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Author Topic: Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets Michael Brown Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1522 From: Bradford, England Registered: May 2001 posted 12-05-2002 03:31 PM                     Very Important point I have to make. Now when Lucas created Jar Jar Binks and everyone hated the character, I didn't mind, I was happy. But Nobby *shudders*. I don't know what words to use to express... The 'thing' must die within the first 7 minutes of the next film. It must.  |  IP: Logged Christopher Seo Jedi Master Film Handler Posts: 530 From: Los Angeles, CA Registered: Jun 99 posted 12-05-2002 05:34 PM                     I have to agree about "Nobby"... oops, actually "Dobby". His presence was an irritating way to begin the film, which only began to recover and pick up after the first 40 minutes. I also agree that the image was again soft, though the print I saw at the Chinese in Hollywood, while not EK, was generally quite acceptable. I thought some of the CG was bad, such as the flying car shots and in particular the one where it touches down after the Weasley brothers rescue Harry. Otherwise, the story was pretty exciting and engaging, giving all the main young characters a chance to contribute something. However, toward the end when the plot got a little confusing (OK, even I got confused... why did Voldemort come up again? I thought we were talking about the heir of Slytherin), the expository dialogue really came on heavily ("Well, your phoenix may have *blinded* my snake just now, but he can still smell you!!", etc. etc.). There were also some deus ex machina moments such as Harry's fatal wound healing. Reminded me of some of the anime I've seen. This was the first movie I saw at the Chinese in Hollywood. The interior was nice, not tacky at all like I was expecting. Sound was very good. The EX channel was flaunted quite a few times. The only problem was a handful of split-second digital dropouts to silence in one reel, one lasting a good seven seconds! I tried to explain to a manager afterward that dropouts to silence indicate something is very wrong, but all she could say was that they were aware of the problem and would be getting a replacement reel soon. It's pretty sad if even the Chinese can't get a replacement reel by the next showing....  |  IP: Logged Michael Schaffer "Where is the Boardwalk Hotel?" Posts: 4143 From: Boston, MA Registered: Apr 2002 posted 12-05-2002 10:41 PM                        Voldemort IS the heir of Slytherin. BTW, how come you live in El Pueblo De Nuestra Senora La Reyna De Los Angeles De Porciuncula but have never been to the Chinese before?  |  IP: Logged Betsie Beadling Expert Film Handler Posts: 178 From: Fairfax, Virginia, USA Registered: Sep 2000 posted 12-06-2002 08:13 AM                     Dobbys Cool He's Not Annoying  |  IP: Logged Michael Brown Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1522 From: Bradford, England Registered: May 2001 posted 12-06-2002 01:19 PM                     Betsie, You forgot the  |  IP: Logged Christopher Seo Jedi Master Film Handler Posts: 530 From: Los Angeles, CA Registered: Jun 99 posted 12-06-2002 06:16 PM                     Michael, So if Voldemort is heir of Slytherin, where did Tom Riddle come from and why did he claim that "I am Voldemort"? And why was it Lucius Malfoy who slipped Riddle's diary into the little Weasley girl's basket? OK, I should stop watching movies and just stick to projection. And the reason I've never been to the Chinese is that, up until this year, I lived in sunny Hawaii where I worked at the now-closed Waikiki Theatres.  |  IP: Logged Michael Schaffer "Where is the Boardwalk Hotel?" Posts: 4143 From: Boston, MA Registered: Apr 2002 posted 12-06-2002 11:01 PM                        It has been some time since I read the book - yes, I confess I have read all the books even though when a friend gave me the first volume, I thought, if everyone says they are good they can`t be good! I think they are fantastic and I even read the 2nd and 3rd on one weekend. Anyway, if I remember correctly, Tom Riddle is the heir of Slytherin and he conserved his mind or his memories in the diary to reappear later after his first attempt to unleash the horrors of the chamber of secrets on those magicians who are not of pure blood ("Muggle-borns") failed. Just before the first book begins, he has reappeared as Voldemort and tries to kill the infant Harry as he thinks that he will be too powerful when grown up but fails to do so because Harry`s mother sacrifices herself for the life of her baby. The Malfoys are a family of pure-blood wizards who where among Voldemort`s followers but where pardoned after his downfall because they are very influential and maintained that they had been bewitched by V. One aspect of the books I like very much is that while they deal with magic, they are very "realistic" in their treatment of such themes as tolerance, envy, or political influence. By the way, Dobby is supposed to be an irritating character because he keeps getting Harry into big trouble. The comparison with J.J.Binks is an interesting one as I think the new "episodes" failed completely where H.P. was tremendously successful - in creating a complex world in which kids and also adults can immerse themselves. This comparison is even more interesting when one sees that the new Star Wars movies suffer from being so obviously and simplistically tailored to children`s tastes or what marketing sees as children`s tastes. That is why they fail to fascinate as the original Star Wars movies did. The mythological and tragic aspects of Episodes 4-6 were what made the movies so powerful. It is interesting to see how successful H.P. is exactly because the books are so dark and tragic in places that at first I couldn`t believe that what I was reading was indeed a book for younger people. Marketing strategists would never have allowed such strong stuff to be published for kids, and yet that is exactly what they need: A rich and complex world which has elements of tragic and suffering as well as uplifting and light elements. That is what Episode 4-6 gave us when we were kids, that is what H.P. is giving kids now, and that is where Episodes 1 and 2 failed miserably.  |  IP: Logged Greg Mueller Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1687 From: Port Gamble, WA Registered: Jun 99 posted 12-13-2002 09:27 AM                        I had a hard time staying awake durring the first half. I'll have to see it again. The parts that I saw seemed to have a fair amount of gratuitous scenes. Maybe when I see all of it I will figure out what it all meant  |  IP: Logged Charles Everett Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1470 From: New Jersey Registered: May 2001 posted 12-22-2002 04:56 PM                     AMC Hamilton 24, Hamilton NJ, 12/22, noon matinee. Hall #19, attendance approx. 20-25. No digital sound -- the SDDS dropped out during the 2nd advert in the preshow and the booth never checked to see if the SDDS was working. The analog SR track was as flat as Michael Harlow said. When Harry got surrounded by the spiders I half-expected him to say "Get back you eight leg-ged freeeeeeeeaks!" Good if you're a Harry P. fan, passable if you're not. Another booth misstep: The attached trailer for Kangaroo Jack ran first instead of last -- with all the black included at the end. I got to hear the first 1 1/2 seconds of the R1 soundtrack before the second trailer.  |  IP: Logged Michael Schaffer "Where is the Boardwalk Hotel?" Posts: 4143 From: Boston, MA Registered: Apr 2002 posted 12-22-2002 06:52 PM                        quote: No digital sound -- the SDDS dropped out during the 2nd advert in the preshow and the booth never checked to see if the SDDS was working. The analog SR track was as flat as Michael Harlow said. I have never seen any of the digital formats drop out completely and never come back - except of course if the unit itself failed. Maybe they had dts and forgot to load the discs? Or did the print have the same severe optical quality problems that Mr Harlow described. I don`t know about the US, but here in Germany Warner Bros. has delivered mostly excellent prints during the last couple of years.  |  IP: Logged John Pytlak Film God Posts: 9987 From: Rochester, NY 14650-1922 Registered: Jan 2000 posted 01-28-2003 07:13 AM                        Harry Potter 2 is number three of all time Warner Bros International has reported that Harry Potter And The Chamber Of Secrets has grossed $568.2m in international territories, surpassing Jurassic Park to become the third biggest grossing international hit ever. http://www.screendaily.com/story.asp?storyid=10970  |  IP: Logged Michael Schaffer "Where is the Boardwalk Hotel?" Posts: 4143 From: Boston, MA Registered: Apr 2002 posted 01-28-2003 03:47 PM                        It would be interesting to know how much each film made with the numbers calibrated to reflect the change of the currency value of the time. Somebody told me that Star Wars was still no. 1 when inflation is taken into account but I have no idea if that is true.  |  IP: Logged David Favel Jedi Master Film Handler Posts: 764 From: Ashburton, New Zealand Registered: Feb 2002 posted 01-30-2003 01:49 AM                     http://www.boxofficemojo.com/alltime/ Figures figures & more figures. Though this still has HP 2 @ #6 as 26 jan Gone with the wind is # 1 adjusted  |  IP: Logged William Leland III Master Film Handler Posts: 336 From: Charleston, SC, Registered: Aug 2002 posted 01-30-2003 11:31 AM                        David that site rocked. Great site.  |  IP: Logged Michael Schaffer "Where is the Boardwalk Hotel?" Posts: 4143 From: Boston, MA Registered: Apr 2002 posted 01-30-2003 03:31 PM                        I found what I was looking for in the "adjusted for inflation" section. So "Gone With The Wind" is No.1 and "Star Wars" is No.2. Of course the rankings depend on how exact the inflation can be calculated. The most precise way to compare the success of movies would probably be by the number of tickets sold. I don`t like this "this movie had the biggest opening weekend of all times" which you continuously hear today because the movies hit thousands of theaters at the same time and the theaters themselves don`t profit much from the success. Of course that is how it is today where cinema is seen only as a transitory stage before the video/TV marketing.  |  IP: Logged

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