DISCLAIMER: I wound up wording this whole thing out like an actual, lengthy review, so for those who don't wanna read everything I left a TL;DR on the bottom.
Growing up on reluctantly attending book fairs and having a keen interest in other things, I never cared too much about Harry Potter in general and never understood the hype. Over the years, though, I've realized that hardly anyone I know hasn't seen the HP movies, so I decided to change that and see what I've been missing.
The Sorcerer's Stone isn't a blockbuster surprise that had me on the edge of my seat, but it's a thoroughly pleasant one that offers a ton of lore and some careful progression that makes it pretty easy to keep up with what's going on.
I liked a lot of things about HP&tSS. The slight mystery behind the true death of Harry's parents is handled pretty realistically and deliberately, with Hagrid frustratingly revealing to Harry what really happened to them, and later on with the film establishing an arch nemesis in Voldemort: the sole figure responsible for their demise.
World building, at least in hindsight considering where the franchise lies with today's society, is crucially important for a first film like this, and tSS nails this IMO. The set design - or at least the actual, non-CGI'd backgrounds and interiors - look incredible even for today's standards, and the classrooms and Hogwarts activities like Quidditch do a great job of illustrating the girth and expansiveness within the walls of Hogwarts. I like how it also doesn't distract from the film telling its story: the trio of Harry, Ron, and Hermoine really comes into its own as they cumulatively discover the fine arts of wizardry to varying degrees of success, and the supporting cast of professors and high-ranking wizards provide a sense of history and intrigue that must've made the wait for future sequels extremely enticing.
Casting is very well done, with some important roles being given to more than capable performers (Alan Rickman as Snape, Robbie Coltrane as Hagrid), and a grouping of kids who absolutely run away with the script. This has to be one of the most talented grouping of lead child actors in the history of film - from Daniel Radcliffe to Tom Felton as that little asshole Draco. It also helps that the script is self-aware about the kids themselves, as besides being very relatable, they're all pretty smart and perceptive without feeling like a bunch of arrogant geniuses who think they're a billion times better than non-wizards who have no clue what Hogwarts is.
Here's where I have some issues with the movie, however. One of my chief concerns with not just this film but with the series is with Harry himself. His arc is pretty straightforward, and it makes perfect sense for him to sort of breeze his way through classes because of his lineage. He's courageous and forward-thinking, and it's a breath of fresh air to watch a kid still have room to grow but confidently act on gained knowledge; thank GOD the film doesn't sit on its ass and wait until the final third to wake him up and say "hey kid, you're a Potter! Now go pull off all this wizard shit now because the movie's almost over and you have to now!"
Again, however, I don't believe film has an exact balance in this regard. Something about Harry's arc in this movie felt too linear. We're made aware early on with his foster family that he knows that he's special somehow, but there's no real sense of wonder when he gets to Hogwarts and realizes what he's capable of. He's still very young in this stage of the series, so I was hoping that there'd be at least a few growing pains stemmed from the excitement of falling into an entirely new lifestyle that welcomes him instead of punishes him for who/what he is. Instead, he kind of just "whatever"s into most skill-building scenarios, like the scene when he's learning to fly for the first time: there's no exciting struggle to command the broom, he just figures it out and goes "okay, let's get this asshole Draco to stop messing around". Too often, it feels as though he's too humble, which is fine in some respects because that's exactly how his character is drawn out in the beginning - but it made me wonder "How else can he develop as a character?" and it also removes a transparency that I think would make him more appealing to someone much younger than someone like myself.
Although I enjoyed the film, I had a difficult time seeing most kids Harry's age or younger really getting too enthralled with the movie because of things like that. It looks fascinating, but doesn't always act fascinating. Certain moments are handled pretty well and are entertaining, like the game of Quidditch against Sliverain, and the trio going after the Philosopher's Stone. But others lack comedic elements, or don't have the direction necessary for them to feel a bit more important - or even iconic in some cases (for example, Harry meeting Voldemort for the first time was very underwhelming IMO). I didn't laugh too much watching this film, either, and I wonder if that's a tonal decision by the screenwriters and J.K. Rowling herself, or if that's a tonal inconsistency altogether. There's so much more to take in as an adult, but a bit less so for the film's target audience - at least, in my own opinion.
TL;DR - Overall, this is a solid 8/10 movie for me despite its issues, because at the end of the day it plays much like a book come to life, with fully realized characters each with an arc slightly tearing at the seams. It's a thoroughly entertaining character study that doesn't fully realize the immersive, magical potential of Hogwarts, but does a great job shrouding it in mystery and intrigue. Voldemort is an interesting villain who's clearly at his lowest stage of power I'm assuming, and the trio of Harry/Ron/Hermoine is by far reason enough to come back for more. I wish the film tried to take itself a bit less seriously, and as well-written of a lead Harry is I didn't find him too endearing from the perspective of kids casually seeing this movie, or younger, pre-teen fans who may have read up on tSS before seeing this movie. Regardless, I'm happy I took time off to give this franchise a shot.
Submitted December 28, 2018 at 09:08AM by Hadu-Ken12 http://bit.ly/2Ai6kvI
No comments:
Post a Comment