The next installment in the Harry Potter series finds young wizard Harry Potter (DANIEL RADCLIFFE) and his friends Ron Weasley (RUPERT GRINT) and Hermione Granger (EMMA WATSON) facing new challenges during their second year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry as they try to uncover a dark force that is terrorizing the school. Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: SCI-FI/FANTASY Rating:&nb
The next installment in the Harry Potter series finds young wizard Harry Potter (DANIEL RADCLIFFE) and his friends Ron Weasley (RUPERT GRINT) and Hermione Granger (EMMA WATSON) facing new challenges during their second year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry as they try to uncover a dark force that is terrorizing the school.
First sequels are the true test of an enduring movie franchise, and Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets passes with flying colors. Expanding upon the lavish sets, special effects, and grand adventure of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, Harry's second year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry involves a darker, more malevolent tale (parents with younger children beware), beginning with the petrified bodies of several Hogwarts students and magical clues leading Harry (Daniel Radcliffe), Ron (Rupert Grint), and Hermione (Emma Watson) to a 50-year-old mystery in the monster-laden Chamber of Secrets. House elves, squealing mandrakes, giant spiders, and venomous serpents populate this loyal adaptation (by Sorcerer's Stone director Chris Columbus and screenwriter Steve Kloves), and Kenneth Branagh delightfully tops the supreme supporting cast as the vainglorious charlatan Gilderoy Lockhart (be sure to view past the credits for a visual punchline at Lockhart's expense). At 161 minutes, the film suffers from lack of depth and uneven pacing, and John Williams' score mostly reprises established themes. The young, fast-growing cast offers ample compensation, however, as does the late Richard Harris in his final screen appearance as Professor Albus Dumbledore. Brimming with cleverness, wonderment, and big-budget splendor, Chamber honors the legacy of J.K. Rowling's novels. --Jeff Shannon
Customer Reviews:
Avg. Customer Rating: 4.5 / 5.0
Book drags it down:
I think this is one of the least successful Harry Potter movies, but's mainly the book's fault. Rowling was trying to copy the success of PHILOSOPHER'S STONE, but hadn't figured out how to scale it up to a big series yet. So once again we have a story that ends up with
(1) Harry and a best friend figuring out how to get in a trap door
(2) The best friend getting waylaid halfway through and sending Harry away.
(3) Harry confronting an evil wizard underground. Other problems: To... more info
Better than I expected.:
The box arrived on time and in perfect condition. The artwork is beautiful and the extra material is very addicting. I cannot wait for the other movies!
More of the good stuff 2:
Again, like the first one, it has more info on the 2nd disc that makes it interesting. Love it.
Replacing VHS:
I got this for my Fiancé for Christmas to replace her old VHS. She was really happy to finally have the DVD copy. It was shipped quickly and for free since it was from Amazon and I was signed up for the free shipping thing. You might want to look into that if you buy a lot! I think it was something like $75 for the year for free shipping for everything from Amazon and you can usually find whatever you want from them and get free shipping and if it's $5 each time that will add up quickly!
