Fantastically old-fashioned magical adventure

Rating: 8/10 (3 August 2016)

A superior sequel and a bonafide winner, this epic children's movie builds on last year's successful formula to offer a film that is even more satisfying than before. Boasting a bigger cast – by retaining the same principal characters and introducing a handful of new ones – better special effects and an intriguing storyline with just the right combination of humour, death, mystery and puzzles, HARRY POTTER AND THE CHAMBER OF SECRETS is a delight to watch. Sure, there are problems too numerous to mention. The plot holes and events occurring which are inexplicable to those who haven't read the books are too numerous to mention. Still, at the end of the day, the primary market for this book is the child audience and almost every child should be enchanted by this film. After all, it's a make-believe fantasy in which good always triumphs over evil and the virtues of friendship, kindness, and nobility are promoted over all else, so what is there to complain about?
Those adults watching the film with their children – or those few watching it on their own – will also find much to delight in. The special effects have improved dramatically and the film is a visual feast. Not only are the sets and locations wonderful – from the stunning exterior of Hogwarts to the numerous creepy passageways beneath it – but the costumes and props are also spot on. Scenes involving the flying car are very well handled and the slimy basilisk – making an appearance at the finale – is an extremely well realised creation, and pretty damned scary if I dare say it. The highlight, however, is the encounter with an army of overgrown spiders, which easily outranks the works of the effects guys who did EIGHT-LEGGED FREAKS, despite the now-familiarity of the menace. Expect the usual myriad of weird creatures and beasties, from Dobby the house elf (with the body of Gollum, the mannerisms of Jar-Jar Binks and the speech pattern of Yoda) to the flying pixies and my favourite, the screaming mandrake babies.
The central trio of Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, and Rupert Grint return in the leading roles. Grint is as good as last year, although his character is turning into something of a sissy and his repeated screaming and shouting is getting a little overused. Watson is delightful as the know-it-all Hermione whilst Radcliffe has developed his acting skills as Harry – I still think he's pretty colourless but at least has improved somewhat since his last attempt. Expect to see plenty of returning faces (aside from Zoe Wanamaker) all going through the motions with their usual charm – Maggie Smith, the late Richard Harris (his last role), Robbie Coltrane, Alan Rickman, Warwick Davies sadly underused. The new faces also spice up the action, from Miriam Margoyles as the amusingly-named Professor Sprout to Jason Isaacs as a hissable old-school villain. Best of all is Kenneth Branagh who puts in a spot-on hilarious turn as the vain and pompous Gilderoy Lockhart, effectively stealing the show from his fellow cast members. At the end of the day it's just nice to totally immerse yourself in a good, old-fashioned world of magic and wonder and forget about the mundane hassles of everyday life. Now at last modern cinema has the technology to realise such dreams and HARRY POTTER provides such a retreat, for three special hours.