Review Detail

This fanedit was a fantastic experience. Firstly, Andreas worked wonders with the score, which has reshaped this movie into the suspenseful, thrilling experience it could have been. Melancholy, dread, danger: all expertly created now in places that they did not exist before. Secondly, the recoloration work Andreas has done really has changed the feel of this film: he's come as close as I think possible to making this film look like the films that follow it. Lastly, his judicious cuts make for a much improved narrative experience, adding mystery where it should have been, removing exposition where it wasn't needed, and trimming unnecessary humor so that what was left was actually funny. I thought the abbreviated ending is perfect. Wham, bam, done.

My only three, and very minor, suggestions would have been 1) trimming Dobby jumping up and down on the bed on his first appearance, 2) making it slightly clearer that Harry is serving detention as a result of the Whomping Willow/ flying car incident, and 3) leaving the Hagrid/ Riddle flashback before we see Aragog fleeing the box. #1 and #3 I think would have added a dash more mystery to each of their respective scenes, by removing a little whimsy from Dobby, and by casting a bit mored doubt on what exactly Hagrid was up to. #2 just felt slightly disconnected, partly I think due to the detention being a few scenes removed from the car crash and Snape's berating. Whether or not that disconnect is worth the much improved pace in this case, I can't say.

What I can say, again, is well done, Andreas. I'm planning on having a backyard double screening of these sometime this summer for a few friends, so they too can see what could have/ should have been. As far as I'm concerned now, these ARE how the Harry Potter series begins.