Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets Movie
From LoveToKnow Sci-Fi
Director: Christopher Columbus
Screenplay by: Steven Kloves
Genre: Adventure/Family/Fantasy/Mystery
Released: November 2002
Rating: PG for mild language, scary moments and creature violence
Runtime: 161 minutes
One year after the release of the first Harry Potter film, the second, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets opened to tightly packed theaters all over world. Hungry for more magical action and the thrill of seeing their favorite boy wizard come alive on screen, fans of J.K. Rowling's best-selling novels made this film a blockbuster during the 2002 holiday season.
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets Plot
Ah, another year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and another year full of peril for Harry Potter and his friends Ron and Hermione. All around the castle people are being petrified, literally turned into stone-like monuments by an unseen force and poor Harry has the misfortune of being in the wrong place at the wrong time on more than one occasion. It doesn't help matters that Harry seems to be fluent in the language of the snakes, a gift that "He Who Must Not Be Named" also possessed; this has the other students even more suspicious. In order to clear his name, Harry and his friends embark upon a quest to discover the truth about the "Chamber of Secrets" and save their school and the entire wizarding world from a terrible fate.
Chamber of Secrets Film Adaptation Notes
Keeping in mind that this is Hollywood Harry Potter there are scenes that seem to serve only one of two purposes -- pleasing the well read audience or establishing the importance of certain characters and events. These seemingly "pointless" and "lengthy" scenes are essential to the story of Harry Potter, however, because they put him in the right place at the right time to learn the secrets of who is behind the attacks; redundancy is what becomes the issue in the film adaptation.
For someone who hasn't read the book watching Ron try to use his broken wand time and time again will seem to serve comedic purposes that only children can truly enjoy. One has to wonder why his family can't afford to replace such an important item to a boy in wizard school. It's the little things like Ron's broken wand that seem so unimportant at times, but serve a larger purposes later on that are repeated relentlessly, as if people won't make the connections otherwise.
Cinematography & Sound
The dramatic landscapes of Hogwarts continue to put a smile on the face and a jump in the heart of every fan. Overall the movie has a bit of a "worn" feeling, like your older sibling's sweater that gets handed down to you, but it's the one you liked the most so you're happy to have it as your own. Effects are, for the most part, seamlessly integrated into the live action, but this movie is not without its less than amazing effects. I would have liked to see a completely computer animated Phoenix instead of the obviously fake model bird used in the scenes with the actors. The mechanical model rips away the fantasy that everything is real and looks like a Disneyland attraction rather than a Hollywood effect for a blockbuster movie.
Sound and music are of the same great quality in Chamber of Secrets as they are in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. Playfully eerie melodies float through the halls and danger music never gets in the way of the actual danger. Effects are clean and sharp, fun to hear and act as the cherry on top of an already great listening experience.
Performance
There are a few new faces around Hogwarts this year and casting was spared no expense to bring the very best to the screen. Harry Potter casting agents seems to have a knack for finding the perfect actor. Kenneth Branagh's portrayal of Professor Gilderoy Lockhart was flawless and while some of his scenes were among the redundant, his performance was not.
The child actors returning to the film not only look older, but are visually more comfortable in their roles and it enhances their performances a great deal. They are still children, though they are children on a set with great adult performers and that is saying something.
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets Final Thoughts
As with the first movie, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets is a movie for the fans. It is more likely that the franchise will continue to appeal a fan base that has so far been very loyal to Harry Potter at the box office. If you're not into the books, you won't be into the movies, but if you are into the books...
While this film carries the same charm and allure of the first movie it's a little like vanilla ice-cream - enjoyable, but nothing you haven't tasted before. Sprinkles in the form of new creatures to see and new characters to meet on screen make things taste a little better, but the best tasting treats will come with age when Harry Potter and his friends are older, wiser, and have left the innocence of childhood behind for the enlightenment and angst of being teenagers.
Harry Potter Links
Related Fantasy Links
- Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets book
- Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone Movie
- Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban Movie
- The Golden Compass of the His Dark Materials fantasy book series
- Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince book
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