Quick Potter 1-7: Part 1

Rating: Null/10 (11 April 2009)

Like it or leave it, J.K. Rowling created a hugely successful world, realised through her vivid imagination and highly accessible writing style. Derived from these was a trifecta of blockbuster potential and surely enough, we are five, nearly six, films through her saga. The box office figures have been inevitable given the legion of devoted fans and the obligation of the studios to provide at least worthy on-screen fare. Potter was not a thing to be squandered.
Philosopher's Stone is a reasonable movie. Under Columbus' guidance the world is ably recreated visually, and he delivers you through it competently and with adequate faith to the novel. The now iconic score has well served its purpose, being both catchy and synonymous to the Potter franchise.
The adult performances are widely superb, although as many terms like admirable or gutsy you would care to submit, the child performances, protagonists included, are.. child performances. Selected heavily on appearance, the young, inexperienced cast are thrown into the deep end and frequently stumble. But there are six more films for them to grow as actors.
All in all, it suffers from a lack of ambition, perhaps a symptom of Rowling having provided a great deal of the vision already. At face value the film is sufficiently entertaining but little of it exceeds expectations when compared to the imagination of the reader. This disappoints given the opportunity for a true epic in nature, not just in run-time. The first instalment also begins the tradition of blisteringly, painfully cheesy endings. To the point of physical discomfort. 6/10