Harry Potter 1-3 (DVD Reviews)

"Nice punch" "Thanks"

just finished my Harry Potter marathon. i'm well into the forth book, and when i had finished the third book, i had the extreme urge to revisit the movies. i know some people who are refusing to see the movies until the books are finished, but that's just stupid talk. anyway, i came across 2 and 3 easy in the video stores but Philosopher's Stone (Sorceror's Stone to philistines) was proving harder to track down. apparently, it's a popular title to steal. my online rental place had it, but that could take months to show up. finally, i found a store that had it, but it was out. time to get a new membership and put it on hold. i went to sydney and when i came back, found out the video store had called but were only keeping it until 6pm that night. it was 9pm. crickey! i hot-footed it down there and looked on the shelf. nothing. i asked the bod behind the counter. nothing. the bod asked the boss. she knew where it was. god bless her.
now i had all three to watch. HP1. i nearly shat myself. it was pan&scan. there was a great (well, mild, really) uproar when HP1 was released locally way back because it was pan&scan and not widescreen. they eventually released it later on, but i think most video stores that would have it, would have the p&s version. so, unless i was going to go out and buy it (no, and more on that later) i was stuck with this. this an ok adapation of an ok book. clearly, people are trying to find their feet, and the first book is a really quick, light read, so not big deal. the director, chris columbus has shown a nice light touch (see esp. his first directorial effort, Adventures in Babysitting for his best film) in the past, and makes an assured, if no great shakes, film. the newcomers, are ok, though would prove far more later on down the track. all of the support cast, fit into their roles superbly. esp. robbie coltrane, maggie smith, alan rickman and richard harris. technically, the film is also solid, without being outstanding. the effects are ok, if a little sloppy sometimes and the quiddich match is rubbish compared to what they would later achieve. the extras on disc 2 are slim to say the least, with only the Rowling/Steve Kloves interview a standout. Kloves is perhaps the unsung hero of these films (at least up til HP4 until he leaves the franchise) and how he managed to distill these gargantuan novels into 2.5hr movies is pure magic. the deleted scenes while worthwhile, are impossible to find unless you know where to look. easter eggs why oh why?
HP2 shows everyone (cast and crew) making a definite improvement over part 1. the acting is more assured by the young leads, the support are as realiable as usual, the direction is tighter and moodier and the effects infinetly more compelling. just look at the superb quiddich and you'll see what i mean. kenneth branagh makes a fine addition to the cast as dandy Gilderoy Lockhart, as does Jason Isaacs as the menacing Lucius Malfoy. extras this time are slightly better with easier to find deleted scenes, some interviews and behind the scenes footage.
the filmmakers made a wise decision into casting Alfonso Cuaron as director of HP3. no offense to Chris Columbus, but Cuaron has a much more assured hand at creating a painterly image and elicits much stronger performances from the lead trio. everything else is becoming predictably perfect. david thewlis and gary oldman make outstanding debut characters, both as father figures for Harry. Michael Gambon makes a solid (yet different) debut as Dumbledore, although somewhere deep down I feel that Richard Harris interpretation of the role was dead spot on - somehow he created such warmth and love with just the twinkle of an eye. i wish michael good luck in making the role his own in the coming films. technically, this film is as outstanding as the rest, even more so. the dementors are frighteningly realised, buckbeak the hippogriff is beautifully graceful and the time travelling sequence is a personal highlight (so is hermione decking malfoy). my only complaint (and its minor) is that the quiddich game is given short-thrift (compared to the great game in part 2). once again, kloves is the hero of the film, much of the spine of the book is removed and yet nothing seems to be missing. once again, the extras are improved: there's deleted scenes again and some featurettes, but the highlight (stupid shrunken head butting in, notwithstanding) is the 40 odd minutes of interviews with most of the cast (Radcliffe, Watson, Grint, Thewlis, Oldman, Griffiths, Shaw et al). i hate to sound like a broken record but oldman & thewlis is the highlight simply because they are such great thesps and they clearly had fun in their roles. bring on goblet of fire.
now i guess my biggest complaint (which I hope will be addressed once the last film is made) is that these instant classics are being given such short-thrift service in the DVD packages. what these films need is the ol' Lord Of The Rings touch. we need longer versions, less games, more interviews, less easter eggs, more video diaries, you get my drift?