Well-made adaption of the book

Rating: 8/10 (2 January 2002)

Young soon-to-be wizard Harry Potter lives a dreadful life with his mean step-parents, untill one day when a letter arrives. It says that Harry is a wizard and he should come to a school called Hogwarts to learn more. Eventually, Harry is on his way to the school, where lots of adventures await him.
"Harry Potter" has huge expectations on its shoulders, and I´m happy to say it lives up to them. But it should be added that I´m not a huge fan of the book, I read it and thought it was good, but I couldn´t really understand all the attention it has been given. But I have to say that Chris Columbus has created an excellent adaption, that includes the very best parts of the story and also remains faithful to J.K Rowling´s book. It has the same nice details as the book and it actually takes its time to develop the characters. The effects are mostly top-notch and the set-pieces are awesome. The climax is definitely the Quidditch match, this was made to be seen on the big screen!
If you think of how many child actors we have here, the acting is sensational! Daniel Radcliffe is perfect and just as I imagined Harry. However, he is easily outshined by ginger-haired Rupert Grint, who plays young comedian Ron Weasly, who provides the most laughs. But the real discovery of the kids is Emma Watson as bossy Hermione. You could tell after one minute of Ms Watson that she will be huge in the future! The older actors are perfectly cast as well. Richard Harris, Alan Rickman and Maggie Smith are solid, while Robbie Coltrane and John Hurt provide warmth.
The movie´s few problems is its length, I definitely don´t agree with those who thought it was to short. It loses tempo towards the end, and the finale is a disappointment. Another problem is that the book is not without its flaws from the very beginning. You could forgive it since it takes more than half of the movie to introduce the characters and the environments. Because after that comes a cheap story about a "Philosopher´s Stone" that feels relatively uninteresting. But you have to remember that this is the first episode of a long series. Looking forward to "The Chamber of Secrets" already.
4/5