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Harry Potter and the
Chamber of Secrets
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As Always, a review of The
Film and The DVD (extras)!
The Film:
With all due respect and admiration for
author J.K. Rowling, I found last year's theatrical release, Harry
Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, a disappointment. It was a
good film, yes, yet not the great one many anticipated.
Even more disappointing: my 6 year old nephew, who
at first loved everything "Harry Potter," came home from that
so-called "children's" film looking like he had seen a ghost (or, more directly, a man with
a demon face on the back of his head, screaming with pain and crumbling to
ashes). It was a visually stunning film for adults, yet in trying too hard
to be "mature," scared away the very children it was meant for.
In that respect, indeed, the movie failed.
Which brings us to Harry Potter and
the Chamber of Secrets; the second story in the Potter saga. Much
like the first film, there is a source of great wizardry power, which must
not get in the wrong hands! Trouble is; the very fact the Chamber door is ajar
is a bad thing, with many wizard students with "mug blood"
(mortal lineage) turning up one by one, "petrified" in place. Of course, Harry
is the hero who must find said secrets, defeat
the Big Villain responsible, and save the day.
Parents must once again take heed that this
is not a story for littler children. Be forewarned of: an army
of giant spiders craving fresh human meat, warnings written in blood, and
a giant snake which must be stabbed through its skull to kill it. Indeed,
most is as it was in the books, though there's a whole lot of
difference between the written word, and seeing such graphic imagery on screen.
Meanwhile, although comic relief is
attempted via
an overly-cute "house elf" named Dobby, his pratfalls feel gratingly saccharine.
Why, exactly, does he wish to continuously hit his head with a lamp?
Ironic, that this slapstick would only be humorous to the age group which, in
my opinion, are too young to see this picture.
Not that there isn't a fair share of
"magic" for adults, and much older children. The Quidditch match,
for one, is far more elaborate
and fun than the first film's. There is also a wizard's duel between Harry
and his
nemesis, Draco Malfoy, which is not quite as inspired as the bout between
Merlin and Madame Mim in Disney's Sword
in the Stone, yet is suspenseful nonetheless. My favorite moment,
though, would have to be when Ron gets an angry letter from home, only to have it come to
life
like some sort of agitated origami! That is the sort
of imaginative whimsy I came to this movie to see; not giant spider hordes
or "house elves" who bang their heads against lamps.
However, the big problem with the Potter
films --both, so far-- stem from a total disregard for film editing.
Consider Raiders of the Lost Ark. If done with the same
unedited plodding, someone would walk up to Indiana Jones and say,
"Hey, where'd you get that whip?...and that hat!" only to show
in detail how Indy went to "archeologist
alley," to choose the perfect whip, and the perfect fedora. Does
it matter? Consider that question when counting the minutes
before Harry even reaches
Hogwart's, as he slowly leaves his boring foster home once
again, returns to "Diagon Alley", and gets
in line for a book signing. This was a whole 25 minutes that needn't be told. I know fans will say that every part of the
books need be told, though come on now; a book signing...?
Casting is, as it was before, the best
trait of the film. All the
main cast, and director Chris Columbus, are back for another go. New
characters to the fold include Kenneth Branagh as Professor Lockhart,
excellently portrayed as the way-too-typical professor who knows less than
he thinks he does. Meanwhile, while Maggie Smith and Alan Rickman are only
in a scene or two, it is the late Richard Harris as Dumbledore (his final
film role), who offers the best acting of the whole film. Dumbledore is a
key role in the story, and Harris performs it brilliantly. It will be hard to
find someone as well suited as Harris was to the role.
Since the lead characters are Hermione,
Ron, and Harry, kudos must also go to the younger actors: Emma Watson,
Rupert Grint, and Daniel Radcliffe. Their shoulders hold the
heavy burden of keeping the majority of the 162-minute film rolling, and
they do a fine job. Even
when they fail to deliver a line as effectively as their veteran actor
"professors" would, they are far better in their craft than most
actors their age. Furthermore, Their fresh personalities in real life enhance the characters they play. It will be a pleasure to see them slowly grow up, as the saga progresses.
However, the scare factor of these films is
worth addressing. Yes, people will tell you that the story
is dark. However, need it be scary? No. In a Disney tale like The Lion
King, the story succeeds in being mature, gritty, and foreboding, yet
without scaring its young audience. Similarly, Harry
Potter's is a tale that can be dark, yet leave the nightmares at bay.
There is a certain "magic" to delivering thrills without
resorting to mild horror. These films have yet to achieve such
magic, and in a film about magic, that's a shame.
---Techtite
The DVD:
The biggest beef I had --and everyone else, I gather-- with the first
film's DVD was the whole falderal you had to go through to see the best
features. Every time you inserted the second DVD you'd have to go through
this whole "registration at Hogwarts" to see the deleted scenes.
This DVD presumes you already registered, I suppose, so there is no need
to go through any such falderal to see the hidden features. Jolly good. The
best such extras are of course the deleted and extended scenes. You may
wonder how many such scenes we're talking about. Would you believe...19?
Most of these are extensions more than deletions however, including: the
scene involving the cake floating onto a guest's head; Ron's first
attempts to fly his family car; at least two conversations with the wizard
students with "muggle's blood" (showing why Harry was a suspect,
because he was the last person they spoke to); and a quiddich match scene
when Harry nearly crashes into the crowd itself. There
are a few scenes among the extensions that are actually deleted scenes and
therefore, a real treat for fans. Scene #3 involves the strange shop Harry
transports to, when he asks to be sent "diagonally" instead of
Diagon Alley. It shows how that shop is even weirder than shown in the
film...and with the Malfoys as the shop's best customers. Scene #5 is an
alternate version of the same scene, where Draco and his father do not
come into the shop as Harry hides, though rather the shopkeeper accosts
Harry on his way out. This is evidence of how they must've filmed the same
scene at least three different ways (including the one shown in the film),
making it quite amusing to see how alternate versions of the same scene
play out. Other deleted scenes are
also worth noting here. Lockhart is shown giving a pop quiz, with
questions all about himself. Another scene is of people teasing Harry for
being a "Slitherin" in disguise, only to have him lament this
newfound possibility to Hermione and Ron. This scene leads to another
intriguing deletion involving a pair of gossiping classmates, and their
theories of Harry being the culprit for all the odd goings-on lately.
Granted, this doesn't even barely cover the full 19 deleted and extended
scenes offered, though it gives you a good idea of what's there. The
bonuses do not stop there, given that this is a two DVD set, with disc two
entirely filled with extras. Additional menu options include: interviews
with Daniel Radcliffe, Rupery Grint and Emma Watson (as well as other key
cast members); an interview with author J.K. Rowling herself (as well as
screenwriter Steve Kloves); a tour of various locations of the film
(including Diagon Alley and the Chamber of Secrets); a still gallery
filled with "Lockhart's memorabilia"; an animated timeline of
Hogwart's as known so far; and a bunch of mini-games allowing viewers to
attempt to escape the forest, as well as sneak into the Chamber of Secrets
itself. Not bad! Those lucky souls
with a DVD-ROM drive on their PCs get even more extras. In addition to the
debatable usage of making the DVD voice-controlled, there is also an even
better animated timeline, a cool "slider puzzle" challenge,
trading cards you can print out (cool!), jigsaw puzzles, and downloadable
screen savers. I've seen many DVDs whose DVD-ROM features are little more
than a link to the web site, which often has long since vanished in the
first place. This is a pleasant exception, with a lot of items that will
make owning a DVD drive worth it. In
the end, I'd say the DVD set is even better than the film itself! At the
bare minimum, it is imperative to buy/rent the DVD version far more than
the regular VHS version. Many people say that VHS is even going the way of
the water buffalo these days. DVD sets like this show why.
| All text, Title
graphics, and pix not of reviewed products, are created by Techtite,
copyright 1999-2001; all rights reserved. Picture of DVD cover is used only for the purpose of review (and to make shopping for
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