By: Orianna Gallia
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (2001) directed by Chris Columbus does a fantastic job keeping the viewer hooked. It is great seeing the cast working so well together and keeping the magic throughout the series alive. Whilst some people may have enjoyed the movie, others may not be able to see it due to some content that may be too gory for younger viewers to watch.
To recap the movie, it starts by introducing us to the main character, Harry Potter (Daniel Radcliff) as a baby. His parents were killed by the main antagonist, Voldemort (Ralph Fiennes), therefor leading Harry to be sent off to his uncle’s house. Once day when Harry turns eleven, he is approached by a strange man, Rubeus Hagrid (Robbie Coltrane), and he is told, “Yer a wizard Harry,” Hagrid then takes Harry to go to a school for witches and wizards called, “Hogwarts.” Hogwarts is where Harry meets some of his closest friends like Hermione Granger (Emma Watson) and Ron Weasley (Rupert Grint), but also some of his worst enemies like Draco Malfoy (Tom Felton).
Harry and his friends go from class to class, getting in tons of trouble when they wander into a mysterious room, with a chamber that is guarded by a three-headed dog named Fluffy. The kids want to go into the chamber to find out what fluffy is guarding, but along the way, they come across problem after problem. When they finally make it to where the Sorcerer’s Stone is found, Ron and Hermione must stay back, leaving Harry by himself to retrieve it. Harry knows he must get it because he senses that something will happen if it gets into the wrong hands.
The Sorcerer’s Stone was created to extend the holders lifespan and turn any metal into pure gold. When Harry goes to get it, he encounters Professor Quirrell (Ian Hart), whose body is taken over by Lord Voldemort. Harry and Voldemort go through a vicious battle to obtain the stone, but since Voldemort cannot touch Harry, Harry melts off Quirrell’s face and releases Voldemort from his body, leaving Harry with the Stone. Harry later goes back to his friends and professors, and all is well in the wizarding world…at least until the next movie.
While the movie may be long and not for everyone, like I said before, the whole series of these movies are wonderful, and they never leave you waiting for more action. Everything about the movie just goes so well together, and it was genuinely hard to find a negative to say about any of these movies. As someone who went from never wanting to watch or read Harry Potter, I gave it a try and I truly fell in love with the series. I highly recommend this movie series to anyone who loves an adventure!