You get dropped into the story a bit quickly and some of the secondary characters don't get developed very well, but for the most part, you needn't have read the book to follow the story. I saw this with several other people and I was the only one who had read the book.

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Personally, I feel that everything that appears on the screen is deliberate. The film has a wonderful, one-off, warm, magical feeling which is captivating audiences.

I saw this two and a half hour movie with loads of kids, some of them very small, and they were good as gold laughing and shrieking in all the right places.

All credit to DoP John Seale and his team, also the labs and the print graders.

"It's always better on the big screen".

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On a side note there was a few scenes cut out of the story such as other Quittich matches that would have added even more flavor but then who knows, it probably would not have fit on the platter.

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-Life is but a walking shadow, a poor player that walks, and struts its hour upon the stage, and then is heard no more. It is a tale told by an idiot. Full of sound and fury signifying nothing.

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The man with the magic hands.

So how did I like Harry Potter? I liked it but didn't love it. I thought
they did a fine job to excellent job of recreating the book for the screen.
But I like the density of the books better. I don't think the film robs one
of anything. The actors they use for every character were well chosen. But
the children do present a problem. The one they chose for Ron was perfect.
The actor they chose for Harry was just a bit flat and the actress they
chose for Hermione was just a bit too beautiful. The special effects were
good in that sort of Steven Spielberg/George Lucas sort of way but I found
them to be non important. The story is about the interactions between the
characters.

We went to a local Regal to see it, just because the showtime fit for us. The theatre was in shell-shock. Tickets were being sold inside at the pick-up desk, the concession stand looked like it had been wiped out of food, and it was obvious that second line staff were working. The auditorium stank, the five ads and five previews were tedious, but the film was presented well and the rugrats in attendance were totally silent during the entire film.
There were less than 20 people in the audience, but I'm sure it will do good turkey day business.

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I loved the photography and direction. Not having read the book I was very happy with the way they unfold the story. I don't think they hyped the stone enough, It didn't make me care enough if the stone was protedted or not. That aside I believe they made a blockbuster of a film. Did anyone notice how particular the print was, or how unobtrusive the reel changes were, absolutly the best 2 prints I've built up this year. It almost made me think the distributors cared.

I give it 4 stars for fun.

I waited a week after opening weekend to see this movie because I felt I would enjoy it the most seeing it in this particular auditorium of this particular theatre, in a somewhat less crowded atmosphere. Even during the second week, there were approximately 150 people in this showing, with the other smaller auditorium selling out.

I was well-pleased with the movie, and highly recommend it. I don't really understand why some people are making such a fuss over the wizardry that is the subject matter. I am a Christian and seeing this movie is not going to change my ideas and opinions about reality. People are forgetting that FICTION does not have to be related to reality. It's just a STORY, which is fictitious, and people should just see it as such, just as the monsters in Monsters, Inc. Why aren't the people making controversy over Harry Potter making a fuss over the monsters? Silly, isn't it.

Harry Potter had many great special effects. Of course, nearly all movies have computer-generated special effects of some sort. Having never read the "Harry Potter" book, I cannot comment on the movie vs. the book. The movie seemed a bit long to me, but I never got bored or impatient while watching.

Someone earlier asked about scenes that scared the kids. I remember the kids in the audience being disturbed the most by these three scenes:

1. In the restricted section of the library, the opening of one book revealed a screaming face that jumped out of the page.

2. The three-headed dog on top of the trap door attacking the kids

3. The snake-like vines the kids encountered after falling through the trap door.

The presentation was perfect. (Film done right). Regal River Oaks is the best place to find out how good 35mm film can look when presented well. In contrast to what some of you experienced at other theatres, even with crowds showing up, this theatre was very clean, both in the lobby and auditorium.

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Evans A Criswell
Huntsville-Decatur Movie Theatre Information Site