I don't get it.

Rating: 5/10 (4 March 2002)

Goodness, there seems to be a LOT of praise for this movie. I must not have seen the same one as all of you.
I didn't read any of the books, and I was lost and confused throughout this film. I'll admit, the beginning was honestly not too bad, and the art direction was creative and believably "magical." But once they arrived at the school, it all went downhill. The events became hard to follow; for example, whatever game that Harry and his peers played, it was NOT well explained, and I'm sitting in the theater wondering, "what is the point?" And again, at the end when the three friends go off to do... well, whatever the point was. I didn't understand WHY they were doing anything they did - it all seemed very unsupported. But again, I'll admit that might be my fault, because towards the end (heck, even the middle), I found myself fighting to pay attention. I don't see how everyone else sat through this droning bore. And what the hell is with everyone saying the special effects are great? They're not even decent. In fact, the scene with the monster in the bathroom -- that was TERRIBLE. The whole second half of the movie was dominated by "special effects," and it killed any of the "magic" the first half almost had.
Oh - and did anyone else find it strange that they celebrate CHRISTmas at a school for WITCHCRAFT? or is it just me again? I guess I just don't get what everyone sees in Harry Potter...