Such a frustrating disappointment

Pretty Good

I'll tell you why so serious

It's entirely possible that sending the audience out feeling lousy was intentional

I was sheltered as a kid by devout Lutheran parents. I was not allowed to see many movies and the Harry Potter movies was one of them. He uses witchcraft, which the Bible forbids using. However, I moved in with my Grandma and she let me watch it. I really liked it. I have only sat through it once but I enjoyed it. i do believe using witchcraft is wrong but for Pete's sake this is a FANTASY! Disney movies use magic and that was okay for me to see! I think this is fine, just have fun with it- I believe in God but I also believe that fake magic isn't going to hurt me-because I know not to use the real kind.

Much like the film in said title, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone seems to essentially be a nice kind of kiddy escapism flick into the world of magic, but like The Wizard of Oz, it still manages to be surprisingly touchy in a profoundly humanistic kind of way despite its far fetched story. I grew up with these series, and thought they were the greatest thing i have ever seen at the time. Now that i have grown older and judge all cinematic feats objectively, Sorcerer's Stone might have lost some of its figurative magic, but it is still an impressive and genuinely entertaining film. After having recently been through the torture of seeing the entire Twilight saga series, it is nice to see a film series such as Harry Potter that DOES actually have great writing and for the most part good acting, and manages to be believeable in the setting it provides. Dumbledore, who is the most important character in the film, and his dialogue with Harry in front of the mirror shows us that the film manages to still be relevant to actual family values and issues while subtly lying under its gorgeous magical cover. Visually the film is stunning due to the fact that the filmmakers wanted to give it that authentic look, resulting in many on location shots. The outdoor shot of the first time seeing Hogwharts is simply visual delight in what could have easily been an ugly CGI snoozefest. The great hall ( Which was not on location and actually built for the film ) is also fantastic visual beauty, and the high camera angles show us a great overview of the entire room while this is coupled with John Williams's fantastic score, which uses fantastic chords of joy and happiness in the light hearted scenes while still maintaining that ominous mystery feel in the darker scenes, such as the Unicorn search in the dark forest. Williams's score for this film is definitely one of the greatest in the history of film due to the fact that it captures the adventure, joy, mystery & evil of the film like no other. Its three main characters Harry, Ron & Hermione, who were ofcourse still very young child actors at the time, are surprisingly genuinely enthusiastic and natural about the happenings in the film, and while they will never be the true star of it, they definitely do not drag the film down. However, there are indeed fantastic acting performances in the film, especially by Alan Rickman ( Snape ) whose subtle slow way of speaking is intimidating in its own right, and Richard Harris ( Dumbledore ), who captures the wise and friendly aspect of his character as only Harris can, with his calm demeanor and naturally fatherly character, which only makes it sadder he passed away before the making of the Prisoner of Azkaban, as a Dumbledore as good as Richard Harris's will never be seen.The narrative of the film is great, with us slowly beginning to understand more about the plot as it unfolds. It doesn't insult any type of audience with obvious dialogue or flashbacks ( *Cough* Twilight * Cough* ) and instead lets the mystery unfold into logic on its own. All three main characters embody their characters perfectly as each is used to the best of their abilities throughout an event in the story, which will make sure none of them seem irrelevant, and all of them give a clear view of what they are like.It is a grandiose spectacle of visuals and magic, and while obviously lacking in real depth it is also a genuinely human story about an orphan ( Harry ) who finds friendship and courage through a series of brave events.

I was 31 when my mother gave my 7 y/o son the first 3 books. I was not happy with her but I grudgingly sucked it up and started reading this one to him at bedtime. It didn't take long before I was jostling him awake to innocently ask, "I didn't wake you did I? Do you want me to quit reading so you can go to sleep?" Of course, what kid is going to say yes? The movie is every bit as engaging as the book. This is an adaptation, you can't map every paragraph of the book to the show or every frame of the show to the book but there's nothing in the movie that should knock a fan of the book out of the fantasy. Yes, both are definitely meant for kids but they are surprisingly adept at capturing the wistful, adult mind, as well. It has fantastic FX, an outstanding cast AND if you lay back and relax, the humor's snare will pull you right in. I love the books and the movies. This is my favorite of the movies because this is where the wonder starts. It is a great show and I can watch it every couple of years.

Having read the first few Harry Potter books before 2001 and hearing about the hype for the first movie, I was excited. I heard there was going to be an all-British cast (which makes sense, right?) and we'd get to see a live version of one of the defining novels of our generation. From what I remember I went with my family and a family friend to see the movie the day after Christmas and was pleasantly amazed. After the movie was over, I watched the credits and discovered some familiar names (the late Alan Rickman, Sister Act's Maggie Smith, James Bond 007's Robbie Coltrane, and Star Wars' Warwick Davis); others not so familiar (the kids, some of whom had their debut). But it was a good movie and was a party of colors and sights for all to see. This is easily my favorite of all the Harry Potter films. The catalyst of the movie series!