Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

Rating:
Summary: Excellent book-to-movie transition
Review: Being an obsessive Potter fan like myself, I've been worried about the movies doing the books no justice like some book-to-movie transitions I've seen. In Chamber of Secrets, I've found little to complain about.
Unlike the first film with the tedious character introductions, this one jumps right into the story. The darker tone of the film reflects the book's tone perfectly. The acting has improved--especially the talents of Dan Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, and Emma Watson who play Harry, Ron, and Hermione. Richard Harris surely will be missed playing the role of Headmaster Albus Dumbledore. Kenneth Branagh is perfectly casted as the narcissistic Gilderoy Lockhart and Alan Rickman (Severus Snape) and Maggie Smith (Minerva McGonagall) yet again give excellent performances.
The special effects have improved tremendously--the Quidditch sequences look amazing and the Basilisk scene is enjoyably frightful. There is hardly anything bad about the movie, except for the bland ending and the way the movie seems a little "choppy" with the changes in the scenes.
Anyone--whether you've read the books or not--will find this movie very enjoyable.

Rating:
Summary: "Can we panic now?"
Review: For lovers of the book, "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets" is yet another wonderful adaptation true to Rowling's text. While some elements (such as the Deathday Party) must be cut for time limits, the most charming elements are still present -- the annoying self-pushing Gilderoy Lockhart, the fantastic climax in the Chamber, the encounter with the Whomping Willow, and our introduction to the sinister Lucius Malfoy, who makes his son Draco look like a kitten in contrast.

The story hinges around a premise of prejudice which is slowly seeping into Hogwarts. Harry and his friends must solve the mystery of why some of their fellow students are winding up Petrified by an unknown "monster" said to be controlled by the Heir of Slytherin. In the meantime, Harry must deal with a new adversary on the Quidditch field, a bothersome house-elf, an annoying new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, and his own fears that he might partially be responsible.

The children have really grown into their roles. Daniel Radcliffe seems right at home portraying everyone's favorite little wizard. Emma Watson's Hermione is beautiful, intelligent, and a joy to watch. But it's Rupert Grint who will have you laughing into the night with his charming, utterly predictable Ron Weasley, who has an aversion to spiders and a newly broken wand that likes to backfire. The film builds to an intense climax with a shocking conclusion and leaves you breathless for the next movie adaptation and the joys it will behold for the faithful fan.

The DVD is of the highest quality with good sound, excellent transition to widescreen, and some nice features. There are several cast interviews, an interesting documentary on how the films are made, and a great interview with the screenwriter and J.K. Rowling herself. The only thing missing is the director's commentary. Perhaps by the time "The Prisoner of Azkaban" hits rental stores, Warner Bros will have understood that the grownups in the audience would appreciate a good commentary or two. Overall it's a great disk of an even better story.

Rating:
Summary: A movie soaring on the wings of adventure
Review: Harry Potter (Daniel Radcliffe) has not had a good summer: Trying to cope with his muggle family the Dursleys (Richard Griffiths, Fiona Shaw and Harry Melling), Harry is warned by a strange house elf called Dobby that if he returns to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, disaster will strike. Not taking any note to Dobby's warning, Harry is reunited with red-headed Ron Weasley (Rupert Grint) and brainy Hermione Granger (Emma Watson) and is back at Hogwarts for Year Two. But Dobby's warning is coming true: Messages are written in blood, students are being found petrified, and a disembodied voice can only be heard by Harry. Worst of all, the Chamber of Secrets has been opened once more, and is said to be hold of a monster. What is the monster, and who is the culprit?

I was mostly entertained by 2001's "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone". The movie played off character strength, had some nice looking visual effects and a sticky attatchment to the novel. However, I felt that "Sorcerer's Stone" seemed like an imposter: A movie made by muggles. It had most of the charm of the book, but experiencing it for the first time, the first movie was hollow. It still is a bit. I enjoyed a lot of it, though. Problems aside, it was a faithful adaptation and sometimes a wonderous adventure. I was still left a little cold at the lack of depth in "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone".

But it is one year later, and a year later comes "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets". When I first walked into the film, before it even started, I was never really nervous. This is the second book of J.K Rowling's marvelous series, and the director Chris Columbus had one year to improve himself. I had my expectations, and I'm sure millions of other readers had their expectations. As the film began it's 161 minute adaptation of "The Chamber of Secrets", I was constantly absorbed from the beginning. At the end, I was an extremely happy camper.

While "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" lacked in depth and vision, "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets" is full of labriynth plot twists, character dimension, stunning realism and a huge amount of depth in the plot. The film has a much darker tone than the first "Harry Potter" and it suits the story very well. Hogwarts has seemed to grown from a happy video game setting to a rich but menacing Gormenghast-type castle. Visually, it is an absolute treat.

The acting has also improved immensely. Daniel Radcliffe is no longer the awestruck, wide-eyed Harry from Film One. He's the real deal, with strong emotion and a sharp, edgy attitude. This time around, he is more of the hero than the simple kid he was a year ago. Emma Watson has also proved that she is becoming a wonderful actress. She has absolutely nailed her character! She has transformed into Hermione much more than in "Sorcerer's Stone". Tom Felton as the notorious Draco Malfoy still needs a little work. I was a bit disappointed in Rupert Grint. Ron Weasley was always as brave as Harry in the books. Did he need to become comic relief? The adult actors are also great. Richard Harris (RIP) as Professor Dumbledore, is probably the best, and Maggie Smith and Alan Rickman have also "become" their characters. Two new additions join us in the adult acting field: The flamboyant Gilderoy Lockhart, played by Kenneth Branagh and Lucius Malfoy, the slippery father of Draco, played by Jason Isaacs. All are excellent.

The CGI, a bit "rubbery" in "Sorcerer's Stone", are all tightened for "Chamber of Secrets". There is not one visual effect, in my opinion, of course, that didn't look realistic. Even the spiders, which I thought would be totally ruined on screen, all worked perfectly. Quidditch is once again present, and the game this time around is livlier, faster and more competitive than in the first film. We have a little addition called the Dueling Club, and a magnificent climax that features a certain monster that can actually compare with the troll in "Fellowship of the Ring". We also meet the strange elf Dobby. Unlike the very frustrating Jar-Jar Binks of "Star Wars", Dobby is never annoying, and actually sometimes quite cute. He definitely can't match with the technical mastery of Gollum, but Dobby is more realistic (and thankfully better written) than the annoying Jar-Jar.

The only true problem I have with "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets" is that it takes it's time with story more than the first did. It clocks in at an epic 161 minutes, and that's quite in an investment for a children's film. "Sorcerer's Stone" really didn't feel like the 2 1/2 hours it was supposed to be. "Chamber of Secrets" doesn't really seem like it either, but the pace is a little off for a movie with this kind of running time. However, "Chamber of Secrets" is either for a viewer engaged with the film series itself, or the true Potter fan. I fall into the latter, so the movie didn't seem like the length it was supposed to be. But I'm not speaking for everyone out there.

After viewing this movie multiple times, I can conclude that it is, in my opinion, far superior to it's predecessor. "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets" is where the real story begins. It doesn't dally around in exposition like the first, it builds on it. It is a story thick with many directions, characters of many layers and dimensions, suberb acting, wonderous special effects and still faithful to J.K Rowling's novel. It is always stirring, imaginative and full of depth, even with the extremely long length. After a bit of a rickety, if not a bit untrustworthy first ride, Chris Columbus is able to reclaim himself and deliver a movie with intense passion to it's source. FANTASTIC job, Mr. Columbus! You've proven yourself Potter-worthy. Like "Empire Strikes Back" was to Star Wars, so is "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets" to last year's introduction. It's bigger, badder, and much much better.

Rating:
Summary: The chamber has been opened, enemies of the heir beware
Review: J.K. Rowling has created an unprecedented worldwide phenomenon with her Harry Potter series; books that were written mainly for kids are loved by people of all ages. The only logical continuation was for the movie industry to follow suit and come out with the movies. At first, I was afraid that the films would not be even close to the quality shown in the novels, but the director Chris Columbus and the screenplay writer Steve Kloves have done an amazing job with the adaptation of the books so far. The movie shows a high degree of fidelity to the book and I am sure fans everywhere are extremely pleased with the output.

School's out and Harry is having a hard time making it through the summer since he has not received any messages from his friends, Ron and Hermoine. One day, when Uncle Vernon is getting ready for an important visit, Harry receives an unexpected visitor himself. A house elf called Dobby shows up and warns him about the dangers waiting for him at Hogwarts, and urges him to stay away from Harry's beloved school. Dobby has been trying to prevent Harry from returning to Hogwarts and continues to do so through several passages in the film.

After there are some problems with Uncle Vernon's important visitors, Harry ends up locked in his room and has to be rescued by his friend Ron and his twin brothers Fred and George, who pick him up in a very special transport. From then on, Harry embarks in his journey to Hogwarts, where he will have to face a myriad of dangers, will meet a new professor that has an ego problem, will reunite with his fellow students (friends and foes), and of course will participate in Quidditch, his favorite game.

The main danger Harry has to face is the opening of what is called the Chamber of Secrets. He continuously hears voices talking about death and murder that nobody else can hear, and when students and other creatures start appearing petrified in the corridors, the school becomes a dangerous place to be in and everyone is weary and distrustful.

The movie overall is great and everyone that has read and liked the book will have a good time with it. For those that have not read the novels, I recommend you do that before watching the films, since it is much better to picture the settings and characters in your head without having the input from the movie creators. The actors playing the Hogwarts students have improved considerably since the first episode, appearing more at ease and natural in their performances. It is a real shame that we will not have Richard Harris playing Dumbledore in the next installments of the series, since besides being a great actor, he was exactly as I had imagined the professor when reading the book. Nevertheless, I am really looking forward to "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban"!

Rating:
Summary: Fascinatingly enchanting as it is entertaining
Review: Summer vacation is a dreaded time for Harry Potter (Daniel Radcliffe) as it means having to endure the histronics of his mean aunt and uncle. Returning back to his Hogwarts School of Witchcraft would seem a much wiser option but Dobby the House Elf warns him of "a plot to make most terrible things" is in the brewing. With disregard of the warning, the boy wizard begins his sophomore year at the school of magic - and things happen - when his schoolmates are 'petrified' into statues. In fact this is only the beginning when he later takes on gigantic spiders, screeching mandrakes, Fawkes the phoenix and the fearsome Basilisk.

The second entry adapted from J.K Rowling's legacy has neither the epic sweep of the fourth book (The Goblet of fire) nor the mystery of the third (The Prisoner of Azkaban) but is nonetheless an engaging adventure and a riveting story. What's more with director Chris Colombus at the helm who shows more precision and familiarity after his first attempt, Harry Potter and the Chamber of secrets is a majestic adventure filled with visionary sets and fluid CGI effects that astonishingly enhance the darker fantasy tale and adventure. The soaring adventure thrills with its enshrouding perils, awesome moments of wonder and enlightening morality and friendship.

It thus resembles more of an awkward adolescence stage in this saga for the three main casts. Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson and Rupert Grinch as Harry, Hermoine and Ron reprises their role with the loss of their innocence along with veterans Maggie Smith as Professor McGonagall, the late Richard Harris as the benevolent headmaster Dumbledore, Robbie Coltrane as giant Hagrid and Alan Rickman as Professor Snape. The new interlopers are equally scene-grabbing in their own rights: Kenneth Branagh does a rib-tickling interpretation of braggadocio Gilderoy Lockheart as well as Jason Issacs as the wicked Lucius Malfoy.

With a solidly ensembled cast and sumptuous sets, the second installment is fascinatingly entertaining as it is enchanting enough to sustain its 3 long hours without any misgivings.

Rating:
Summary: Second Harry Potter Film Keeps the Magic
Review: The film starts as Harry and Ron fly their car to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and they begin their second year. They meet their new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, Gilderoy Lockhart (Kenneth Branaugh), a silly, egotistical fraud. Mrs. Norris (the cat), Hermione, Colin, and Nearly Headless Nick are mysteriously petrified, and Ron's sister Ginny is kidnapped and taken to a legendary room called the "Chamber of Secrets." As Harry and Ron try to find out who is behind all this, they encounter scary, giant spiders and a monstrous snake. Harry even meets a 16-year old Lord Voldemort, who attended Hogwarts 50 years ago. Harry triumphs over evil with with remarkable courage in a finale that will keep you on the edge of your seat.

Daniel Radcliffe shines as 12-year old Harry, the orphan-hero. He is much more confident and an all-round better actor than in the first movie. Rupert Grint (Ron) gets all the funny lines and makes a lot of very funny faces. Emma Watson (Hermione) has a much smaller part this time, but is also very comfortable in front of the camera. Jason Isaacs is the villian you love to hate, Lucius Malfoy. The late Richard Harris, as Dumbledore, looks ill, indeed, but plays the grandfatherly protector well. Sadly, we see very little of Alan Rickman ( as nasty Professor Snape) and not nearly enough of Kennth Branaugh (Gilderoy Lockhart).

This film will appeal to HP fans, although probably too scary for those under 8. If you like action-packed plots and special effects, you will not be disappointed. I did miss the sweet, sentimental moments of the first movie (like the Mirror of Erised). This movie is all action, all the time. The special effects are much better this time, and Daniel Radcliffe emerges as a real screen star. You'll like The Chamber of Secrets!

Rating:
Summary: A chamber worth opening! >:-)))
Review: The last HP Movie "The Sorcerer's Stone" was a marvelous adaptation of J.K. Rowling's first Harry Potter book and was hard to pull off onto the big screen but it was almost completely successful and truly amazing. Director Chris Columbus truly brings out the magic of Harry Potter onto the big screen and maintains the faith and magic of Rowling's novels. I have to say that the producers and cast have all outdone themselves on "Chamber Of Secrets"!

The second installment in the movie series begins with Potter being locked up in his room at the abusive Dursleys house in the London suburbs but is rescued and the movie brings the Potter, Weasley, and Granger trio into a much darker arena. The darkness of the dangers is first evident when an elf named Dobby warns Potter not to return to Hogwarts because of a mysterious phenomenon from a secret chamber being opened and students being 'petrified' by it. Harry Potter though goes to Hogwarts in defiance of Dobby but runs into problems at platform 9 and ¾ but that's not the main danger and Harry, Ron, and Hermione face much more dangerous events that threaten Hogwarts as a dangerous chamber of secrets is being opened. They also try to uncover what happened when a Hogwarts student was killed 50 years before Potter first attended Hogwarts. Potter can hear a mysterious voice that the rest of the students can't hear that makes him even more unique. This movie overall has a much darker and spookier suspenseful tone and atmosphere than the last one and might scare some younger viewers so be cautious for those who are easily spooked.

We also meet new characters and including his archenemy Draco Malfoy's tyrannical father Lucius Malfoy. The rivalry between Harry and Draco also seems to grow more bitter as they get older especially with Malfoy's increasing bigtry against normal humans aka muggles. I just hope that it doesn't reach to like a 'fight to the death' kind of rivalry though. Still though, it's fun to watch Malfoy hit major speed bumps when acting out his rivalry against Potter and endure embarrassments as a result.

The main difference that I have really noticed in "Chamber Of Secrets" is that the voices of all of the younger characters of Malfoy, Potter, and Weasley have really deepened between the last HP film and this one. All of the characters except Malfoy of course, show much more mature personality even with Ron's occasionally bumbling antics, he's a very entertaining character. The late Richard Harris deliveres his final role as Albus Dumbledore and is sorely missed by his fan base as well as the Harry Potter audiences as well. It's uncertain how well his replacement Michael Gambon will do in playing Dumbledore in "Prisoner Of Azkaban" but I'm almost 100 percent certain that he will do very well at it.

The choreography is once again astonishing. The flying "Enchanted Car" flying through the air was eye-popping and was great to watch instead of being cheesy and silly.

Overall, I have to say that "The Chamber Of Secrets" is a successful achievement and builds upon the success and greatness of "Sorcerer's Stone", resulting in a near-masterpiece if not an epic one. The movie is much longer than the last one, running at 2 hours and 40 minutes, scarier with occasional scenes that might be a little frightening for younger viewers, and more suspenseful than the last one.

There are two main unsettling scenes though for younger viewers or those who hate creepy-crawlies:

SNAKES: There are lots of them in the movie and it will creep the living daylights out of those who have fear of or revulsion towards snakes. 'Snake Lovers' though, like most people, including me, will definitely enjoy this movie a lot.

SPIDERS: This will scare the living daylights out of those who suffer from arachnophobia and fear them like the plague. Arachnophobics (Correct me if I'm wrong) might want to hold on tight on the seats when the spider scenes come during various parts of the movie. I personally am not scared that much of spiders.

The two things I mentioned above will make some people's skin crawl but for me, I'm not scared of either snakes or spiders so they don't bother me in this movie at all. In fact, these are among my favorite of the creepy-crawlies so there you have it. I actually enjoy the spiders but let's not warp the subject of this review though.

The main thing that I didn't always enjoy though was Gilderoy Lockheart. I thought that his bumbling and occasionally egotistic character annoyed me and kind of spoiled the thrills of the darker parts of the movie. Professor Severus Snape is his usual cold-hearted and hateful self but that's how he was meant to be so it's all good. I thought that Moaning Myrtle was EXTREMELY ANNOYING. The other flaw IMHO was that there wasn't a whole lot of appearances of Snape. He's one of my favorite characters from the movie and deserved a larger role. Draco Malfoy is once again your typical Harry Potter archenemy and is in fact probably even crueler than the last movie and is accompanied by his even more villainous father Lucius Malfoy. God only knows how much worse the Malfoy family will get in the next HP movie especially after Draco insults Hermione.

Despite the frightening and darker tone of "The Chamber Of Secrets" and the bumbling of Gilderoy Lockheart, it is a fascinating and astonishing achievement in adapting Rowling's second novel to the big screen and is destined to become another classic in the years to come. Now begins the wait and anticipation for the third installment "Harry Potter and The Prisoner Of Azkaban" due out in 2004.

This is my favorite movie of 2002 behind "Lord Of The Rings: The Two Towers".

Rating:
Summary: Just as good if not better!
Review: This DVD gives you a great movie, lots of special features, and great commentary from the stars and people behind the scenes. Just as good a movie as the first Harry Potter installment, this is definitely a great addition to anyone's DVD collection!

Rating:
Summary: Not as goood as the book
Review: This film is not as good as the book, but still a very good film. There are a few scenes from the book that I wish had made the final cut. It does drag a little after the climax, but those scenes are need to tie up loose plot lines as well as items that might have an impact in future editions.