Off we go to Hogwarts!

Rating: 6/10 (25 December 2002)

MY RATING- 6.3
The mov has just premiered here in Portugal, but I'm not of those maniacs who went in the first day. I simply waited quietly a week til the hyped calmed down.
I heard the cast and Chris Columbus saying this one was better than the first, bla bla but when I went to see it I thought `Are you kidding me?' `D ya think this is better than the first one?' I felt it was similar to what happened with `Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom', like trying to be a lot better than the first one. More special effects, more action scenes, and the story was left behind!
Well we still have great acting by the kids (I believe they have a high IQ!) and from the rest of the cast including Maggie Smith, Alan Rickman, Richard Harris (God rest his soul), Robbie Coltrane, and also Kenneth Branagh, who is a great add as the narcisist Lockhart.
Yet what is missed? Maybe the magic that the first one had, the sense of discovery of new places. Yeah, I know we have here the chamber of secrets, yet the whole mov is almost like an idiotic cat and mouse thing after the right enemy, much a la Scooby Doo. The question is- does it entertain? Is it interesting? My answer is YES, of course any kid will be pleased, and the fans will be even more happy. Now does it work in cinema? My sincere answer is NOPE. Maybe they were trying to make it similar to the book, but 2 hours and half sitting on theatre is a privilege only some flicks can have. Harry Potter is not that interesting! Maybe movs like `Ben Hur'!--
Finally I'd like to say `Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets' had some success here in Portugal, we also have a lot of J.K Rowling's readers. I'm not one of them, yet I have to confess this is a good entertainment for kids. It's simply not my style