Overall Rating: 63.5
The second film in the "Harry Potter" series, "Chamber of Secrets" sees the young wizards return to Hogwarts for their second year of wizardry school. Ignoring warnings of death should he return, Harry Potter and the gang must unravel the mystery of the titular Chamber of Secrets, that is causing students to be petrified.
With "Chamber", however, the storytelling seems to take a back seat to wowing the audience with visual effects and what I like to call, the "kid at heart" moments, where the film focuses more on showcasing something that a 10 year old wishes were real. These visual effects on their own are unique and entertaining for the younger audience, but takes away from the overall storytelling.
Following up on the first entry "The Sorcerer's Stone", "Chamber" falls into the same routine/pattern. Show Harry's abusive adopted family, let the audience know what the mystery of the film is, have a quidditch match, then solve the entire mystery at hand in the final 30 minutes. It worked for the first film where we are being introduced to the magical world of Potter, but seeing the same template unfold in "Chamber" left me feeling like I was watching a photocopied letter, only with different font.
Still being young into their acting careers, the children in the film appear to still be learning how to portray emotion. It's easy to write them off as inexperienced, but when 85% of your cast are child actors, it affects the viewing enjoyment after a while if they don't have any range. Whether it's Rupert Grint's constant look of open mouthed fear, Emma Watson's know-it-all smirks, or Daniel Radcliffe's amazed bewilderment, we don't get to see a wide range of character emotion.
As previously mentioned, what "Chamber" does do well is visually and aurally stimulate the audience. John Williams' score uplifts the viewer to a heightened sense of wonder, as is so often the case with his work. The CGI seemed sharper than in "Sorcerer's Stone", if by ever so little.
All in all, "Chamber of Secrets" undoubtedly serves a purpose in the grand scheme of things in the Harry Potter universe, but as a standalone movie, it comes up short.
Individual Ratings
Enjoyment Factor: 5
Dialogue: 6
Acting: 6
Direction: 8
Audio/Visual: 8
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