Classic Review #51: Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

Available on Netflix

The Harry Potter series got decidedly darker in its second instalment, as its titular hero attempts to prevent another attempt by the villainous Lord Voldermort to return to his human form. Ordinarily, such a tonal shift would be welcome but the Chamber of Secrets is weighed down by an excessive run-time and the fact it asks its fledgling star Daniel Radcliffe to do too much heavy lifting.

Director Chris Columbus and screenwriter Steve Kloves’ faithfulness to J.K. Rowling’s source material is mostly admirable and a big part of the reason why both this film and its predecessor did such a good job of establishing the author’s wizarding world. However, this film arguably sees them take their fealty too far, with its duration likely to test the patience of even the most eager of fans.

Radcliffe’s struggle to transition into more mature dramatic territory are more a consequence of circumstance than anything else, but do leave you yearning for the effective comic relief of Emma Watson and Rupert Grint, who have the good fortune of being able to continue with their characters’ shtick from the preceding Philosopher’s Stone. Also bringing laughs aplenty is Kenneth Branagh, who would have stolen the show as the delightfully useless Gilderoy Lockhart were it not for Jason Isaacs’ scene-stealing turn as the nefarious Lucius Malfoy.

The film’s special and visual effects, although now somewhat dated, are also impressive, with the characters of Aragog and Dobby remaining firm favourites, although the appeal of the latter still remains lost on me. Essentially, what we have here is a flawed but nonetheless effective sequel which achieved its mission of sustaining the franchise’s momentum, with a whopping $926 million grossed worldwide.