took a lot, but this one hooked me

Rating: 9/10 (11 May 2005)

i have to admit i was not a fan of the harry potter films. esp. when inevitably compared to the lord of the rings, the first film was so flat and dull that i didn't even bother watching the 2nd. in fact,i myself gave that first film a "1" rating here on IMDb.
the problem,i think was simple..it was a Hollywood board room product all the way, helmed by studio yes man chris columbus to drain all the surprise and interesting elements out of the books and make them bland and palatable...concerned more about the bottom line and who they were going to offend than telling the story in an interesting or exciting way.
thus, i was surprised by the 3rd entry. i literally walked in b/c i had nothing else to do that day, and a friend who i trusted had encouraged me to see it. after a few moments, i saw what the excitement was about. cuaron made all the difference, and his version of rowlings world is at once thrilling, fascinating, and magical. this is a place i could imagine wanting to spend several years of my life learning magic. i never felt the bland cardboard cut-out world of the first film. this film felt organic, as if anything could happen and very well might.
this just makes chris columbus all the more pathetic. those first 2 films could have been close to lotr quality, if a real director had been brought in. i, and others like me, will just have to rue the day columbus was allowed to taint this film series with his blandness.
this one, well, it has not only excited me for the impending release of the next film, but has made me consider reading the books.