Angelo Capulong, Geraldine Caratao, and Rejean Medina November 9,

2023
BSE English 3-C Sir Rafael Mendoza
Republic of the Philippines
CAVITE STATE UNIVERSITY
Silang Campus
Biga 1, Silang, Cavite
TEACHER EDUCATION DEPARTMENT

THE FIRST STEPS OF THE BOY WHO LIVED:

A MOVIE REVIEW OF HARRY POTTER AND THE SORCERER’S STONE

When people are asked to think of a film that revolves around magic, any movie from J.K.
Rowling’s Harry Potter franchise would always come to mind. The fame of these well-written
books that she wrote also flows into the movie adaptations that it has. Seeing each film is
indeed a rite of passage that any potential Potterhead must go through. And for the first-ever
film to hit the block screens, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone did a great job spearheading
a franchise with a huge demographic and a remarkable plotline. From the original Potterheads
who were children during the release of the book to the new generation of Potterheads that are
still learning about the series, both parties will find common ground by having this film be their
first step into the visuals of Harry Potter.

Breaking Up The Philosopher’s Stone

The Magic of Transfiguration: A Book Turned Into … A Movie?
On November 16, 2001, the movie adaptation of J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s
Stone made its international debut on the screens. Following massive anticipation from fans
who have read the book, the film brought to life the first steps of Potter’s journey from the
suburbs of Privet Drive to the magical aisles of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
With the direction of Chris Columbus, this fantasy and adventure film bewitched generations of
readers to fall in love with the literary series more as they witnessed it with their own eyes in a
much clearer visual perspective. With a whopping rollout to 3,672 theaters, the box office
grosses amounted to $974,755,371, which is a testament to how successful and well-received
this film was.

The Pen of A Great Muggle: Getting To Know J.K. Rowling

Joanne Kathleen Rowling, also known by her pen name J.K. Rowling, published Harry Potter
and the Philosopher’s Stone (or Sorcerer’s Stone for the American version) on June 26, 1997.
She started writing the book in June 1990 on a train ride. The story took interesting turns as she
wrote Harry Potter while coping with her traumatic experiences with grief. During the latter time
of her writing, Rowling was experiencing huge financial problems after getting out of her abusive
marriage. She found herself writing Harry Potter in cafes while her daughter slept beside her.
After experiencing many rejections from different book publishers, she wasn’t anticipating a
great reception for this series. Still, she did not give up and persisted in giving manuscripts of
Philosopher’s Stone to different publishing companies. Her publishing conflict was not solved

BSEE 37: Contemporary, Popular, and Emergent Literature Movie Review

 Angelo Capulong, Geraldine Caratao, and Rejean Medina November 9,
2023
BSE English 3-C Sir Rafael Mendoza
not until Bloomsbury gave it a go in 1997 to be published in the UK and Scholastic bid a
hundred thousand dollar bid for American publishing rights.
Of Star Hunts and Witch Hunts: The Casting for Philosopher’s Stone
Personally, one of the major factors that we believe contributed to the success of the film was
the great casting choice. Considering that the trio of Harry (played by Daniel Radcliffe),
Hermione (played by Emma Watson), and Ron (played by Rupert Grint) were all cast with kids
who had little to no acting experiences at all, it was such an amazing sight to see when the
three immediately developed and establish the chemistry needed for the film. Keeping this in
mind, it was still a fact that the trio consisted of actors that no one knew of. Despite the lack of
experience of these three, the roster of actors for this film was then filled with great powerhouse
ones. This list consisted of Richard Harris (Albus Dumbledore) Maggie Dame Smith (Professor
Minerva McGonagall), Alan Rickman (Professor Severus Snape), Robbie Coltrane (Rubeus
Hagrid), John Hurt (Mr. Ollivander), and a lot more. The actor for Draco Malfoy’s part, Tom
Felton, was initially favored to play Harry Potter due to the kid’s great acting resume but with
Radcliffe’s arrival and great resonance with Harry, David Heyman (Producer) was fully
convinced that Felton was much more destined to be Malfoy.

The Philosopher’s Stone Through the Hat of a Witch

Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone starts with Dumbledore, Professor McGonagall, and
Hagrid’s literal delivery of our hero to his new muggle home with his Aunt Petunia and Uncle
Vernon. Harry is seen to be experiencing mistreatment by them and their son, Dudley, as he is
treated like a maid inside the house and is forced to live under the stairs. Things get an
interesting turn as Harry then shows magical abilities during a trip to the zoo for Dudley’s
birthday. This chain of events was then heightened with the arrival of letters from Hogwarts, a
school known for wizardry and magical arts, on their doorsteps. The family tries their best to
prevent Harry from retrieving those letters to the extent of living in a lighthouse in the middle of
nowhere. During his eleventh birthday, Harry is rescued from the hands of this wicked family by
Hagrid, who introduces himself as the key-keeper of Hogwarts. Hagrid then tells Harry who and
what he really is and personally gives the letter saying that he was accepted into the Hogwarts
School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

The film then continues with Harry buying his “school supplies” for Hogwarts and acquiring the
money that his parents left him while also witnessing Hagrid’s acquisition of an unknown
package. As he walks into this newfound magical dimension, Harry is bewildered as people
revere him with such respect, contrary to the treatment he grew up with in the Dursley
residence. He then starts his journey in Hogwarts and gets into one of the four houses that exist
in the school, Gryffindor. The story continues with Harry getting accustomed to his new school,
befriending his fellow Gryffindors, Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley. After having Professor
McGonagall witness his flying skills, Harry found himself to be part of his house’s Quidditch
team. He had the same position as his dad before, a seeker, and also had the same winning
skills as he led Gryffindor to a win in their quidditch match against the house of Slytherin.

BSEE 37: Contemporary, Popular, and Emergent Literature Movie Review

 Angelo Capulong, Geraldine Caratao, and Rejean Medina November 9,
2023
BSE English 3-C Sir Rafael Mendoza

Conflict arises as a series of events leads Harry and the gang to learn of the real identity and
purpose of the package Hagrid acquired from the vault. It was the Sorcerer’s Stone, a stone that
can be used to produce an elixir that gives immortality. With the recent happenings of
Voldemort’s killing of unicorns and drinking their blood to buy himself more time, Harry deduces
that Voldemort is very much interested in the stone. Speculation also forms that Professor
Severus Snape is one of his accomplices in acquiring the stone from Hogwarts. With this in
mind, the trio devised a plan to retrieve the stone to prevent Voldemort from stealing it.

The trio proceeded to retrieve the Sorcerer’s Stone and were faced with trials that they needed
to surpass to reach the stone’s whereabouts. After surviving a carnivorous plant and a very
intense match of chess, Harry proceeds with his journey to find Professor Quirell, not Professor
Snape, who wants to acquire the stone. Quirell then reveals a Voldemort hiding under his turban
and tries to get Harry to give the stone to him through the use of different psychological warfare
tactics (one which uses the Mirror of Erised). As Harry remains unwavering in his decision to
keep the stone (which to his surprise, immediately appeared in his pocket) and not give it to the
two, both parties face off in a mildly violent fight. As Voldemort/Quirell tries to kill Harry, they
suddenly start burning at the contact with Harry. Harry uses this advantage to end the fight, to
which he succeeds, and blacks out as Voldemort’s soul leaves the temporary Horcrux and
passes through him.

The climax settles down with Harry waking up in the school’s infirmary with Dumbledore
explaining how and why Harry was able to survive his fight with Voldemort. It is revealed that his
mother placed a love spell on him when he was young. A spell that protects him from
Voldemort. The movie gives us a resolution by having the trio’s heroism and Neville’s bravery
be recognized by Dumbledore and with it, have points given to their house. After tabulating all
the scores they had, Gryffindor wins the house cup and they rejoice altogether. After that, all the
students prepare to go back to their houses and part ways at the train station. Harry, though he
is bummed to go back to the Dursleys, was comforted by the fact that he found a new home in
Hogwarts.

“10 Points to/from …”: Recognizing Movie Aspects of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
Cinematography
One of the most important parts of a fantasy or adventure film is how cinematography acts as a
transporter or a heightener of movement in the movie. Although this film did not feature many
intense camera motions, the angles that they chose for each sequence gave variety. It made
the movie not look one-dimensional at the very least. Although the majority of transitions from
each sequence rely on panning through landscapes, we can appreciate that the team did its
best when it comes to giving the viewers good angles with perfect lighting. Scenes that needed

BSEE 37: Contemporary, Popular, and Emergent Literature Movie Review

Angelo Capulong, Geraldine Caratao, and Rejean Medina November 9,
2023
BSE English 3-C Sir Rafael Mendoza
to emphasize grim surroundings were perfectly cold in tone and scenes that imply safety always
had warmer and brighter tones in the film. This is something that added well into the translation
of each location that the film takes place in.

Editing/Visual Effects
In line with cinematography, visual effects are also one of the most contributing elements when
it comes to making a fantasy or adventure film. In the case of having a film that has magical
themes, visual effects are all the more needed to further establish the imagination or whimsical
nature of this fictional place. This is what helps blur the line between reality and imagination. In
the best way possible, this film’s visual effects or CGI were palpable considering how
technology back then was not that advanced when it comes to visual editing effects. The
quidditch sequence is heavily edited with CGI yet still looks fluid and smooth when it comes to
all the character’s intense movements. Even if there were times that certain lighting spots made
the characters look like they were being filmed on green screens, we appreciated the efforts the
animators made when it came to curating a good sequence for one of the most fun parts of the
film. As the starting point for the movie franchise, Sorcerer’s Stone made a good starting point
and laid a good foundation for further improvements to be made.
Themes
Having this film targeted to younger audiences, it is quite surprising how Harry Potter and the
Sorcerer’s Stone delved into deep topics that were considered to be heavy for kids. The concept
of coping with the loss of a loved one was highlighted during Harry’s encounter with the Mirror of
Erised. In line with this, Dumbledore’s fatherly conversation with Harry about acceptance was
the perfect way to show warmth to a grieving kid. Living through abuse was evident throughout
the time that Harry lived in the Dursleys' house and its effects on Harry’s self-confidence and
self-perception were seen to be manifested when Hagrid visited him and when he was
recognized by the people in Diagon Alley and Hogwarts. Last but not least, the social caste
system/racism was emphasized throughout the film. Being born as a muggle was often looked
down upon by the magic folks, hence why we can understand Aunt Petunia’s frustration towards
Harry. Ron being bullied after Draco emphasized his ancestry being associated with half-bloods
was also a highlight of racism. All these were topics that one would not have expected to see in
a film that revolves around magic and yet the film did a remarkable job packaging these big
topics and making them understandable and relatable to younger audiences.
Music
Last but not least, the movie’s soundtrack was indeed impeccable when it came to
accompanying all the visuals that we were being given. John Williams, the composer of the
movie’s soundtrack, did an amazing job when it came to providing us with soundtracks that
gave the perfect auditory zhuzh for each scene. A great example of this was during the boat ride
of the students to Hogwarts. The music was perfect for giving us that mystical whim that
Hogwarts gave. In line with that, he made the iconic 8-note sequence so iconic that we all now
recognize and associate with Harry Potter whenever we hear it (especially because it was used
throughout the trailers of all the movies in the franchise).

BSEE 37: Contemporary, Popular, and Emergent Literature Movie Review

 Angelo Capulong, Geraldine Caratao, and Rejean Medina November 9,
2023
BSE English 3-C Sir Rafael Mendoza

Sorting The Philosopher’s Stone: A Plausible Movie or A Cash Grab?

BSEE 37: Contemporary, Popular, and Emergent Literature Movie Review