Great expectations

It is clear that we can expect great things from you, Mr. Potter.– Mr. Ollivander

Some stories are simply magical – stories like Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. Children of all ages have waited with bated breath to see Harry, the boy with the lightning scar on his forehead, with their own eyes. With a wave of the proverbial wand, The-Boy-Who-Lived comes to life on the silver screen. Still, every silver lining has its dark cloud.

In the film, when a mere infant Harry unwittingly overthrows the Dark Lord Voldemort, there are no meteor showers in the sky, no strange-robed figures parading openly in the streets. There is merely a shower of owls, an apparition of a bearded wizard with half-moon spectacles, a transfiguration of cat into a witch, and an arrival of a giant riding a flying motorcycle upon the doorstep of Number Four, Privet Drive.

Just like in the book, the all-knowing presence of Prof. Albus Dumbledore (Richard Harris) is felt, though not always seen, throughout the movie. Conversely, Prof. Minerva McGonagall (Maggie Smith) appears more agitated than imagined from the novel. Nonetheless, Rubeus Hagrid (Robbie Coltrane) looms larger than life as the gentle storybook giant.

Perhaps Harry’s story is a familiar one: An orphan who lives in a cupboard under the stairs finds out on his 11th birthday that he is, in fact, a famous wizard born of powerful wizard parents.

Be that as it may, Mr. and Mrs. Vernon Dursley (Richard Griffiths and Fiona Shaw) of Number Four, Privet Drive, are portrayed as perfectly normal people, thank you very much.

However, although passably fat, Dudley Dursley (Harry Melling) does not quite look "like a pig in a wig" as described in the novel. Neither is he shown to be the ringleader of a school gang that constantly picks on Harry. Dudley does not hit his cousin as often as he could. In the film, he is simply a brat, not a bully.

During Dudley’s birthday outing, there is no old, cat-loving Mrs. Figg, with whom Harry is to be left; no Piers Polkiss (Dudley’s best friend and sidekick) to torment Harry at the zoo. However, it is an amusing improvisation to have Dudley fall into and get trapped in the glass cage of the boa constrictor.

When the Dursley home is literally pelted with Harry’s admission letters into Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Uncle Vernon packs off the household into hiding. Though described as "the most miserable little shack you could imagine" perched on top of "a large rock way out at sea", a broken-down lighthouse, just like the one featured in the movie, springs to mind. When Harry draws a birthday cake in the sand and says, "Make a wish, Harry," the film adds a touch of premonition to the original story.

As the mists part, the scarlet steam engine at Platform 9 3/4, King’s Cross station whisks spellbound audiences off to see the wizards at Hogwarts.

Among the school instructors, Madam Hooch teaches one of the more memorable lessons-flying. Prof. Flitwick, the Charms teacher, conducts an unforgettable levitation class. In contrast, Prof. Sprout, the Herbology teacher, and Prof. Binns, the History of Magic teacher, hardly make a dent on memory. Sadly, very little is revealed until the very end about the harrowing encounters of Prof. Quirrel (Ian Hart), the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher. Surprisingly, Mr. Argus Filch, the caretaker, turns out to be quite a character. Like most menacing instructors however, Prof. Severus Snape (Alan Rickman), the Potions teacher, is, by far, the most interesting of the lot.

As Harry Potter, Daniel Radcliffe combines wide-eyed wonder with an inner depth and darkness that is rare in an 11 year old. Extremely funny and incredibly warm, Rupert Grint presents a compelling Ron Weasley. And with, perhaps, the best performance of all, Emma Watson portrays the definitive Hermione Granger with her "We might even get killed or, worse, expelled!" deliveries.

In a subtle plot deviation from the novel, Hermione trades places with Neville Longbottom and accompanies Harry and Ron when they find themselves face-to-face with a giant, three-headed dog named Fluffy.

During Halloween, Prof. McGonagall awards Harry and Ron more points for their bravery and dumb luck tackling a fully grown mountain troll. It is in this scene that Harry notices Prof. Snape limping from a wound – a wound that suspiciously looks like it was caused by a certain three-headed dog guarding the Sorcerer’s Stone.

Quidditch fans should hold on to their broomsticks as they are swept away on a fast and furious aerial ballet. In the movie, the pre-game pep talk given by Oliver Wood, the Gryffindor Team Captain, humorously heightens Harry’s anxiety.

Although exciting and illuminating, the match omits much of the lively, albeit biased, play-by-play commentary by Lee Jordan in the book. Also regrettably, the movie features only one Quidditch game instead of the two matches in the novel.

Although the book does mention that Harry’s father, James, played Quidditch, it was a stroke of cinematic genius to make him a Seeker just like Harry. Viewing a trophy encased in glass, Harry experiences a sense of pride and connection with his father.

Harry dons his father’s invisibility cloak and takes it upon himself to search the Forbidden Section of the Library for the identity of the enigmatic Nicolas Flamel. In the book, Harry jumps out of his skin when, suddenly, he sees his entire clan suddenly reflected behind him in the Mirror of Erised. In the movie, Harry silently communes with the image of his mother and father.

It is a powerfully poignant scene and a definite improvement on the story.

In the novel, Harry stumbles across the name of Nicolas Flamel at the back of a Famous Wizard trading card. In the film, Hermione is, once again, credited with discovering the identity of Nicolas Flamel, the only known maker of the Sorcerer’s Stone.

The film capitalizes on Hagrid’s penchant for divulging secrets and turns it into a funny quirk. In the scene with Norbert, the Norwegian Ridgeback dragon, Harry, Ron and Hermione reveal their suspicions about Prof. Snape.

Once again, Neville Longbottom is edited out and Ron, no longer nursing a dragon bite like he did in the novel, does detention duty with Harry, Hermione, and Draco Malfoy in the Forbidden Forest. In the film, only one centaur shows itself, the same centaur which saves Harry and warns him about the evil presence that plots to gain the Sorcerer’s Stone and immortality.

Harry, Ron, and Hermione brave Fluffy and fall through the trapdoor. Each of them faces a trial until only one of them enters the chamber where a final danger awaits.

The film faithfully improvises on the spell cast by creator JK Rowling. The production design, led by three-time Academy Award winner Stuart Craig, conjures images of a believable world. By some strange and subtle alchemy, director Chris Columbus and screenwriter Steve Cloves distill prose into film and blend plot points into a new continuum. Internal conflicts are made visible. The hook of the story remains the same: Friendship, bravery, and love weave the strongest magic of all.