I went out and got the second and third books, and I read all three in less than a week. I haven't gotten the fourth yet, but I want it. I love Harry Potter now. I caught Harry Potter fever. After reading the book, I couldn't wait to see the movie. My best friend and I went to see the movie last week. We went to the last show on a week night. There were only about ten other people in there. I like seeing a movie like that better than in a packed theater. I have read that other people saw several trailers before the movie. We didn't. We only saw one very short teaser. And it wasn't even for Star Wars. Oh well. After the teaser trailer was over, the magic of the movie began.
CAST
Daniel Radcliffe - Harry Potter Rupert Grint - Ron Weasley Emma Watson - Hermione Granger Robbie Coltrne - Rubeus Hagrid Richard Harris - Dumbledore Maggie Smith - Professor McGonagall Alan Rickman - Professor Snape Warwick Davis - Professor Flitwick Ian Hart - Professor Quirrell Zoe Wanamaker - Madam Hooch Matthew Lewis - Neville Longbottom John Hurt - Mr. Ollivander John Cleese - Nearly Headless Nick Fiona Shaw - Petunia Dursley Richard Griffiths - Vernon Dursley Harry Melling - Dudley Dursley
Chris Columbus - Director Steven Kloves - Screenwriter John Williams - Score
The movie is based on the book written by J.K. Rowling.
The movie is rated PG. There are some scenes that may scare young children. The movie is rather long at two and a half hours, so it will be too long for some children to be able to sit through.
PLOT
Harry Potter has been raised by his aunt and uncle, Vernon and Petunia Dursley because his parents were killed when he was a baby. The Dursleys treat Harry horribly, and favor their rotten, overweight son, Dudley. Harry has to sleep in a small cupboard under the stairs. The Dursleys treat Harry like he is a servant. One day, a letter arrived for Harry. Vernon read it and was upset by whatever it said. The letters kept coming even though Vernon continued to destroy them. On a Sunday, a flood of letters came down the chimney. That seemed to be the last straw for Vernon. He told them they were leaving and going where the letters couldn't find them. They end up in a cottage on a small island. There is a horrible storm raging outside. Vernon figures there is no way the letters can get through that storm.
That night was Harry's eleventh birthday. There was a loud thudding that woke everyone up and the door was broke down. In comes Hagrid, a huge man, with another letter for Harry. He finally got to read his letter. He had been accepted to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Harry found out that he was a wizard. He also found out the truth about how his parents were killed. Vernon and Petunia knew the truth all along but kept it from Harry. They weren't happy about magic being in the family. They were muggles - non magic people. Hagrid and Harry left, going to get Harry's school supplies.
They went to Diagon Alley and Harry gets his school supplies. There were all kinds of shops for robes, potions, cauldrons, wands, flying brooms, and animals like owls. Unfortunately, not much of Diagon Alley was shown in the movie. Harry and Hagrid also made a stop at Gringotts, the wizard bank that was run by goblins. After getting all his school supplies, they went to the train station where Harry had to try to find platform 9 3/4.
On the Hogwarts Express, Harry met Ron Weasley and the two start their friendship. The boys had their first encounter with Hermione Granger on the train. Once at the school, Harry had his first meeting with Draco Malfoy. The first year students had to be sorted into one of four dorms by the sorting hat. Harry, Ron, and Hermione all end up in Gryffindor. The other houses are Hufflelpuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin.
Harry had to adjust to the new world he finds himself living in. He had more encounters with Draco - though not as many as were in the book. He goes to his classes and met Professor Snape, who seemed to hate Harry at first sight. Harry, Ron, and Hermione become friends. Lots of other things happen in the movie. You have to watch it to find out what else happens and how it all works out.
I loved Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. I'm glad that it stayed so true to the book. If they had messed with the story to much it would have ruined the story. I have seen several movies that have been based on books. Some of the movies were dramatically different from the books, so different that they weren't the same stories anymore. I hate when that happens. Yes I did know what was going to happen, but I didn't know how some things would be portrayed on the big screen. Of course there were some things from the book that didn't make it into the movie. I was disappointed about some things being left out, but I still loved the movie.
Draco wasn't in much of the movie. He was in more of the book. He wasn't shown to be as nasty in the movie as he was in the book. Likewise, Professor Snape wasn't in as many scenes, and he wasn't as nasty as he was in the book, especially to Gryffindor students. The rivalry between Gryffindor and Slytherin wasn't really explained in the movie either. Nearly Headless Nick wasn't in enough of the movie. The moving paintings weren't shown that much either. Hermione's background was left out of the movie. In the book, the reader knows that both of her parents are muggles, but that is not in the movie. I think that fact helps to explain why Hermione was such an over achiever with her school work. She felt that she had to prove that she deserved to be there since she wasn't from a wizard family. That was just my take on why she is the way she is. Percy the poltergeist was left completely out of the movie. The part about Norbert was made much shorter in the movie. Some things were left out near the end of the movie too.
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone does move at a fairly fast pace. It had a lot of things to cover. I had no trouble keeping up with what was going on. My friend hasn't read any of the books, and she didn't know a lot about Harry Potter before we saw the movie. She had no trouble keeping up with everything that was happening either. She did ask a few questions to clarify one or two things, but she was able to figure out what was going on easily. The movie was made in such a way that people who haven't read the book won't be completely lost about what is going on. The movie can be enjoyed by people who have read the book, and by people who haven't.
I thought that the sets that were used for the movie were wonderful. They fit in with the story perfectly. They weren't exactly what I had imagined when I read the book, but they looked right. They made Hogwarts come alive. I loved seeing the floating candles in the great hall, the movie staircases, and especially Quidditch. That looked amazing. I thought the special effects were well done.
There wasn't as much character development in the movie as there was in the book. Some of the characters don't seem to be developed that well at all, but that is because there was so much to fit in the movie. Everything from the book couldn't make it into the movie, and character development was one of the things that didn't make it.
The acting in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone was pretty good. The children were much better than most child actors. Daniel Radcliffe seemed to become Harry Potter. I can't imagine anyone else in the role. Rupert Grint is Ron. He is exactly how I pictured Ron when I read the books. He was wonderful in his part. His facial expressions were great and added so much to his performance, and the character of Ron. Emma Watson is great as Hermione. She managed to portray Hermione as the know it all she is without making her an annoying character.
The other actors were really good in their roles too. My two favorite are Robbie Coltran as Hagrid and Alan Rickman as Professor Snape. Both actors are perfect in their roles, becoming their characters. Coltran was wonderful as Hagrid, making him a loveable teddy bear. He did make some goofs in the movie, mainly saying things he shouldn't have, but Coltran pulled it off in a way that didn't make Hagrid look like a stupid bumbling buffoon. When I read the book, I imagined Professor Snape as an older man, nothing at all like Alan Rickman, but he is absolutely perfect in the role. He is Professor Snape. No one else could have done the role justice. He is great at playing bad guys. He just has this presence on the screen. And his voice is just right for someone who could be a villain.
CHARACTERS
There are so many characters in this movie. I am just going to mention a few of them here.
Harry Potter - An eleven year old boy who finds out he is a wizard on his birthday. He was raised by the Dursleys, his only relatives. He has not had a happy life with them. He embarks on a new life at Hogwarts. He is made the seeker on the Gryffindor Quidditch team. He makes friends, and seems to have an enemy in one of the teachers. He has something of an adventure in the school.
Ron Weasley - Harry's best friend. He is from a wizard family. Three of his older brothers are at Hogwarts - they weren't in much of the movie either - and one, or maybe two have already graduated. I can't remember exactly how many siblings he does have now. He is really annoyed by Hermione when the year starts, but he eventually becomes friends with her. He gets involved in an adventure with Harry.
Hermione Granger - She is from a muggle family. She acts like a know it all, and annoys many of her classmates. She usually studies in most of her free time. I think she feels like she has to prove that she belongs at Hogwarts because her parents are muggles. She becomes friends with Ron and Harry and is involved in an adventure with them in the school.
Hagrid - Gamekeeper at Hogwarts. He is a giant of a man, but very kind and loveable. He delivers Harry's letter to him and takes him shopping for his school supplies. He carries a pink umbrella. He likes dangerous pets. Fluffy is his. He also briefly has a dragon. He does have a habit of saying things he should say. He accidently tells Harry, Ron and Hermione some things a few times in the movie.
This is a great movie and I loved it. It is a movie people of all ages can enjoy, though I do think that young children shouldn't see it. I think that anyone that liked the books would like the movie. People who haven't read the books yet will like it too. I would love to see it in the theater again, but I don't know if I'll get a chance. This is movie will definitely be added to my collection once it is out on DVD. I have read somewhere that there is a longer director's cut of the movie. I'm hoping that will make it on the DVD. Or at least a bunch of deleted scenes.
An orphaned child that has spent the first ten years of his life living under the stairs of his Aunt and Uncle's house, is invited to join the Hogwart...More at HotMovieSale.com
Epinions.com periodically updates pricing and product information from third-party sources, so some information may be slightly out-of-date. You should confirm all information before relying on it.
- Add to My Yahoo!: 
- Add to Google Homepage: 
© 1999-2009 Shopping.com, Inc.