Rating: 
Summary: "Stone" falls with a thud
Review: It's never a good sign for a movie when the audience sits there and thinks continuously about how each scene could have been improved. That is how I watched "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" -- noting the wooden acting, cheesy special effects, plodding storyline and haphazard direction.Harry Potter is seemingly an ordinary orphan, living with his obnoxious relatives. But on his eleventh birthday, he discovers the truth: He's a wizard, and a celebrity since he was a toddler. He's whisked off into another world full of magic and wizardry, to attend the Hogwarts school and learn more about his magical powers. But sinister forces are gathering nearby, seeking to steal the mysterious Sorcerer's Stone. Harry and his new friends Ron and Hermione try to unravel the mystery and find out who is in league with the most nefarious dark wizard of all. This movie had the misfortune to be released at the same time as the exquisitely directed, acted, and adapted "Fellowship of the Ring," with its realistic special effects and pulse-pounding storyline. As a result, "Stone's" flaws become even more evident. It's less of an adaptation to the big screen than the first book translated into a script, half the material hacked out, and the rest slapped in front of several lackluster actors. Chris Columbus is perhaps the greatest problem. His background in idiotic pratfall films such as "Home Alone" and "Mrs. Doubtfire" is painfully evident; he displays a pre-schooler's love of explosions and eruptions, gaudy effects and sets. The "wand selection" scene is a perfect example of this: unlike in the book, every wrong wand that Harry touches causes an explosion. When he picks up the right one, there is a sudden "Touched by an Angel" light-from-above and a chorus of singing voices. (A few cherubs sprinkling petals would complete the effect) The chess scene, which otherwise exuded drama and a sense of urgency, was marred by more pointless explosions. Columbus also seems besotted with his own special effects. Every few minutes, the plot grinds to a halt so that the characters can gawp in amazement at a lackluster CGI backdrop or a sweeping visual shot. The mountain troll will inspire more laughter than fear, as it is vaguely bottom-heavy and seems to be wearing giant spiky ankle warmers. The Sorting Hat recites its monologues for the whole room to hear, thus erasing any hint of mystery or tension. The ghosts swoop in cackling and chortling, which is about what I was doing during that scene. The unicorn-blood scene is also marred by a ghostly creature that appears to be a robe on strings, and a cheesy centaur that manages to be less impressive than something out of "Hercules: The Legendary Journeys." Baby dragon Norbert is included solely to show off more CGI, as he appears once and then vanishes, having added nothing to the plot; the Quidditch matches will not convince anyone, as they appear to be exactly what they are: preteens sitting on sticks in front of a blue screen. And Voldemort's appearance will frighten no one, as he appears to be a rubber-faced extra from a bad mummy movie. After hearing about the enormous budget, one wonders exactly where all that money went. The sets have a very unreal, cheap look. A few of the interior halls of Hogwarts are convicng as an old, interesting school, but more often than not they look like something out of a toy store: cheap, shiny, something to be toyed with and then thrown away. Whenever I felt a slight leaning towards believing that it was real, Colmbus would parade out one of the randomly shifting staircases, obviously fake trees, and the absurdly leaning pillars of Gringotts. The actors have similar troubles; one wonders if they would have been better if Rowling had not forced Warner Brothers to cast only British actors. Daniel Radcliffe displays a maximum of three muted expressions, and doesn't seem to be able to give any sort of identifiable emotion on any occasion. When cornered by a sinister wraithlike figure, he backs up against a tree with a look of vague apprehension on his face, as if he is about to receive a tetanus shot. Richard Harris sleepwalks through his role in a giant fake beard as Dumbledore; Emma Watson recites her lines without any emotion except a vague nerdy pluckiness. And Ian Hart does an initial good job, but starts hamming it up painfully near the end. Most of the other supporting actors have nothing to work with, and their characters are lucky to even get a few lines. But a few of them do a good job: Alan Rickman chews the scenery with great relish as Snape, though the multi-dimensional character is left glowering pointlessly. Tom Felton sneers, snaps, and kisses up delightfully as the bratty Draco Malfoy; Robbie Coltrane makes a pleasant enough Hagrid, and Sean Biggerstaff is a low-key, pleasant surprise as Oliver Wood. The pacing of this movie is also painful. While "Fellowship" adapted its pace to allow as much of the book to be included as possible, "Stone" meanders vaguely at the pace that the book proceeds -- a fatal error that allows a gradual boredom to seep in. Things only pick up at the end, and there only for about fifteen minutes, and if the sight of hundreds of pointy little caps flying in the air doesn't make you giggle, then you have a greater tolerance for visual silliness than I have. Unless you are a die-hard Harry Potter fan (and not necessarily even then) you probably won't enjoy or be interested in this meandering, CGI-burdened adaptation, that was clearly done for money rather than for any sense of artistry or wish to satisfy fans. With a controlling author and inept director, it was a lost cause. Watch "Fellowship of the Ring" for an exceptional and moving fantasy film -- something you won't find here.
Rating: 
Summary: Great !!
Review: Finally a movie the whole family can enjoy, If you liked Willow? Then you will like Harry Potter
Rating: 
Summary: great movie
Review: this is a fun filled movie with action and a lot of fun for the whole family. they did a great job with the special effects and relates a lot to the book. this is a must have for harry potter fans and for those who want to see a great movie.
Rating:
Summary: Good Movie, Weak DVD.
Review: It's a little embarassing admitting you like a kids movie or book but there should be no shame in watching the Sorcerer's Stone... or reading it for that matter. The movie follows the book suprisingly well, although I believe if I had not read the book first some of the mystery of the movie would have just been confusion. All of the kids in the movie work well together. The acting isn't Oscar material, of course, but for a fun family movie it works. Since the young actors did do so well together I would have liked to seen the deleted scenes added into the movie. The special effects are believable and makes the Quidditch scene great. It does run pretty long for a movie aimed at younger viewers but being an older, more patient viewer, I wouldn't of minded if it made a whole 3 hours. As for the DVD, they could have done a little better. I found it was geared more toward children. You have to go through hoops just to see the 7 deleted scenes. The Interview with the director and others that helped make the movie is about the only redeamable part of the second disc. Maybe I'm too old now to appreciate it but, some of the features on second disc seem a little lame even for kids to enjoy. I would have been pleased with one disc featuring a commentary and one decent documentary although it probably wouldn't play as well to kids. All in all this is a good movie and the second DVD shouldn't ruin your enjoyment of the movie. It is a fun movie that both children and adults can get into...just like the books!
Rating:
Summary: Awesome movie
Review: Hands down this is an awesome movie it keeps you in aw the whole time watching. The music is great, the characters are also great, and even the whole story of it is great. I can't wait to see the next one that comes out I would expect it to be as good if not better than this one. I would recomend this movie to anyone adults and children.
Rating:
Summary: Good dvd, mediocre movie
Review: Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone the movie was really bad compared to the book. But assuming that you haven't read the book this movie is really injoyable, not worth owning though. The special features on the other hand are really fun, you get to explore hogwarts in a 3-D journey as you collect items to open new levels, you can play games and meet the characters in the movie. The 4 stars refers to the dvd, the movie, however, only deserves 3.
Rating:
Summary: Fails to capture the magic
Review: It may have lived up to the hype, but the entire film itself runs back and worth with the same tedious fade outs and ins Chris Columbus directs in all of his movies. The children in the film are too much, Rupert Grint and Daniel Radcliffe give the best performances I thought, even if the rest don't. Why? Listen to their British accents - they sound like they are completely faking it! Tom Felton's Draco Malfoy is absolutely dreadful. He tries too hard to come across as a scheming villain. He sure seemed like a little wimp to me during the Troll attack scene, and especially towards the end - he does however provide an outstanding Morton Lowry impersonation! Emma Watson sure is a cute little girl, but she badly hams it up with the most cultivated accent of all of the characters "Yoov gawt dart awn yoor noaz!". Alan Rickman and Robbie Coltrane are equally banal. The only saving graces come from Richard Harris and Maggie Smith who are excellent as always. For those who disagree, I'm sorry but the film has too many midsections, flaws, and routine performances to make it enjoyable.
Rating:
Summary: Can't wait for more!
Review: I had never read any of the books before I saw this movie, so I didn't have any idea what I was in for. Despite being written as a "children's story," I was as captivated by this fantastical world as my children. We've seen the movie countless times, and now I'm in the process of reading the books to my kids. The extras aren't as great as I'd like, but my kids beg to go through them time after time. Overall, I'd say this is an excellent DVD for the whole family.
Rating:
Summary: Harry Potter & the Sorcerer's Stone - DVD
Review: Wow! What a magical ride. We have watched this DVD repeatedly and each time, I not only enjoy the cinematography, music, and creativeness involved, but I see something that I didn't before. Some little detail that enhances the overall experiance. Can't wait for the next one. Recommended for Adults and Children! How great is it that there is a movie that speaks to both groups. The family can sit down together again, pass the popcorn, and bond!! -Beth W.
Rating:
Summary: Great movie...some scenes and topics not for small children.
Review: If you (and your kids) like fantasy and magic themed movies, you will probably like this movie. I think of this movie as Lord of the Rings for kids, perhaps a more serious Wizard of Oz. The special effects make the physics defying wizardry very realistic, and the kids love it. Unfortunately, evil is portrayed darker than I like my kids to watch. [I'll be a bit vague here to error on the side of not spoiling the movie for you.] The evil wizard (whose name escapes me now) drinks unicorn blood, and the scene with the two-faced man is intense -- based on my parental standards. Nevertheless, a good movie, that for now, will remain well supervised.
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