30 Second Bottom Line: On his eleventh birthday, Harry Potter, a boy with very special powers and destined for greatness, is swept away from his horrible adoptive family and enters the world of sorcerers and magicians at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
Story Line: In the most normal of neighborhoods, an entirely typical looking ten-year-old lives with a horrid family. They accommodate him, Harry Potter (Daniel Radcliffe), their adopted burden, in a little cupboard-type room under the stairs where when he is any trouble at all they simply bolt him in and don't feed him for a week or so. Their own son is perfect in their eyes-wretched in ours.
We soon experience some of Harry Potter's special powers when the family visits the zoo and Harry's cousin gets magically and deservedly tossed behind a glass barrier and lands in a snake's pond. The parents blame Harry-somehow they know he is different from normal people and they hate him terribly for being different.
Suddenly an onslaught of mail, delivered by owls, begins appearing for Harry. This is a shocking occurrence to his family. Why would Harry get mail? The only answer is very threatening to them, so the family moves to a lighthouse in the middle of the roughest seas. But to no avail! Immediately, at midnight on Harry's eleventh birthday, a huge but friendly wizard named Hagrid arrives to inform him he is a wizard and will now be attending Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Harry doesn't hesitate a second and gleefully departs with Hagrid (Robbie Coltrane). Hagrid who must be 8 feet tall and hairy as a bear takes itty-bitty Harry by the hand as they shop for Harry's essentials for school. Wand, uniform, owl, it's a magical shopping spree in a magical mysterious part of London. They make a most intriguing visit to the Gringott Bank where little elves with gruesome faces guard over the gold. It turns out Harry's parents left him piles of it. They were wonderful, love-filled wizards who were destroyed by the essence of evil wizardry, Lord Voldemort.
Hagrid now gives Harry his train pass, for track 9 ¾, to get to his new school. Harry, scared and alone, manages to find this mystical track and off he goes with a train full of budding wizards. When the train comes to its final stop, the new students get into rowboats and in the darkest of night approach a most sinister and magnificent lighted castle perched high on cliffs rising from the sea.
The first step for the new students is to become a member of one of four houses or teams that make up the school. Harry is chosen for Gryffindor House, as are two of his new acquaintances from the train: Hermione Granger (Emma Watson) and Ron Weasley (Rupert Grint). The three become a team that faces terrifying troubles and adventures, all in the name of goodness. Their archrival is fellow student Draco Malfoy (Tom Felton), member of the ominous Slytherin House. Harry and his buddies soon learn there are good wizards and bad, and real mortal dangers lurking throughout their new school.
Tell Me More About It: The production qualities are breathtakingly beautiful, intriguing and convincing. Visually this film is a tremendous hit. The section of London where Hagrid and Harry shop beckons a visit. The school, outside and in, is full of intrigue and magic. The moving staircases, the three-headed vicious dog, and the moving chess pieces are works of magical art.
The film is also a very tight reflection of the story line from J.K. Rowling's book of the same name. Since almost everyone has read the book, audiences will be satisfied that the best episodes were not left out. In fact, every episode from the book seems to have been included.
All of the acting is good, some of it deserves special accolades: Hagrid I loved, Hermione is superb; Professor McGonagall (Maggie Smith) is wonderful.
My hesitation with the movie is that it has less heart and spirit than the book. I would have wanted more even if there had been no book. I felt the scenes were a little crammed in to accommodate every episode from the book. I can't help comparing it to The Wizard Of Oz, and it is not in that league. Where Oz gets me into the heart and soul of Dorothy, and her traveling band of lovable misfits, Potter keeps the adventures high but leaves the emotional connection more on the surface.
I'm sure this film will be a big hit, as will its sequel, but I think it will be hard for people to absolutely fall in love with it. It keeps us at a distance and that makes its 2 and ½ hour run a little long. I loved the book and expected to love the movie. Though it's certainly worth seeing, it's just not a four-star holiday classic like "The Wizard of Oz."
DVD
