When you ask the average Potterhead what their favorite Harry Potter movie is, the chances they might say “Prisoner of Azkaban” are decent. It’s an Alfonso-oriented director Alfonso Cuaron, whose filming is amazing and everyone’s hair looks great. (/Official ranking of film series, “Azkaban” reigns best.) If you ask them about their most favorite “Potter” movie, they might say “The Goblet of Fire”. . It’s something that doesn’t stuff a lot of the 700+ page source material into a single movie and stuffs it, and that’s something that no one has a haircut.
If it’s not “Goblet of Fire,” fans may choose “Half Blood Prince.” They may also choose “Deathly Hallows: Part 1.” But at least according to IMDB, there is one clear loser in Harry Potter movies, and that’s the second film, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets.
With a 7.4 out of 10 ratings, “Chamber of Secrets” is significantly lower than the series’ “Deathly Halloween: Part 2” (rating 8.1). So why is poor “secret rooms” not so popular? Well, that’s complicated. Let me explain.
“The Secret Room” is definitely too long
Warner Bros.
The 300-page book adaptation of Chamber of Secrets is 2 hours and 41 minutes long. It is the longest in the series, and it feels strange considering that the short “Potter” film later adapted books that were more than twice as large as the size. One reason for this is that these first two films were essentially installments that bear the load on the franchise. They established tones and a ton of world buildings, explaining everything they need to know so that viewers don’t have to make later films. The unfortunate outcome is that the pacing of the “secret chamber” feels a little dull.
What makes “The Secret Room” worse is that there is no fresh new vibe from the first film. The Harry Potter series grows darker, more mature and more ambitiously as it progresses, but it’s not until “Prisoners of Azkaban” that this trend is revealed. The “Church of Secrets” seems to be on the same level as the “Sorcerer’s Stone”, but “Azkaban” is an undeniable step-up. There is also the issue of composer John Williams not being much involved in the film’s score, but he returned with victory in “Azkaban.” The soundtrack for “Chamber of Secrets” is significantly worse than the soundtrack just before and after.
The film also includes Dobby (voiced by Toby Jones), one of the series’ most controversial characters. In many cases, compared to Jar Jar Bink in “Star Wars,” Dobby tests patience with constant interference and fretting in the audience. He certainly doesn’t help with complaints about the length of the film. When Dobby is displayed on the screen, it is difficult to resist the urge to fast forward. What’s even worse about “Chamber of Secrets” is that later films (outside of “Deathly Hallows: Part 1”) do not feature Dobby at all. For some fans, the film is a dobby film and that’s not allowed.
Why is the “Church of Secrets” worthy of a clock?
Warner Bros.
Full disclosure: When I was a kid, I had a small TV and one good VHS tape in my room, and that VHS tape was this movie. As a result, I watched the film dozens of times over the course of several months, and to the point where every line is remembered. For some reason, we found out that Rupert Grint had found a delivery for the line. It’s really interesting and quotes it in situations where it didn’t apply.
Unnecessarily: I like this movie. And I can testify when you are eight years old that creepy and mysterious tone strikes a hard blow. This is the “Potter” film that best serves as a murder mystery story, with the main trio all solving a great case as three enhanced detectives. Certainly, it can be argued that every Potter movie is a mystery story, but the question of who is causing all this transformation is the juicy whodunnit that the series has to offer This is the premise of:
But the biggest part of “Secrets of Secrets” is that it is the last “Harry Potter” film that doesn’t ignore Ron or portray it in a negative light. Rupert Grint was the best of the three main children actors (at least in the first few films), and this film made the most of it. The whole fandom may not love this second move, but Ron’s fans were at least exploding.
