Review and news hub for movies, music and video games

Movie:		8.0
Picture:		10.0
Sound:		10.0
Extras:		10.0
Score:		9.0

Director(s):	Chris Columbus
Writer(s):	J.K. Rowling (novel), Steve Kloves (screenplay)
Starring:	Alan Rickman • Daniel Radcliffe • Emma Watson • Kenneth Branagh • Maggie Smith • Richard Harris • Rupert Grint
Genre:	Adventure • Fantasy
Release Date:	December 08, 2009
Rated:

List Price:	DVD - $24.99
Amazon:

Since 2001 I’ve been a Harry Potter nerd through and through. I jumped on the bandwagon a little late (the fourth book had just come out and the first movie was on its way to theaters), but for the eight years I’ve been on it I’ve been so devotedly. I geek out on Harry Potter like it’s my job. (Thanks to the good folks here at JPP, for today at least, it is.)

The ultimate edition of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets is impressive. It includes the theatrical version, the extended version, and two discs of bonus features.

But I’ll get to them later. First, a quick word on the movie itself. As die hard a fan I am, I’m well-aware that the first two Harry Potter films are not cinematic masterpieces. (I suppose none of them really are, but we’re going to pretend otherwise.) It’s widely acknowledged that Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, and Emma Watson (Harry, Ron, and Hermione, respectively) didn’t quite have the acting chops to pull off such a franchise (they’ve fortunately since grown into their roles); the CGI was at times, for lack of a better word, lame; and despite being roughly two-and-a-half hours long each, they didn’t quite do the justice to their respective engendering books that later films seemed to (though I was personally pissed that Neville’s parents didn’t make it into Order of the Phoenix). Giving directing duties to Chris Columbus, who specializes in family flicks, also ensured Sorcerer’s Stone and Chamber would be a bit soft around the edges. And — by this I mean absolutely no disrespect to the late Richard Harris — but I’m a big supporter of Michael Gambon’s Dumbledore.

Chamber, the series’ second installment, leads Harry and the gang through their return to Hogwarts, where a sinister force is slithering through the castle. Worse than new professor Gilderoy Lockhart (Kenneth Branagh), though, is a giant snakelike creature that turns people to stone with a single look. (Normally this would kill them, but Rowling managed to stave off actually killing anyone until Goblet of Fire with a bit of clever maneuvering.)

Now, on to the good stuff.

DVD Bonus Features

As mentioned before, included in this set is the extended version of Chamber, complete with an additional 13 minutes of non-theatrical footage.

Disc 3 builds off of some of the extras that were featured in the original 2003 two-disc release (deleted scenes; an interview with Rowling and screenwriter Steve Kloves; a look at Lockhart’s classroom), but also adds on a bunch of new features:

- A Defense Against the Dark Arts-themed photo gallery

- ‘Extra Credit,’ a set of interactive games and activities accessed via computer, as well as ones you can play from your DVD player

- ‘Behind Hogwarts,’ featuring cast and crew interviews, a collection of production sketches, a self-guided tour of Dumbledore's office, as well as a “build a scene” look at how the office was created.

Disc 4 presents never-before-seen initial screen tests of Radcliffe, Grint and Watson, the 2002 HBO First Look at Chamber, and trailers and TV spots. It most heavily showcases Part II of “Creating the World of Harry Potter.” This very expansive documentary gives fans an in-depth look at everything that went into bringing the world of Harry Potter from page to screen, with Part II focusing on casting movies 1-7, and how the cast and crew has managed to so accurately depict Rowling’s characters. Like any good look behind the scenes, it allows viewers to see exactly what's gone into the world they've come to adore so much. There are interviews with some of Britain’s most celebrated actors, who share what made them decide to take part in the Harry Potter series.

The young actors’ onscreen abilities and how much they’ve improved over the years (often thanks to their directors) are also discussed extensively. It's revealed, for instance, that at the end of Chamber, when Lucius (Jason Isaacs) says, “Let us hope Mr. Potter will always be around to save the day,” and Harry replies, “Don't worry. I will be,” the whole exchange was improvised.

(“Part I: The Magic Begins” is featured in the ultimate edition of Sorcerer’s Stone, a pretty thrifty move on Warner Bros.’ part, though, chances are if you’re going to buy one you’ll buy both anyway. You can read JPP’s review of Sorcerer’s Stone here.)

Also included are a 48-page photo book of images from Years 1-7, and two sweet character cards (Snape and Hagrid come with this one).

Keep an eye out for Years 3-7  — if my guess is right 3 and 4 will come out around the time part 1 of Deathly Hallows hits theaters, 5 and 6, around the same time in 2010, and 7 about a year later. I recommend springing for them all as they come out; it looks like each edition will feature something new and worthwhile to a hardcore fan.