Subject: Review: Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (2001)

From: Shannon Patrick Sullivan <[email-masked]>
Date: Mon, 19 Nov 2001 19:20:31 -0000

HARRY POTTER AND THE PHILOSOPHER'S STONE (2001) / ****

Directed by Chris Columbus. Screenplay by Steve Kloves, based on the novel
by JK Rowling. Starring Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, Emma Watson.
Running time: 153 minutes. Rated PG by the MFCB. Reviewed on November 
17th, 2001.

By SHANNON PATRICK SULLIVAN

Synopsis: Orphan Harry Potter (Radcliffe) lives with his loathsome inlaws, 
unaware that he is actually a wizard. Finally, on his eleventh birthday, 
Harry is taken by the giant Hagrid (Robbie Coltrane) to attend Hogwarts 
School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. There, Harry befriends fellow students 
Ron (Grint) and Hermione (Watson) while beginning his tutelage in magic 
and uncovering an evil plot to steal the mythical Philosopher's Stone.

Review: Despite his obvious enthusiasm for the source material, taking on 
the movie adaptation of "Harry Potter And The Philosopher's Stone" could 
not have been easy for Chris Columbus. Given the enormous popularity of 
the JK Rowling novel and its sequels, Columbus was essentially caught 
between a rock and a hard place. On the one hand, there's the simple fact 
that making a movie necessitates a different approach than does a book.
On the other hand, there's the pressure to be as faithful as possible to 
the novel; otherwise, Columbus risked the wrath of millions of readers, 
young and old, worldwide.

Given all this, Columbus and scriptwriter Steven Kloves, have done a truly 
remarkable job. "Harry Potter And The Philosopher's Stone" is an 
enormously entertaining, spellbinding movie which does justice to 
Rowling's text. Most tellingly, it is a picture which should appeal to 
both die-hard "Potter" fans and those who have never read the book, to 
both the younger viewers at whom it is ostensibly targeted and the older 
audience members who are bound to get caught up in the ride, and to just 
about everyone in between. Like "ET The Extra-Terrestrial", "Willy Wonka 
And The Chocolate Factory" and "The Wizard Of Oz" before it, "The 
Philosopher's Stone" seems destined to remain a firm family favourite for 
decades to come.

In part, the success of the adaptation is due to the controversial 
decision to permit the final edit to exceed two and a half hours. At 
nearly twice the length of many conventional family films, this enabled 
Columbus to squeeze in far more material than would be otherwise be the 
case. Were much of this material mere filler, I would agree with those who 
criticised this decision as being inappropriate for the young target 
audience. But the fact of the matter is that "The Philosopher's Stone" 
never feels padded out; indeed, the two-and-a-half hours race by as if the 
movie really were only half that length, and I'm quite confident that it 
will keep children thoroughly enraptured throughout.

In fact, I would have been quite happy to sit through another half hour if 
it meant witnessing even more of Rowling's imaginative novel brought to 
life. Indeed, one of the few criticisms I can levy at "The Philosopher's 
Stone" is that, because so many of the book's major set pieces are 
incorporated, it does possess a slightly episodic feel. For example, in 
the middle portion of the movie, much is made of Quidditch -- a game like 
soccer played on broomsticks -- leading up to a thrilling depiction of 
Harry's first match. In the novel, Quidditch hovers in the background 
thereafter; in the film, it is virtually forgotten. Similarly, we see very 
little of Harry's classes, and it is sometimes easy to forget that 
Hogwarts is actually a school. And there are a few odd omissions; Harry's 
owl Hedwig, for instance, never gets a name onscreen.

Further, whereas the novel boasts Rowling's enchanting prose to guide 
readers through the quieter sections, here we have only Columbus' 
direction. And, although he does a very capable job of translating the 
book to film, Columbus' approach is very workmanlike: there is little in 
the way of directorial flair on display.

Surprisingly for a cast whose most prominent members are pre-teens, the 
acting in "The Philosopher's Stone" is quite good. Watson is charming as 
supercilious Hermione, and Grint is clearly having a lot of fun as Ron. 
Radcliffe faces a somewhat larger challenge, because Harry at this stage 
is a rather unformed personality (a theme of the novels is Harry coming 
into his own as both a person and a wizard). Nonetheless, he gives the 
audience a central figure to rally around, and holds much promise for 
future installments.

The supporting cast is mostly limited in their screentime in favour of 
enacting as much of the book as possible. Despite this, Coltrane has a 
wonderful comic turn as Hagrid and Alan Rickman is deliciously menacing as 
the sinister Professor Snape. Also keep an eye out for terrific cameos by 
John Hurt as wand-maker Ollivander and Leslie Phillips, who voices the 
enchanted Sorting Hat.

The biggest star of "The Philosopher's Stone" is its visual look, and 
Columbus and production designer Stuart Craig have outdone themselves in 
this capacity. This is a film which truly looks like a fantasy novel made 
real. The sets are magical and larger-than-life, but restrained enough to 
maintain a bearing on reality. The first glimpses of locales like Diagon 
Alley (where wizards go to shop) and Hogwarts Castle itself are genuinely 
mesmerising. Costume designer Judianna Makovsky is to be commended on her 
lavish creations, particularly the lush-looking robes worn at Hogwarts. 
Also noteworthy is the score, an unmistakable John Williams creation. 
Williams largely eschews bombastic strains for more subdued, entrancing 
arrangements which greatly enhance the fairy-tale-like feel of the movie.

The special effects are also largely successful. Wisely, much of the magic 
is kept fairly low-key, only taking on a grander appearance when the 
situation warrants it, such as a thrilling life-sized chess match in the 
final act. That said, there is the occasional misstep. For example, 
although the Quidditch game is exhilarating in a way that "The Phantom 
Menace"'s pod race never approached, the obviously computer-generated 
backgrounds (particularly noticeable against shots of the onlookers) do 
detract from the overall appearance of things.

Still, like the novel which inspired it, "Harry Potter And The 
Philosopher's Stone" is a wondrous experience. It will fire the 
imagination of youngsters and remind the adults of the inner child within 
each of us. I can hardly wait for the sequel.

Copyright © 2001 Shannon Patrick Sullivan.
Archived at The Popcorn Gallery,
  http://www.physics.mun.ca/~sps/movies.html

  |     Shannon Patrick Sullivan    |         [email-masked]          |       
  +---------------------------------+---------------------------------+
/  Doctor Who: A Brief History of Time (Travel)   go.to/drwho-history  \
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