23 Years Later: How Well Has The Philosopher's Stone Aged?

23 Years Later: How Well Has The Philosopher's Stone Aged?

[evelyngrammar]

Of course, as a person over 70 who has no interest in CGI, the movie holds up for me. I still watch it.

[jedhawkins]

The only thing I miss from the first Harry Potter film is Richard Harris' Dumbledore. It was pitch perfect casting, but he didn't live long enough for the franchise's evolution to the end. We had him then we lost him; just bad luck for us Harry Potter fans.
He was a warmhearted wizard with a heart of gold and colored robes.
Michael Gambon's Dumbledore, on the other hand, was too blunt and emotional, wore gray robes.
Even though they're different in their own way, I give kudos to both actors.

[chelles]

I will never forget how the introduction music made me feel when I first watched it. It's music etched into soul

[djb]

All of the Harry Potter movies are timeless masterpieces. It doesn't matter how long ago the movie came out, because it's Story, Characters and locations are still just as great. If someone has a different opinion, or wants to point out specific scenes to claim the opposite, then i would be happy to discuss it.

[toto_rf]

As a teen I preferred the last few movies but as an adult the Chris Colombus films are just timeless family films.

[Longshanks]

I remember when I was real young, I would see one specific ad for this movie on VHS tapes I rented all the time, and it was always the same one. I was too young to actually process what I was seeing but while I don’t think I remember most of the movies I actually watched, that ad stayed with me. There was just a sense of instant mystery and dread but also interest and wonder that it evoked, and clearly they wanted me to see it cos they used it a LOT.

It would be years later before I actually got into the movies and books, but I think that ad having the staying power with me that it does speaks to something about this film. Whether you want to attribute it to the movie just being that memorable or just from the fact I saw the ad a lot, I think that speaks to something about it. If it’s the former, then it had an impressive impact to be able to cement itself in my memory so effectively and for so long. If it’s the latter, then it’s clear there was a LOT of hype and excitement for it, hence why there was so many ads on so many separate tapes.

You don’t need me to tell you the film was a success and well made, it was by every objective metric available. But from my personal, subjective experience, that ad remaining with me when so much else from that time has faded from my memory says a lot about why this film kickstarted the international juggernaut of a series that it did.

[candifeinberg]

Also over 70 and a huge Harry Potter Fan

[EddZone]

Chris Columbus was the best HP director, by far. Would have been great if he'd directed all the movies. He respected and understood the series.

[pbrn]

Leave it alone 😊. It was and still is perfect 👍

[lucasmiguel]

In my personal opinion these films still work very well. I watch them few times per year and they still give me pleasure. In Philosopher Stone costumes and music are simply amazing

[AshleeKnowsNot]

I will always appreciate how well the first movie established the tone. So many important choices were made that really helped lay the foundation of the series. There were like five or six directors and 8 movies. It needed a good foundation to keep all of that together.
It's definitely a time capsule of the early 2000s but I'd say it's still holds up surprisingly well. This one and the next one still used quite a bit of animatronics and it definitely helps with the realism as far as the CGI is concerned. It also probably helped the less experienced child actors who, for the most part, did a pretty good job in this movie.

[Myself-yfdo]

1:13 Ice cream truck? No, that was a Ford Anglia, remember?

[umbralunea]

The only thing that could probably be updated is the cgi of the troll

[nanabutner]

After a “nervous breakdown” this movie on continued replay was the only way I could sleep. I owe my health to this s movie——-DO NOT EVER CHANGE IT!

[yerdasellsavon]

Im 38 and go to bed at night with usually one off the films on, don't sleep well and these amazing, magical films help. I still find that they are magical and had a right balance between cgi and actual props made.

[SuperGamingCraftSGC]

Idk, voldy looks pretty good to me in this movie, even after 20 years

[that.canadian.vaper.guyTCVG]

Chris Columbus was the perfect director to kick off the initial phase of Harry Potter. He has an astounding adventurous vision to his films with a young, whimsical touch to them thats perfect for Harry Potter's first couple of years.

I wish they would have planned directors to handle a couple of films at a time and have the fist director meet with the next director to explain his vision and little cues and seeds that hes planted.

Chris Columbus did the first 2 films, Alfonso Cuaron directed the third, Mike Newell did the fourth and then David Yates finished the rest of the series.

Columbus nailed the feeling and stories of the first 2 films, and then it perfectly switched to a slightly darker, yet still whimsy film in Prisoner of Azkaban. Alfonso kept the same magical feeling Columbus had instilled in the world, yet the story was getting darker as Voldemort was beginning his comeback and the film reflected that. It was just a phenomenal transition and worked so flawlessly.

Had Alfonso directed the 4th film as well, it would have been much more amazing. Mike Newell did an amazing job as director, everyone loved him on set. The problem was that his vision didnt fit the story that needed to be told and felt like a deviation from the ground work of the previous films.

Goblet wasnt terrible, it was just a misfire and didnt fit perfectly. We needed a circular puzzle piece and Mike Newell gave us an oval shaped puzzle piece. It fit the overall narrative, but the general structure of the film was just not right. It went darker then Prisoner, and really showed us that we are no longer watching Harry Potter having childish adventures, he had to grow up and do it fast.

Then David Yates absolutely NAILED Order. It went even darker and turned one of the WORST BOOKS into one of the BEST FILMS in the series! He understood the source material, seen the groundwork of the previous directors and cut everything that didnt work and add to a cohesive film, while keeping and even highlighting the things that worked in the film.

[WideOldDan]

Watched it recently and it's still great

[johnnyd]

I miss when people and society back around the time of 2001 was actually normal compared with today’s people and society.

[Myself-yfdo]

You forgot The Chronicles of Narnia and Percy Jackson.