HARRY POTTER AND THE SORCERER'S STONE (***½)
Developing a movie based on a novel is difficult, but making one based on a great novel can be like treading through a minefield. I am sure that is how Chris Columbus must've felt when he tackled the job of directing HARRY POTTER AND THE SORCERER'S STONE. There are so many ways in which this film could have disappointed loyal fans of this story, but if its $90 million dollar three-day opening take is any indication, I'd say that this story is dead on. I myself have not read any of the Harry Potter novels, but I've heard from so many people that many of the scenes, events, and characters in the movie are as exactly as they would've imagined it.
If you don't know what the novel's about already, it revolves around the experiences of a young boy named Harry Potter (duh!) played by Daniel Radcliffe of David Copperfield. He has been orphaned since early childhood and is raised by a cruel family (reminiscent of CINDERELLA) who let him sleep under a staircase. Upon turning eleven, he receives a blizzard of letter invitations to attend the Hogwart's school of witchcraft and wizardry. He is befriended by the friendly giant Hagrid (Robbie Coltrane of NUNS ON THE RUN) who reveals that he is a wizard just as his parents were. He then travels to Hogwart where he meets his new magical friends (try not to laugh when I say that) in Ron Weasley (Rupert Grint) and Hermione Granger (Emma Watson). It is at Hogwart where receives his occult education while trying to unravel the mystery of his parents' killer, which is of course tied to a mystical item called the sorcerer's stone.
One of the things that astounded me most as a movie buff was the casting. I dare say that all of the actors chosen for this film were British (so is the story's author), so the quality of acting was secure. But the choice of actors was perfect! Rarely will you get in one movie some of the great actors filmdom has ever seen. Robbie Coltrane has always been a capable actor of comedic and heartfelt performances. Richard Harris (GLADIATOR) plays Headmaster Albus Dumbledore who seems to be the wisest and most powerful wizard around. Maggie Smith (A ROOM WITH A VIEW) is the strict yet caring deputy headmistress Minerva McGonagall. Alan Rickman (RASPUTIN, DIE HARD), another one of my favorites, plays the suspicious Professor Severus Snape (Try to watch him stretch out every line until you think it snaps but still staying in character). There are also wonderful cameos by John Hurt (THE ELEPHANT MAN, CONTACT) and the legendary comedian John Cleese (of MONTY PYTHON fame). None of their performances are Academy Award material, but they enable the realization of every single character due to each rich performance. It is so rare to find movies were every character is important and memorable at the same time. X-MEN had plenty of characters, but only three stood out. Everyone here is detailed and vivid in personality, so we can clearly single out who's who and what they may be up to, from the goblins right down to the ghosts. Even the child actors do a very good job by playing their characters... well... like ordinary kids!
The film itself is a wonder. It is so refreshing to find an adventure movie that takes its time to be good and not to hammer away its special effects. It carefully builds its characters and doesn't rush to deliver snappy lines nor mush up to dictate sentimental lines. Harry Potter is saturated with atmosphere. I absolutely loved Diagon Alley, where Harry Potter makes his preparations before leaving for the Hogwart's school (there's also a good joke on broomsticks I'm sure witches would love). The bank where goblins administer riches, the store where wizards are "chosen" by their wands, the tavern where magical characters meet, and the 9 & 3/4 train platform where all superbly visualized. And that's just in the first half! The Hogwart's School's staircases, dungeons, library, dark forest, chess pieces, paintings, mirrors, and Quidditch stadium are all fantastic. You cannot watch the Quidditch competition (which is exhilarating and the best part of the movie) without finding comparisons to the speedbike battles in RETURN OF THE JEDI.
Although the special effects involving the film's creatures are visually impressive, one small item I did not like was how most of these creatures have been taken from other fictional planes and have been integrated to a world of J. K. Rowling's creation (this may seem like more of a book critique than a film critique but I can't help it). Consider the existence of dragons (from Arthurian legend or Chinese mythology), a monstrous three-headed dog (reminiscent of Cerberus the guardian of Hades in Greek mythology), and goblins (Western folklore), in the same story. Their coexistence does not make sense, but of course the Harry Potter novels are not intended to make sense, but to inspire and to enrich one's values. J. K. Rowling has a great storytelling style but the originality of creatures hardly passes (that's why I can't wait for depth and complexity that I hope to experience from THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING from THE LORD OF THE RINGS trilogy). Some have complained that the movie doesn't really capture the book's essence, but what movie adaptation ever has? Comparing movies and books are like comparing apples and oranges. Both are unique storytelling styles, and HARRY POTTER happens to be excellent at both, by telling all kids that every one of them is special, even if they don't know it.
Chris Columbus has specialized in mainstream family entertainment (though most of them shallow) in his film career (HOME ALONE, MRS. DOUBTFIRE, STEPMOM, and BICENTENNIAL MAN). But this is clearly his best work and will go way beyond his past successes. Though no matter how well he has crafted this fantastic tale, I still can't consider this picture great. A great movie from a great novel, has to find it's own soul as a film, away from the original story (E.g. 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY, SCHINDLER'S LIST, THE GODFATHER). Some critics have accused Mr. Columbus of being too faithful to the novel, and I tend to agree. But due to the massive success of the Harry Potter novels, I cannot imagine how anyone else could have done better. The director has proven to be loving and loyal to the original story and in the end, that is more than enough. It's the best adventure told this year.
Posted by FLIPCRITIC at November 24, 2001 12:00 AM