Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone

Two decades have passed and the film that started it all hasn't aged a day. It's hard to say whether Chris Columbus knew the enormous phenomenon that was starting, but I am incredibly grateful to him for it. Without him, I would have never gotten into movies, but most importantly, I would have never discovered my beloved book source. And the nostalgia while watching "our new celebrity" wiped out by Severus Snape is truly immeasurable. It's not the best installment, but it's simply the first. (17/12/2011)

A slavish, unimaginative, and routine adaptation that has the ungrateful task of drowning the whole first half in slavish, unimaginative (what a pity given its magical nature) and merely routine introductions of the characters and their world. There's not much to criticize, but it's also completely without invention ideas of its own. Which is true of most of Columbus' movies. There is not one originally filmed scene, not a single interesting camera angle; simply nothing. It's as if a robot made the movie, page by page. And the extended version is worse because the extra scenes are not only completely unnecessary, but are as mundane as everything else. The casting of the child actors is quite successful but the acting is not great; yet it is slowly getting better with each episode. The adult “back-up" cast is invariably great. (21/11/2010)

You either love Harry Potter or you don't understand why everyone around you loves him so much. I'm one of the former. I think I'm from the generation that enjoyed watching it the most. I was young enough to be enchanted by all the magic and old enough to understand it. I grew up with Harry and the individual installments always fit my age just right. And so, to this day, The Sorcerer's Stone is an all-time favorite of mine, and a story that brings out the little kid in me who firmly believes that Hogwarts exists :) (28/10/2010)

The beginning to a legendary series that has gained a large number of fans, just like its famous literary source. I have certain reservations about the first one, which still somewhat stays down to earth in many aspects and situations, and sometimes appears overly childish and wannabe comedic, but it successfully plays out a great magical game and the fictional world of Hogwarts is hard not to love. It’s a good start, though far from perfect. (28/07/2006)

"Yer a wizard, Harry." –– This is a beautiful tale about a wizard's apprentice that even after several years has not lost its original charm and atmosphere. When I watched it recently, believe me, I had the same wonderful feeling as when I first saw it. While I admit that the main trio does not exactly give Oscar-winning performances, they wonderfully make up for it with their childlike innocence – because, like the audience, they are gradually learning about this world of magic and enchantment, its many wonders, but also its dangers... I do not think I need to elaborate further in my review, because I do not believe anyone has not heard of this movie. (14/07/2008)