When Being Too Faithful to Source Material Is a Bad Thing

Rating: 5/10 (27 July 2010)

I read enough of the first "Harry Potter" book to know that Chris Columbus virtually recreated it scene by scene. However, I also read enough to know that what he put on screen was a plodding, overly literal adaptation that doesn't have an ounce of magic or creativity in it.
To be fair to Columbus, I don't really know what the alternative was. The fan base for "Harry Potter" wanted the experience of watching it to match exactly the experience of reading it, and would have revolted at any more daring cinematic vision. It always makes me wonder why people want to watch movies based on their favorite books in the first place -- just read the books instead.
Grade: B-