Loved it, loved it...

Rating: 9/10 (19 November 2001)

Thank God they actually did it right... mind you, I didn't say perfect, just right.
Yes, they left out characters, yes, they changed a few things, yes, I would have preferred a week-long miniseries with Jo Rowling doing the teleplay so EVERY BLOODY THING would have been in it.
But forget all that.
I've read ALL the books at LEAST fifty times (I read fast and I'm interested in translating them yet again), I've now seen the movie twice, I bought tickets online, I got to the theater two hours early and bored my fiance stupid talking non-stop about it for three and a half months. And 1) he still loves me and 2) he also wants to see it again.
Upsides... I've never seen a 2-1/2 hour movie go by that fast... Cheers for ruddy brilliant casting all around and terrific performances... LOVED the score (even if it does sound like HOOK, which I also thought was great), and the special effects are good... now all I have to do is actually FIND Hogwarts and I'll do my dissertation there.
Downsides. The centaur needs work, I wanted more Quidditch matches, and more character development (even when I know them all) would have been great.
But go see it. Either bring the kids or leave them home, but go see it yourself. At least twice. You won't be sorry.