A Whimsical Beginning To One of the Most Beloved Series of All Time

Rating: 8/10 (1 November 2008)

I am an avid fan of the Harry Potter series. I have read every book, seen every movie, and tried to find out everything there is to know about the series. Well, this is the first book, and movie, of the series. It is safe to say that this is a wonderful beginning to the series of Harry Potter movies. This kept to the book quite nicely. Not much seemed to be cut, aside from some minor situations and events, although it is quite sad to see a character like Peeves the Poltergeist to be on the cutting room floor. To be honest, I saw this film when I was quite young, and I thought that all of the characters fit J.K. Rowling's descriptions perfectly. Now older, I feel the same way, but that may be because your childhood memories are memorable.
Harry Potter is an ordinary boy with no special talent, right? He lives with his dreadful relatives after his parents mysteriously died. Then, on an ordinary day, a letter comes. Then another. Then another. Also, a half-giant comes to inform Harry that he is a wizard and he has been accepted to Hogwarts School and Witchcraft and Wizardry. There, at Hogwarts, Harry discovers a world like no other, crammed with talking, and nearly-headless, ghosts, poltergeists, wizards, witches, true friends, and secrets. Secrets that Harry never knew about. Secrets that will reveal more than Harry bargained for.
This is a great movie, simply put. It is full of wonderful special effects, a sometimes dark, sometimes cheery, atmosphere, some nice work from the adult and child actors, although that the children can be a bit over-the-top at times. No matter, though. Chris Columbus does a nice job covering the book from page-to-page, without deleting too much important elements. My main complaint is that Columbus does not do anything unique for the film. He chooses to stick to the book, and that's it. He does the same with Chamber of Secrets. The other directors for the other books put their own different spin on the story. Columbus just makes it all about the book, which is fine, but fans of the books may want to have a little more. Overall, I highly recommend this movie to any fan of the Harry Potter series of books, a little adventure, or any lover of fantasy in general.
8/10