Unlock The Secret (Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (DVD))

Member Name: fooyoo

Product:	Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (DVD)
Date:	11/07/04 (252 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Excellent selection of extras to compliment the film

Disadvantages: Not always suitable for the younger HP fans

Before we went to see the most recent Harry Potter film at the cinema, we thought we would refresh our minds in terms of the second film as it seemed so long since we had seen it. 'Chamber Of Secrets' is the second film in the Harry Potter series and it is based on the book of the same name, although as with most films it is not an exact replica of the story in the book as time constraints mean that this is not possible. I will say straight off that if you want an in depth review of the film, then this is probably not the opinion for you, as I will be concentrating on the DVD and the features rather than the plot and production of the film, which for me is a new experience so please be gentle with me!

The young actors from the first film return to reprise their roles. Daniel Radcliffe looks like he was born to play Harry Potter, as he closely resembles the mental image JK Rowling conjured up in her books. Emma Watson is excellent as the fiesty Hermione Grainger, and completing the trio is Rupert Grint as Harry's best friend Ron Weasley. They are joined by Richard Harris (Dumbledore), Alan Rickman (Prof Snape) and Robbie Coltrane (Hagrid), although there are some new cast members this time round, and the most entertaining has to be Kenneth Brannagh's portrayal of conceited teacher Gilderoy Lockhart, whose heartthrob status is not all that it seems. It seems that every actor around is desperate to secure a part in the latest Harry Potter movie.

In short, the story this time round sees Harry escape the tight clutches of his loathsome Aunt and Uncle to return to Hogwarts School for a second year, ignoring the warnings of a mischevious house elf called Dobby who gets Harry into trouble at every opportunity. The st
ory is slightly darker than the first, and this is something which happens with each book to coincide with Harry growing up and experiencing more and more. The framework for the plot is the same in each book in that Harry suffers living with his in laws, returns to Hogwarts, gets into a few scrapes, realises something evil is afoot, fights it, realises some new things about himself, and braces himself to return to his in laws. That said, I have over simplified it there, as the story surrounding those events is thoroughly enjoyable, and certainly has all of our family hooked.

The film is directed by Chris Columbus, and he does a good job, but in truth he couldn't really go wrong, as the story has the viewer hooked, and the extra helping of special effects such as flying cars and frozen people make for great viewing, and is certainly helped with the excellent eye for detail in terms of character costumes and visually stunning scenes towards the end of the film, especially when Harry feels he has to fight evil forces to gain revenge for his parent's untimely and unjust deaths at the hands of Lord Voldemort. Don't switch off before you let the end credits finish though, which you may be tempted to do when you have spent over 2 and a half hours watching the film.

Released in 2003 by Warner Bros, I have the Region 2 DVD which has 37 chapters, so the features I mention are in line with that, and I am not sure if the Region 1 version differs at all. I paid £16.99 for it, but you can now get it for less than £9 on sites such as Amazon. The film is rated PG, and there are some parts of the film that my daughter found a little scarier than the first film, so keep an eye on the youngsters! There are 2 discs, with the first showing the film, and the second being packed with extras and special features. The language is Engli
sh, however the subtitles are English and Arabic with English as the chosen language for the hearing impaired viewer of the disc.

The first does have limited special features, which are mostly trailers, but thoroughly enjoyable whilst whetting the appetite for more Harry Potter. Extras on the 2nd DVD are in abundance, and that is what sets it apart from the competition.

BEHIND HOGWARTS

*An Interview with JK Rowling and screenwriter Steve Kloves, which at just over 15 minutes long was not top of my list to see, but it ended up being a fascinating insight of just what is involved in transferring such a successful book to the big screen. This is a feature which appeals more to the mature viewer, as most children aren't really interested in listening to interviews when they can go to other areas of the disc and experience many interactive features. Personally, I enjoyed it, as I find Rowling and her story very interesting.

*A very interesting self guided tour, where you can explore places such as Dumbledore's office at your leisure.

*Interviews with Daniel, Emma, Rupert and many other cast members about the making of the film.Here we get to see what the actors think about their own characters, and also what their friends and family think.

ADDITIONA& #76; SCENES

*A whopping 19 additional or extended scenes.
Most of these are scenes that you have already watched, and admittedly there is not a lot of new material in there, but nonetheless, it is entertaining viewing. These scenes back up a point I made earlier about how difficult it is to stay 100% true to the original book.

GAME PREVIEW

As
with most successful books and films, the merchandise can gross as much money as the main releases, and this section gives a preview of one of the latest HP console games to be released.

ACTIVITIE& #83;

This is the interactive, and most interesting section, at least for my daughter. There is The Chamber Challenge, where you tour the Chamber Of Secrets and get a few surprises along the way. The Forbidden Forest Challenge and Colin's darkroom don't hold the attention as well, but the tour down Diagon Alley is a favourite in our house. In another section of the disc is the Spellcaster Knowledge Challenge, which is quite difficult for younger fans I feel.

GILDEROY LOCKHART'S CLASSROOM

The entertaining Lockhart was certain to feature in the extras, and the photo gallery is the main section here, but my daughter loves the certificates, and details are the required reading are mildly interesting.

*PC Users can take advantage of the DVD-ROM trailer, but to be completely honest, it does not really provide anything extra that you can see when you view the disc normally. It is the puzzles which really make this section a bonus, as there is something to suit everyone with puzzles, challenges, screensavers, trading cards, of which many are excellent interactive games.

This DVD is certainly worth the purchase, as the extras only add to the brilliance of the film.

Summary: