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Traveta reviews
(Widescreen Version)
Warner Home Video
- Cert: PG
- Cat.no: 22467
- Running time: 152 minutes
- Year: 2001
- Pressing: 2002
- Region(s): 1, NTSC
- Chapters: 35
- Sound: Dolby Digital 5.1
- Languages: English, Spanish
- Subtitles: English, Spanish
- Widescreen: 2.35:1
- 16:9-Enhanced: Yes
- Macrovision: No (!)
- Disc Format: 2 * DVD 9
- Price: $26.98
- Extras:Never Before Seen Footage, interviews, theatrical trailers, tonsof interactive features and DVD ROM supplements.
Director:
- Chris Columbus
Screenplay:
- Steven Kloves
Cast:
- Harry Potter: Daniel Radcliffe
Hermione Granger: Emma Watson
Ron Weasley: Rupert Grint
Albus Dumbledore: Richard Harris
Hagrid: Robbie Coltrane
Professor McGonagall: Maggie Smith
Professor Snape: Alan Rickman
Draco Malfoy: Tom Felton
Harry Potteris another series of novels to get adapted into a movie.Everyone knew it would happen eventually. What tookLord of the Ringsfifty years to get made, talks were already taking place when the firstnovel hit shelves. It was also guarenteed to be a hit as well attheaters and ultimately at home.
You’d have to be living under a rock for a few years to not know theplot to the series. Either that or you don’t read or you just think theseries is for kids. True the books have a kiddie feel to them butthere’s a lot there for adults too.
Anyway, this movie is an adaptationof the first novel (called the Philosopher’s Stone everywhere else) andbasically sets everything up for the impending sequels. Harry is a boythat lives with his evil Uncle and Aunt who keep him locked under thestairs. They have a son named Dudley who terrorizes Harry of course.
One day Harry begins to get letters addressed to him from a place calledHogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry. Tons of letters flow intothe house until they get away to a remote location. Suddenly in themiddle of the night, they are awoken by a man named Hagrid. He tellsHarry that he is actually a wizard and that his parents were wizards aswell. Harry eventually believes him and they go off to get supplies forhis school year as a wizard. Eventually they end up at Hogwarts and,thus, the school year begins. The movie takes us through an entire yearwhile Harry and his friends Ron and Hermione discover a conspiracy afootinvolving the Sorcerer’s Stone.
I’ve read all of the books and even though the first was not my favorite(Azkaban gets that liberty) the movie made me like it more. If thisfilm told a story of any old school it would be long and boring, butHogwarts is a very cool place with it’s ghosts and lessons. Paintingsare animated, staircases move and a game called Quidditch (sort of likehockey with flying broomsticks) is played.
Even at 152 minutes the storynever seems to drag. If this movie is any indication then the sequelswill be great. Chamber of Secrets is due on November 15, 2002 andPrisoner of Azkaban is due in 2004. All the books will probably beadapted by 2010 or a little later.
Into the disc. A seperate full frame version is available but this filmis presented in 2.35:1 so you would be missing a lot. Warner has done agood job of putting the two and a half hour movie onto one disc. Minorpixelization can be noticed only in the darkest scenes but the colorsare sharp. Shots of the sky during Quidditch look great and clear. Overall,a good transfer.
The sound is good too. well. English and Spanish 5.1 tracks are includedand fit the movie well.
Now here’s where the DVD falls short of being nearly perfect. You haveto PLAY GAMES to get to the deleted scenes! You have to find DiagonAlley, go to Gringotts and get money then do a bunch of crap to findthem! The interviews and trailers are accessible right off the bat buteverything else is all interactive with no indication of what to do.
I never did find the deleted scenes. I even tried just skipping to thetitle of where they are. The VHS version has them right after the movie.This is the first time I have ever been jealous of VHS. Warner isrumored to be bringing a special edition out sometime with more adultfriendly features like commentaries, deleted scenes, a longer cut of thefilm, and everything that should have been here. Talk about dropping theball.
Overall, Harry Potter is given a good DVD that is seriously hampered bythe extras. I would have probably given it a perfect score if it weren’tfor this. I think I mentioned how much I hate the extras in some otherreviews as well. But if you don’t care about supplements and just wantthe film then I’d definitely recommend it.
PICTURE QUALITY
SOUND QUALITY
EXTRAS
OVERALLEmailTraveta
Reviewer of movies, videogames and music since 1994. Aortic valve operation survivor from the same year. Running DVDfever.co.uk since 2000. Nobel Peace Prize winner 2021.