Better than the first movie; better than the book

Rating: 9/10 (16 November 2002)

Chamber of Secrets starts off with the feel of the first movie: An
adaptation of a successful book. But about a third of the way
through, director Chris Columbus seems to have read the reviews
of his initial offering and decided to change the tone. A very wise
move. It's a very dark movie, not for quite young kids; if they can't
read, they'll need a translator. Kids in general will like it for the
magic, for the friendship, for the gross and icky scenes, and for the
spectacle. The movie makes the right omissions from the book:
The opening is pared back, the ending is shortened, the plot is
exposed in a more cinematic fashion. I have two disappointments, one forgivable: A major sub-plot with Nearly
Headless Nick is eliminated. I forgive them, since it would get in
the way of the movie action, but John Cleese as Nick is
underutilized. The one part they get wrong is Gilroy. Kenneth
Brannaugh isn't unctuous enough.
Overall, I give Chamber of Secrets a 9 out of 10. Now, go read the
books.