Review of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002) by James S — 14 Feb 2015

Now that the origin story is out of the way, the second installment allows us to sit back and just enjoy a rollicking good time. It's cool looking back after having observed the entire series to see the clues that Rowling planted early on that would pay off in later books.

While the movie once again simplifies aspects of the plot, it still remains very faithful to the book, and keeps all the warmth and heart of the first film. Characters are given an appropriate amount of screen time, and there's some great development for Harry, Ron, and Hermione.

There are some new actors to the franchise as well, with Jason Isaacs doing a splendid job as Lucius Malfoy, and Toby Jones providing a very believable voice for Dobby. The one that takes the cake, though, is Kenneth Branaugh as Gilderoy Lockhart. His bravado and pomposity elevate this truly annoying character into a theatrical performance that stays with you right through to the end of the film. The character is easy to despise, but you cannot deny the force of this performance.

John Williams continues to deliver a fantastic musical score for this film as well. The spider theme is appropriately creepy, and the closing "Reunion of Friends" still makes my eyes well up.

While the kids are still young here, you can definitely see that they are starting to grow up, which will become very important down the road as they gradually lose their childish innocence and begin to take their place in the wizarding world.