Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's StoneIs the big-screen Harry Potter as delightful as the one in the book? And should you be worried about his witchcraft? Critics and viewers respond.By Jeffrey Overstreet |
posted 11/26/2009
2 of 5
It is indeed quite a long haul. (My review is at Looking Closer.) Near the end, Professor Dumbledore opens a ceremony saying, "It's hard to believe that a year has passed!" and I heard a few chuckles in the audience. The matinee began at 1:40 p.m. I checked my watch, only to realize that the Stone named in the title was not even mentioned until 3:30 p.m.! Perhaps the movie should be renamed The Many Expressions of Harry Potter. The film introduces us to a vast cast of characters and important magical objects, and for each one the camera zooms in on Harry's reaction—puzzlement, happiness, semi-wicked glee, astonishment. Harry is so busy reacting that we don't get to know him. That's too bad.
In the books, Harry taps into our longings for identity and family. In the hands of a director with greater vision, Big-Screen Harry could have done the same thing. But the movie's in too big a hurry. Harry is reduced to a wide-eyed cipher, looking about at characters far more interesting, witty, and surprising than him.
And what a colorful crew they are. Most enchanting of all is Hermione, the brainy girl who befriends him. Her cocksure attitude makes her a big-screen cousin to Princess Leia. She's played by Emma Watson, one of many young talents making an impressive debut here. Veteran actors John Hurt (Alien) and Alan Rickman (Die Hard, Galaxy Quest) almost steal the movie with brief but vivid scenes and over-the-top delivery. And it is uncanny how perfectly the character of Hagrid fits Robbie Coltrane—he's burly, brusque, and prone to blunders, and he brings the film much-needed energy and personality.
But these fine performances are nearly buried by Columbus's predictable direction and an overbearing, relentless soundtrack. Columbus's style is not distinct; he's content to resemble Spielberg, slow-zooming toward every gaping youngster. (It's then that you remember, ah yes, he directed Home Alone.)
Potter brings out the worst in composer John Williams. His overdramatic, redundant themes are catchy, but they're just variations on his earlier work: Schindler's List (the main theme is only a few notes different), Star Wars, Indiana Jones, and, above all, Hook. At times the music drowns out action and even dialogue.
Still, there are enough good laughs and enthralling environments to make this film worthwhile. Steve Kloves' script highlights the wit of each character. Gorgeous sets are decorated with delightful details even in shadowy corners. People in the portraits on Hogwarts' walls move, just as they do in the book, and some are hauntingly beautiful. The children have good chemistry. I look forward to seeing them grow up in the sequels … which, by the way, are already being produced.
Will watching it lead your kid into the devil's clutches?
The American Library Association's Office for Intellectual Freedom reports that J.K. Rowling's books were the most frequently challenged books in the United States last year. The references to spells and curses are stirring up many conservative communities; some have even hosted book burnings in church parking lots.
The conservative Traditional Values Coalition issued a press release titled Is Harry Potter a Harmless Fantasy or a Wicca Training Program? Its supporters are encouraging a boycott of Sears and Coca-Cola for posting Potter-related ads.
But practitioners of Wicca deny any connection, according to Focus on the Family. "If somebody wanted to pick up the book and do the things in it, it wouldn't be witchcraft," says a Wicca practitioner.
Religious-media critics have a variety of opinions about the magic in Harry Potter. Michael Elliott recommends something different than a boycott. "Forbidding our children to see the film will not protect them from the influence exerted upon them from this cultural phenomenon. We must … be open and honest with our children regarding the negative attributes of the wizardry which the Harry Potter world depicts as being so appealing."
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