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Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
(2002)
Starring: Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint
Director: Chris Columbus
Synopsis: Second series film, adapted from J.K. Rowling's kid-lit phenomenon of the same name, wherein boy wizard Harry and his pals Ron and Hermione meet an odd elf named Dobby, investigate mysterious petrifications at Hogwarts, and deal with a new, self-absorbed Dark Arts teacher. (Warner Bros.)
Runtime: 161 minutes
MPAA Rating: PG - for scary moments, some creature violence and mild language.
Genres:
Family, Kids, Sci-Fi/Fantasy
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Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (Widescreen)(2 DVD Set) |
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Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2 DVD Set) |
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Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets [CC] |
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Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (Spanish Dubbed) |
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Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets |
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Reel Review DVD Review Critics Roundup
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002)(Widescreen)(2 DVD Set)
 J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter books became a worldwide phenomenon for the same reason Shrek and Monsters, Inc. minted money; they entrained adults as much as kids. That was also true of the first Harry Potter movie, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, which captured the whimsical-yet-spooky spirit of Rowling's book, whisking audiences away to northern England to follow the titular wizard's freshman year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
The same can't be said for Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, which sends the series spiraling downward like Ron Weasley's (Rupert Grint) aeronautically challenged pet owl. Addled by the first film's massive box office, infamous director Chris Columbus (Home Alone, Bicentennial Man) returns to his old pandering ways, prying responses from audiences with musical cues and pauses for laughter.
Unfortunately, there's precious little of that commodity on hand in Chamber, which starts off with Harry (Daniel Radcliffe) being told by Dooby, a computer-generated "house elf" and grating Gollum rip-off, that he must not return to Hogwarts. However given the alternative—life with the Dursleys, a foster family so despicable, they make the Helmsleys look like the Waltons—the young wizard hoofs it, absconding back to school in Ron's father's flying car.
Judging by John Williams' insistently perky score, the extended sequence of Ron and Harry driving wildly around in the sky is meant to inspire "oohs" and "aahs." "Blahs" are more likely, since, like the rest of the film's first half, it's about as exciting as putting on a hat. There's a little bit of flavor, thanks to the introduction of the self-promoting mage Gilderoy Lockhart (a perfectly pompous Kenneth Branagh) and the sinister Lucius Malefoy (perennial baddie Jason Isaacs).
Chamber is a turgid mystery about the titular hidey-hole, which contains a monster that will rid Hogwarts of all muggle-born students (i.e. those from non-wizard families). The tedium is broken only by an overblown Quidditch match, a wand-fencing duel between Lockhart and semi-villain Severus Snape (a bored-looking Alan Rickman) and some nice moments with loveable giant Hagrid (the always superb Robbie Coltrane). It's not until about an hour and a half in that anything interesting develops, with the brooding tone building to a reasonably spooky climax that's spoiled only by the following ham-fisted triumphalism. Alas, Chamber of Secrets takes the spell Sorcerer's Stone cast on audiences of all ages and turns it into a 153-minute curse for adults.
While nowhere near as enchanting as its predecessor, Chamber of Secrets does have considerably more magic on DVD. Whereas many of the extras on the Stone DVD could only be viewed by playing the various kids' games—a feature that drove the grown-ups who actually paid for the disc insane—Chamber allows them to be accessed directly.
The first disc of this two-DVD set features the film itself, along with "Year One at Hogwarts," a Potter primer for newbies, cast and crew bios, and the theatrical trailer. (The sole gripe is that you have to wait through several seconds of bells and whistles until you actually get to the menu). The majority of goodies are on the second DVD, which features a menu layout modeled on a wizard's desk; you can pull scrolls out of holes, wander into Lockhart's adjacent study (which contains some very amusing factoids about the character, including his diplomas and bestsellers), or just watch the animated portrait of surly Hogwarts steward Argus Filch (David Bradley) look agitated, doze off, play with his cat, or react to your various actions.
Disc two also contains a plethora of interviews. Younger fans of the film can play entertainment journalist in the "Students" section of the interview, which allows the user to lob softball questions like "how has your character changed?" at stars Radcliffe, Grint, Emma Watson, and others. The "Professors" section offers more straightforward sound bites from the adult cast members; at less than 30 seconds each they're too short to be called interviews. Fans of the books should enjoy the 15-minute discussion between Rowling and screenwriter Steve Kloves about adapting Chamber. She goads him for truncating her work; he admits he couldn't stuff all her detailed character shading in, much as he would have liked to.
Other features include 19 deleted scenes, most of which are merely extensions of already longish sequences like the Quidditch match. Much more fun are the series of "tours," which consists of long tracking shots through locations such as Daigon Alley, the Forbidden Forest, and the Chamber of Secrets itself. These are accompanied with narration that explains many details from the book that are absent from the film.
For the wee ones, the Chamber of Secrets DVD offers all manner of DVD-ROM goodies, including puzzles, printable trading cards, downloadable screensavers, and an interactive timeline that allows users to explore the history of Hogwarts. Also included is a preview of the Harry Potter video game and voice-activation software that allows users to control their computer through verbal commands, as though they were casting a spell.
Given the amount of money involved in the Potter franchise, it should come as no surprise that the technical aspects of the Chamber of Secrets DVD are top-notch. From the murky woodland exteriors to the candlelit inside of Hogwarts, Roger Pratt's (Batman, 12 Monkeys) cinematography is gorgeous, full of rich colors and a wide array of shadows. The DVD's image transfer does Pratt justice, with no noticeable artifacting or edge enhancement and solid blacks all around. However, buyers should beware: The disc is available in both 1.33:1 fullscreen and 2.35:1 widescreen versions; get the widescreen version, or you'll be missing out on a lot of eye candy.
Chamber of Secrets also boasts some impressive audio. Presented in Dolby Digital 5.1 EX in both English and Spanish, the film's sound design is truly dynamic, making use of the back speakers in scenes both loud (the Quidditch match and Mandrake scenes) and subdued (when Harry and company search for the chamber). If you have the right sound system, you can easily replicate seeing Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets in the theater: That is, the experience of watching a movie that's as technically impressive as it is dramatically hollow.
— TOR THORSEN
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