Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone: Revisited

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Faneditor Name:
Franchise:
Fanedit Type:
Original Release Date:
2001
Original Running Time:
152
Fanedit Release Date:
Fanedit Running Time:
131
Time Cut:
20
Time Added:
1
Available in HD?
Brief Synopsis:
The beginning chapter of the story of the world's most beloved wizard, Harry Potter, gets a complete overhaul. Making it better fit with both the picture and sound, while also establishing a cohesive narrative on which to base the rest of the franchise.
Intention:
To make a film that was not only better paced and more interesting to watch, but also a film that echoed the visual style and tone of the later entries in the Harry Potter franchise.
Additional Notes:
New sound effects | New music | New color palettes | New pacing | New approach ... and a deep, deep passion.
Other Sources:
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Parts 1 & 2
Special Thanks:
Scar (for the amazing cover-art)
Release Information:
Digital
Editing Details:
- New sound effects
- New music
- New colour timing
Cuts and Additions:
- Entire movie is color corrected to fit the visual tone of the rest of the series. All bright and golden colors are now absent and color palette replaced with a slight blue/green-darker one resembling that of Prisoner of Azkaban and Goblet of Fire.
- Much of the movie is re-scored and integrated with new sound effects.
- Private Drive & the arrival of the three Wizards and Baby Harry is removed, leading to;
- The entire opening is re-imagined and re-made to set a new tone and develop a more engaging story. Why start the movie with magic if the magic is not yet explored? We follow the eyes of Harry here.
- A flashback-sequence to Grimmold's Place is incorporated as a nightmare to which Harry wakes up to (can be seen in the opening sequence up above).
- Trimmed Dudley & Harry "going to the zoo" sequence in the stairs simply for pacing; Dudley doesn't run down the stairs and then back up again before starting to jump.
- Soundtrack added to Harry & Vernon "Any funny business, any at all.." outside the car. This sets the tone for how Harry really feel in the company of the Dursleys and also how the audience should feel. He has been, and is being, treated poorly and this never comes across like i feel it should. Now I've changed that. It comes across through an emotional, yet very subtle soundtrack from Half-Blood Prince during one of Harry & Dumbledore's last conversations ("I can still see the small boy from the cupboard.."). This is also to strengthen that scene when it shows up five movies from now.
- New soundtrack and sfx added to Zoo-Snake sequence, as well as a new glasswindow effect. This is the first time we see Harry use magic and to me it felt like it should be a gamechanger. Now it comes across like that in a very thematic way.
- "There's no such thing as magic"-sequence is altered with music, tone and sfx.
- SFX added when Owls gather outside Private Drive.
- "The Hut in the Ocean" has been heavily altered, scene by scene, with a new color palette. New SFX at slow or bad parts as well.
- A subtle, but emotionally powerful soundtrack is playing when Harry is given his birthday cake from Hagrid. This is the beginning of a great friendship, and the first time ever that Harry gets a gift given to him. It's actually a strong scene.
- Hutscene altered with sfx, music, effects and toneset. As Harry's past is slowly revealed to him by Hagrid the tone develops properly with it. This scene is strictly beautiful now and very emotional.
- Harry leaving his old world behind and deciding to go with Hagrid has been altered with a new and beautiful soundtrack. This scene should'nt just be a gamechanger, it should feel like it. Also new background SFX due to audio alterations.
- Harry & Hagrid on train to London was reincorporated into the movie from Deleted Scenes. Removed it again due to pacing, and the fact that the dragon subplot is completely removed from this fanedit.
- The Leaky Cauldron/The Inn is better paced and much more amusing and thematic. One of the many problems of the theatrical was it's poor cinematography and tone in all the quiet places.
- All overlong shots of both the Inn, Diagon Alley, Ollivander's Wandshop, Gryffindor Common room, The Great Hall etc have been altered and trimmed. There are some many weird, long shots in this movie. This is finally fixed upon now and helps give the movie a better-paced feel as we explore the world of Harry Potter.
- Gringotts introduction sequence altered with completely new music and sound effects, including a minor part of the old for nostalgia.
- Gringotts underworld scenes have been altered with sinister music. The theatrical score is too much on an upbeat opposite the color and tone set in this re-visitation, and therefore many such changes are necessary.
- The reveal of Harry's vault now has an overwhelming, exploding kinda feel to it. New SFX. We should all be 'Holy shee-' at this reveal. Now we feel it in our guts.
- The Sorcerer's Stone is now glooming slightly red from underneath the paper to make the object more significant and also give Harry's assumptions about "the object Hagrid took from vault 713" more meaning.
- Olivander's wandshop is altered. This sequence, as Diagon Alley, has been re-colored throughly. A very important scene, maybe the most important and impactful scene of the series.
- Olivander's Wandshop sequence has been changed. Harry now tries one more extra wand (3 in total) instead of 2 (theatrical). There is also traces of upcoming thematic themes, such as Voldemort's theme (from both GoF and DH) and Secrets of the Castle. All very subtle, but enough to help create the series thematic narrative. It's also much tighter edited for pacing.
- Harry touching his wand (we are all thinking it..) for the first time is now accompanied by a bass.
- Hagrid telling about Lord Voldemort is altered. Flashback-sequence heavily altered with a complete, new sfx and soundtrack as well as much new footage. And, of course, stars Harry's father which I deem crucial!
- Harry & Hagrid "What happened to Voldemort?" - "I reckon he's still out there..," is removed. It is a big cliché and a big mistake to let the audience know the antagonist's fate this early on. It is ment to build suspense, but what it does is always to diminish it. The audience knowing nothing about Lord Voldemort's whereabouts, mostly assuming he's dead or gone for the movie, will give the reveal of his existence so much more impact and be so much more sinister.
- Professor Quirell and Harry's handshake moment is removed. They meet, they say goodbye. The whole "not that you need it, eh, P-p-otter," was poorly executed and therefore very awkward. Also, a soundtrack is slighty added and altered to the scene to make the entire Inn (and subconsciously Quirell both) feel suspicious to the audience. Not anything obvious of course that would diminish the entire plot twist of the movie, just give it more sense.
- Diagon Alley entrance re-scored with both music and sound effects. The brickwall opening a gateway to something Harry did not yet know of should be as intimidating as exciting, therefore the change. I still want the audience to feel what Harry feels as well as to keep track with the overall thematic tone of the movie now set, which is now grittier, yet still exploratory and wonderful.
- Diagon Alley completely re-colored, almost scene by scene. The original had so many colors and awkward blooms I had to pick them off one by one.
- Apparition-sound added a few seconds after Hagrid leaves screen at King's Cross "hold on to ya'r ticket, 'arry".
- Entrance to Platform 9 3/4 sequence is altered.
- Trainsequence is altered and trimmed. These sequences are simply too long and we are on overdue. No candyeating!
- Hermione introduction altered. A slight comedic soundtrack added. Harry & Ron are literally thinking "this girl is crazily high on herself", and she is, so let's play with the audiences feelings a little more. It gives her introduction more power.
- Hogwarts reveal altered.
- First "Inside the Castle" is altered with new music at one part.
- Neville losing his toad and interrupting McGonagall is removed.
- Draco Malfoy introduction removed. It felt forced. These boys should not be rivals by some straight-forward dialog literally saying "chose the dark or light side, harry, and if light, we're not friends," but rather by showing it. The good ol' show, do not tell approach always wins as it does not take the audience for a fool.
- Draco Malfoy being chosen to Slytherin house is altered, so is the introduction to Snape, and Harry's burning scar. Much more impactful scenes now.
- Impact SFX added when the Sorting Hat is placed on Harry.
- "John Cleese" and Ghosts floating around The Great Hall is all removed. Bad CGI, unecessary drag and it's time to get this movie's plot started already. I had it in for some time with certain alterations to the ghosts to make them look more natural, but in the end It felt right to remove this sequence.
- Harry looking at the nightsky in the Common Room with Hedwig by his side, beautiful as this scene is from beforehand, now also has "A window to the past" playing before transitioning over to the original Harry's theme. Two big soundtracks that in many ways define Harry's growth, and what he feels deep inside.
- Potion sequence deleted. Reasons are stated on Page 11.
- Voldemort's theme added when the 3 friends read the Daily Prophet about the Gringotts robbery.
- New transition shot added.
- Courtyard Broomstick Practice with Madam Hooch is heavily altered.
- Harry meeting Oliver Wood, accompanied by McGonagall, is better paced and altered with a soundtrack.
- Sinister music ("Dumbledore's Speech") added when the 3 friends are traveling through Hogwarts at night, before visiting the third floor.
- The Third floor heavily altered. The reveal of the Three-Headed-Dog much more impactful. The animal looks more natural now than CGI-heavy. Keyframed and edited.
- New Transition shot between previous sequence and next one;
- The 3 friends discussing the dog and what just transpired, is altered. New sfx, new music and overall much of a more menacing and worrying scene.
- New transition shot when "The Troll" is revealed to be lurking in the dungeons and the Prefects take the students to their Common Room.
- SFX added when Harry & Ron see the Troll.
- Some new SFX added for the troll.
- Removed some of the dumb and unecessary "hammer-dodging" from Harry while grabbed by the troll.
- Hermione doesn't dumb up and yell "Swish and Flick!".
- New soundtrack added for when the teachers arrive.
- Suspicious music for when Harry sees Snape's leg.
- A subtle Voldemort's Theme added at "Last night, I'm guessing Snape let the dog in as a diversion".
- Quidditch Match heavily color corrected.
- Some musical bits have been altered and replaced with the Quidditch Match soundtrack from the third movie.
- Quidditch Match much better paced.
- New Christmas Theme and SFX in the transition shot.
- The Invisibility Cloak :: new soundtrack to create a connection with the Deathly Hallows.
- The Forbidden Section in the Library :: altered.
- SFX added to Door being opened and closed when Harry enters the room to the Mirror of Erised.
- New soundtrack added to that sequence.
- Removed Ron's introduction to the mirror. Destroyed the emotional pace I wanted for these sequences.
- Deleted Scene re-incorporated.
- New SFX and soundtrack added to the second time Harry visits the mirror.
- New SFX and soundtrack for the transition shot to Spring. Strictly beautiful.
- "Visiting Hagrid's hut". Dragon and it's subplot is removed.
- When the three friends see Malfoy, they panic and go back to the castle. It's all better paced.
- Next scene, in the castle, prolonged with one second as we need a slower transition between these two scenes. The bird now beeps twice before camera pans, though the background is keyframed to behave as if no change was made.
- Completely new SFX and soundtrack added to Filtch escorting the kids to Hagrid's hut for their punishment. It's pretty darn scary now.
- The Forbidden Forest heavily altered.
- The Unicorn now groans in pain as Harry and Draco see Voldemort drinking blood from it.
- The encounter with Voldemort altered. Very scary now. Parseltoungue can also be heard as Harry touches his scar.
- Voldemort's sharkteeth are removed. He doesn't have those later on in the movie or series, so let's friggin remove it. Looked ridiciolous.
- Voldemort doesn't growl like a beast because he isn't one.
- Voldemort can be heard saying "Kill him!" to Quirell as Harry looks away. Creates a more realistic dynamic between Quirell and Voldemort, and also builds meaning to the fact that there are actually two persons there underneath the dark hood, not just one. Gives the Two-Headed reveal more meaning at the end.
- The Unicorn saving Harry ("Florence") is altered. He comes faster into the frame and out of it, to show Voldemort's escape as quicker and more realistic to the audience. It looked very staged in the original.
- The 3 Friends discussing Voldemort's apperance in the Forbidden Forest is altered.
- Removed the 3 Friends visiting Hagrid and Hagrid being dumbed-down for like the fifth time throughout the original movie and tell them everything they need to know. This subplot isn't even really needed for the movie to work.
- Asking for Dumbledore-sequence is altered. They ask McGonagall, get told to retreat but instead the three friends decide to go down the trapped door immediately after. This also leads to my next change;
- Removed scene with Snape (this is saddening, but the scene was pretty bad and it completely destroyed the pace I was looking for).
- Neville confronts the friends. Music altered.
- The 3 Friends walk down to the Third floor. Music altered.
- Harp is already playing. We didn't need the dumbed-down Hagrid flute subplot for this to have an affect.
- Devil's Snare sequence heavily altered. Much, much more intense.
- New music to the Flying Keys-challenge.
- Not a new change, but worth noting; No changes were made, except for color and some minor SFX changes, to the Key-and Chesschallenges. They worked pretty good as they were made for the original, and held up well with the tone and suspense built throughout this edit.
- Harry & Hermione's theme from Half-Blood Prince added when they talk together before Harry's last task.
- Voldemort's Theme added throughout Voldemort Confrontation.
- Some of Quirell's overly explanatory dialogue is removed. We're not idiots, and some of it isn't even needed to be told.
- SFX added when Voldemort speak for the first time from underneath the turban.
- A gut-wrenching flashback sequence is added to when Voldemort's face is revealed. I love this sequence so much, and it has been nitpicked for a long, long time! I feel it's length and sole purpose is perfect now!
- SFX added to when Harry says 'Voldemort'. Now we know. Our fears have come true.
- Lily's theme sublty added to when Harry sees his parents in the mirrory flames.
- Ending completely re-arranged. It's heartwrenching. Flashback sequences added. This is my definite favourite peak of this fanedit! Have a tissue nearby!
Cover art by Scar (DOWNLOAD HERE) image

Opening

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Overall rating
 
9.2
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9.0(16)
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9.6(16)
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9.4(16)
Narrative
 
9.1(16)
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8.9(16)
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Overall rating
 
10.0
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10.0
My Harry Potter collection is very dusty. That means I have not touched those in a long time. I cannot remember when I even saw this movie. I watched the latest edit that was released. I am unable to compare to my prior experience, but it definitely feels so much better based on the little I do remember.

The movie also felt visually superior and I liked the revised musical score matching the rest of the franchise. I intend to go through the rest of the revisited series when released. This one was excellent (as was Chamber of Secrets where I effectively will provide this exact review because I only have a very hazy memory).

For those who have the movies gathering dust, this is a highly recommended and excellent way to revive the Harry Potter experience.

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Yes
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Digital
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Overall rating
 
8.6
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10.0
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10.0
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9.0
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7.0
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7.0
The amount of continuity errors unfortunately took me out of the movie but not entirely though as to the continuity errors themselves.

The first occurred When Ron was attempting to turn Scabbers in one scene the sweet box comes of his head but in the next scene that shows him with Hermione standing outside the door the sweet box is back on his head.

When McGonagall says your house will be like your family it should have cut to the Great Hall doors opening to make for a smoother transition and to quicken the narrative pacing.

During the scene where the Troll takes a second swing of its club at Harry the sudden cut to Ron casting the spell felt a bit jarring to quick as another scene could have been added before he casts the spell.

Well I thought the scene with the Mirror was done pretty well the use of Jame’s actor from Sorcerer’s Stone contradicts the flashbacks as his appearance is different between those scenes, digitally removing Jame’s Sorcerer’s Stone actor from the Mirror and digitally placing his actor from the later films would be a good way to fix this continuity error.

When Hermione reads the book on Nicholas Flamel the various text in that book reads PHILOSOPHER’S STONE creating some plotholes the first being why everyone keeps calling it the Sorcerer’s Stone when Nicholas Flamel refers to it as the Philosopher’s Stone and it also makes it seem like Hermione can’t read properly and that she and everyone else in the Wizarding World are trying to discredit the author and call the stone by a name that they prefer, these plotholes could be fixed by either digitally altering the text in Nicholas Flamel’s book to read SORCERER’S STONE or through burning and editing a DVD of Philosopher’s Stone.

The scene where Malfoy appears outside should have played until he leaves with Harry than stating his name as it than cuts to Hagrid saying oh dear instead of him going over to the table as it would have made for a smoother and quicker transition.

During the Devil’s Snare scene the immediate cut to Hermione’s face after she tells Harry and Ron to relax felt way to fast and jarring as another scene could have been placed after she told them to relax before transitioning to the scene where the Devil’s Snare swallows her up.

As for the flashbacks well they certainly are an interesting element you decided to incorporate into the edit I felt that there was to many of them as it would have been better if the flashbacks were used more sparingly such as the scene where Hagrid is explaining to Harry about his parents and when Harry meets Voldemort for the final time in this edit.

As to what I enjoyed your choice of music really gave a lot of emotional power and resonance to the scenes that accompanied them as I was completely blown away and the darker filter gave the film a more consistent and mature feel that the films from Azkaban onwards while preserving the magic that made Philosopher’s Stone or for those outside the UK Sorcerer’s Stone so great in the first place.

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Overall rating
 
9.6
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10.0
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10.0
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10.0
Narrative
 
9.0
Enjoyment
 
9.0
I hadn’t seen the original for probably a decade, and besides the flashback sequences, it was hard for me to tell what Andreas had changed. Yes, it looked darker (tonewise) but actually there were still a lot of lighter, little kid elements to it. This was great for me, since I think the films should grow up with the main characters. I was worried it would be TOO dark, but I’d say all the small trims and music changes simply accomplish the goal of making it fit better with the rest of the series.

I actually couldn’t remember any scenes that were missing while watching it, and at over 2 hours, it’s probably the best length now. Upon reflection, I realized we'd missed the candy-eating (which I DID quite like), some stuff with Hagrid (which I was thankful to trim), and the ending points ceremony (which honestly was kind of necessary for me as an American that was completely unfamiliar with this school tradition. However, it actually probably doesn't fit well with the overarching tone of the films.) I read as well that many people lamented the loss of Snape's class, but I think he is set up as enough of an ambiguous, threatening presence here to fit his role in the series. It always seemed too telegraphed to me that he just instantly is a jerk to this child... it's a pretty childish way of portraying him, whatever excuses you make for his backstory. Making this a bit of a more mature film, I think the current portrayal fits just right.

I do have to echo other reviewers in saying that my fondness for the flashback sequence wore thin after the 2nd or 3rd repetition. It is a nice way to start the film, and I'm not opposed to the idea of repeated flashes, but only if they were alternate shots/angles/variations. It's just too much repetition, imho. However, overall, this is a fantastic fanedit, and my preferred way to watch the film now.

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Overall rating
 
8.2
Audio/Video Quality
 
9.0
Audio Editing
 
7.0
Visual Editing
 
9.0
Narrative
 
8.0
Enjoyment
 
8.0
When I first heard you were attempting to bring the tone of the film more in line with the others in the series I had mixed feelings about it. On the one hand, Philosopher’s Stone is my 2nd least favorite movie, but I was worried that you might possibly go too far in the attempt to darken the movie. I’m glad to say that my fears were completely unfounded. This is quite a brilliant edit, and though it has it’s problems, it’s so well done that those complaints don’t amount to much. Reworking the first few scenes of the film was an inspired choice and it works really well in changing the tone of the film. I also really loved the insertion of exterior shots from later movies in order to help make the changes between the 2nd and 3rd film less jarring. The musical score changes and additions are welcome. Most of the time it’s done seamlessly enough that if I hadn’t seen the movie over a hundred times (not exaggerating here) I wouldn’t have noticed.

That being said there were a few sections where I could hear the original track underneath the new music, and several times the new music would only play for a few seconds before disappearing which left me confused as to why the soundtrack changed there. The only music choice that I felt was bad was when they see Hogwarts from the boats. Mostly because the tone of the music doesn’t gel with the visuals at all. The school is lit up all nice and warm and you can see the smiles of joy and wonder on the kid's faces as they approach the school. If you were going to change it I think using a less foreboding theme would have been best.

I thought the removal of Norbert was an interesting choice. I’ve never even thought of removing that scene, but it works really well. There were also a few narrative decisions that didn’t quite work. The last act suffers a bit from the removals that were made. Removing the scene of Hagrid telling them how to get past Fluffy makes the pace moves a bit to fast and makes the trio look like complete idiots for trying to get past Fluffy with no idea how to do so, but the removal of Norbert, as well as the fact that Hagrid’s hut is in a different location from later films, necessitates this. Also, the flashback was used a bit too often.

The only other complaint I have is really minor and doesn’t affect my rating at all but I just thought I’d mention it. I wish you had used the Philosopher’s Stone edit instead of Sorcerer’s Stone but again that’s more of a personal preference than anything else. I still prefer the extended cut of the original movie, and this is mostly because a few important scenes for both the pacing and narrative structure were removed, making the film feel a bit too fast. That being said I’d still give this edit an 8/10 and would highly recommend it to anyone who’d like a different take on the film. I can’t wait to watch Chamber of Secrets Revisited and take a look at both Goblet of Fire and Order of the Phoenix Revisited.

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Overall rating
 
9.8
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10.0
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9.0
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10.0
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10.0
Enjoyment
 
10.0
HP and the Sorcerer's Stone: Revisited has to be one of the best fanedits I've ever come across, and that's how I discovered the man behind the magic, Andreas!

The visual editing is seamless, the A/V quality is spot on, the reworked narrative is solid, and the new score fits the scenes like a glove! Plus, the new colour grade is a step up from the oversaturated pinkishness of the theatrical cut. Now admittedly, some of John Williams' original score is still somewhat present under the newly selected tracks, but all in all, this is a very minor complaint.

If you Potterheads are looking for a more mature take on the Columbus era of the Harry Potter films, this fanedit is for you!

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