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Harry Potter and The Chamber of Secrets (Widescreen Edition)

Harry Potter and The Chamber of Secrets (Widescreen Edition)

List Price: $19.98
Your Price: $14.99
Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 4 stars
Summary: More Magic
Review: Like the books, this second installment is darker and more action-oriented than the first. Again, Columbus has chosen the faithful route, again, the correct choice. I would have liked a little less emphasis on the action scenes - when you know that the characters are going to survive for at least another couple of chapters, the multiple life-threatening situations lose some of their nailbiting tension. And the whole movie needed some tightening, i.e. Dumbledore's exposition could have simply been spoken faster. And I missed some of the little touches and visions of "ordinary wizard life" that Rowling tosses out so delightfully.
I hope that the actors will be able to return for the remaining stories. Daniel Radcliffe has a maturity and talent beyond his years. Rupert Grint and Emma Watson are improving nicely. And the adults continue to be perfectly cast - the best British actors playing the best British wizards!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Magical
Review: Like the first one, very well done. Completely entertaining and intriguing. I love magic, what more can I say. I could watch these movies over and over.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Not very interesting.
Review: Sorry, folks, but I found the movie to be slow moving and very uninteresting. I guess it's just me, but I don't believe Harry Potter to be that great. I fell asleep with the movie still in its first hour. The pace, action, and acting are interesting only to those with less than sophisticated tastes. This movie could have been (and probably should have been) done in less than 90 minutes.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: It's Harry Potter! Need I say more?
Review: Quite frankly, I think this second installment of the Harry Potter movies was much better than the first one. The directors seemed to be a lot less afraid to stray a little more. The special effects for Dobby were excellent! I recommend this movie to any Harry Potter fan. Even to the skeptics!

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: From Someone Who Never Read The Books...
Review: I'm not a huge Harry Potter fan or anything, but I really enjoyed the first movie. This second installment, however, didn't have that same feeling for me. It just wasn't as exciting and some of it seemed to be stretching just a little too much. Don't get me wrong, it was entertaining enough for one, maybe two viewings. And I'm sure it's as fascinating for kids as the Wizard of Oz was for me. But I was a lot more excited leaving the theater after the first movie than I was when I saw this one.

Rating: 4 stars
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: 5 stars
Summary: Harry Potter et la chambre des secrets
Review: The story is exciting and there are a lot of action and suspense. But there are a few mistakes. The actors act very well particularly Rupert Grint. Daniel Radcliffe act very badly I think.
The movie is better than the one.
I very enjoyed it!

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: A great sequal to the first
Review: This movie is a little darker than it's predessor but then Harry is a little older too. A wonderful movie that my daughter enjoys watching too. The effects are amazing and the story line is superb.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: What I think about harry potter
Review: I think that Harry Potter is a great book and or movie for kids to read. It really lets them imagine what happens. Harry potter is also based on an Irish folk tale. I enjoy reading Harry Potter. Theres always somthing new to find out about his life and his school.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: An enertaining romp.
Review: The Harry Potter books are at an all-time popularity status, as illustrated by the intense, gigantic crowds...But, without the video games, merchandise, and these movies, that would be a signifigant less number of people.

These movies are enertaining, but they lack a certain something that is vital to book-to-movie films - difference. A good book adaption should be different than the book. Perhaps look at it from a different way, express it in a different light. Steve Kloves, the screenwriter, has, as far as I can tell, merely put the book into screenplay format and takes a lot of credit for it. _I_ could do that.

However, enertainment of this calibre (look at the books, after all, and how clever and fun they are) will invariably win you over. For Chamber of Secrets, the cast is top notch. Some names that came out on top for me, here, was Kenneth Branaugh as the pompous and egotistical Gilderoy Lockhart; Alan Rickman as the enigmatic and ill-tempered Severus Snape; Christian Coulson as the energetic and ambitious Tom Riddle; Jason Isaacs as the cruel and scene-chewing Lucius Malfoy; Rupert Grint as Ron Weasley, a character who I was distressed to see sink to the level of mere comic relief; and, of course, Julie Walters and Mark Williams as Mr. and Mrs. Weasley.

The special effects have improved this time around. Though Aragog, like the troll in the first film, looks terribly fake. The Basilisk appears more as a dragon-snake than the King of Serpents, but it works, and is a very winning villain. Of course, I'm biased, as I love snakes, but...

All in all - this is a charming little addition to any DVD collection.

--Crow Skyler...


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