Softwing Most undeservingly overhyped movie of all time??

Baseshment I like movies that are aware of what they are selling... without [any] greater aspirations than to make people laugh and that's it.

Plustown A lot of perfectly good film show their cards early, establish a unique premise and let the audience explore a topic at a leisurely pace, without much in terms of surprise. this film is not one of those films.

Arianna Moses Let me be very fair here, this is not the best movie in my opinion. But, this movie is fun, it has purpose and is very enjoyable to watch.

elizabeth-12994 It was a good film with a good plot but by any means wasn't bad. The special effects weren't bad but ok, but this did come out in 2001. The story line wasn't as strong as I would have liked to have seen it but what I do know is the main actors in the first two films weren't great.The casting in general was really good cause from prisoner of Azkaban and onwards, the acting got better and so did the movies but, it wasn't believable. Of course Snape was brilliant! Over rated is an understatement though. There are too many people that now they've seen Harry Potter, won't give any other movies a chance because apparently 'nothing is as good as Harry Potter'. It is a great franchise and everything but apparently they can't see anything else. Most people won't give other films like my personal favourites, lord of the rings and the hobbit, a chance because 'it's not harry potter'. I'm not against liking this franchise but am against because you like it you can't like anything else.Not the best movie out of the eight made but from prisoner of Azkaban and onwards are great!

cinephile-27690 I was sheltered as a kid by devout Lutheran parents. I was not allowed to see many movies and the Harry Potter movies was one of them. He uses witchcraft, which the Bible forbids using. However, I moved in with my Grandma and she let me watch it. I really liked it. I have only sat through it once but I enjoyed it. i do believe using witchcraft is wrong but for Pete's sake this is a FANTASY! Disney movies use magic and that was okay for me to see! I think this is fine, just have fun with it- I believe in God but I also believe that fake magic isn't going to hurt me-because I know not to use the real kind.

TheNabOwnzz Much like the film in said title, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone seems to essentially be a nice kind of kiddy escapism flick into the world of magic, but like The Wizard of Oz, it still manages to be surprisingly touchy in a profoundly humanistic kind of way despite its far fetched story. I grew up with these series, and thought they were the greatest thing i have ever seen at the time. Now that i have grown older and judge all cinematic feats objectively, Sorcerer's Stone might have lost some of its figurative magic, but it is still an impressive and genuinely entertaining film. After having recently been through the torture of seeing the entire Twilight saga series, it is nice to see a film series such as Harry Potter that DOES actually have great writing and for the most part good acting, and manages to be believeable in the setting it provides. Dumbledore, who is the most important character in the film, and his dialogue with Harry in front of the mirror shows us that the film manages to still be relevant to actual family values and issues while subtly lying under its gorgeous magical cover. Visually the film is stunning due to the fact that the filmmakers wanted to give it that authentic look, resulting in many on location shots. The outdoor shot of the first time seeing Hogwharts is simply visual delight in what could have easily been an ugly CGI snoozefest. The great hall ( Which was not on location and actually built for the film ) is also fantastic visual beauty, and the high camera angles show us a great overview of the entire room while this is coupled with John Williams's fantastic score, which uses fantastic chords of joy and happiness in the light hearted scenes while still maintaining that ominous mystery feel in the darker scenes, such as the Unicorn search in the dark forest. Williams's score for this film is definitely one of the greatest in the history of film due to the fact that it captures the adventure, joy, mystery & evil of the film like no other. Its three main characters Harry, Ron & Hermione, who were ofcourse still very young child actors at the time, are surprisingly genuinely enthusiastic and natural about the happenings in the film, and while they will never be the true star of it, they definitely do not drag the film down. However, there are indeed fantastic acting performances in the film, especially by Alan Rickman ( Snape ) whose subtle slow way of speaking is intimidating in its own right, and Richard Harris ( Dumbledore ), who captures the wise and friendly aspect of his character as only Harris can, with his calm demeanor and naturally fatherly character, which only makes it sadder he passed away before the making of the Prisoner of Azkaban, as a Dumbledore as good as Richard Harris's will never be seen.The narrative of the film is great, with us slowly beginning to understand more about the plot as it unfolds. It doesn't insult any type of audience with obvious dialogue or flashbacks ( *Cough* Twilight * Cough* ) and instead lets the mystery unfold into logic on its own. All three main characters embody their characters perfectly as each is used to the best of their abilities throughout an event in the story, which will make sure none of them seem irrelevant, and all of them give a clear view of what they are like.It is a grandiose spectacle of visuals and magic, and while obviously lacking in real depth it is also a genuinely human story about an orphan ( Harry ) who finds friendship and courage through a series of brave events.

Torrin-McFinn77 Having read the first few Harry Potter books before 2001 and hearing about the hype for the first movie, I was excited. I heard there was going to be an all-British cast (which makes sense, right?) and we'd get to see a live version of one of the defining novels of our generation. From what I remember I went with my family and a family friend to see the movie the day after Christmas and was pleasantly amazed. After the movie was over, I watched the credits and discovered some familiar names (the late Alan Rickman, Sister Act's Maggie Smith, James Bond 007's Robbie Coltrane, and Star Wars' Warwick Davis); others not so familiar (the kids, some of whom had their debut). But it was a good movie and was a party of colors and sights for all to see. This is easily my favorite of all the Harry Potter films. The catalyst of the movie series!