The Magic Begins

Rating: 9/10 (1 September 2008)

Harry Potter came into the public eye in 1997 with the first book, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, and quickly became a franchise. Four years later a film adaption was made almost exactly in its image.
One thing I will praise J.K for is the fact that she demanded that the films follow the same story lines as the books. I think that this was a great idea is it would have been impossible to keep the essence of the books intact if Spielberg had had his way and it had been an animated film and set in an American boarding school.
The acting is in a word superb. Each actor and actress portrays their character to the fullest and they all seem to be enjoying themselves as well. For me not a bad choice was made with the casting and each performance is worthy of praise.
The soundtrack is also superb. It has probably become one of the most recognisable pieces of music from recent times.
Another thing is the creatures such as fluffy, the three headed dog, and Norbet. For the most part these where good but I do feel a bit iffy about Fluffy's design.
The amount of character development is brilliant. Each character, especially the leads, developed quiet considerably throughout the film which helped keep it interesting for me.
Overall a masterpiece of modern cinema.