Entertainment
 

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (film)

From Harry Potter Wiki

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
Film information
Director(s)

Chris Columbus

Producer(s)

David Heyman

Writer(s)
Starring
Music by
  • Composed by: John Williams
  • Conducted by: William Ross
Distributor(s)

Warner Bros.

Release Date(s)

November 15, 2002 (US, UK)

  • November 28, 2002 (AUS)
Rated

PG

Running Time

161 minutes

Budget

$100 million

Gross Revenue

$878,988,482

Preceded by

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (film)

Followed by

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (film)

The film version of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets was based on the second book in the series, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. It was directed by Chris Columbus and Steve Kloves was the scriptwriter.

Contents

[edit] Cast

[edit] Main Characters

[edit] Hogwarts staff

[edit] Ghosts and objects

[edit] Pupils

[edit] Other

[edit] Chapters

1. In a Cage 2. Dobby's Warning 3. Car Rescue 4. The Burrow 5. To Diagon Alley 6. Flourish and Blotts 7. Flying to Hogwarts 8. Whomping Willow 9. Mandrakes; Ron's Howler 10. Gilderoy Lockhart 11. Mudbloods and Murmurs 12. Writing on the Wall 13. About the Chamber 14. Rogue Bludger 15. No Longer Safe 16. Duelling Club 17. A Parselmouth 18. Nothing to Tell 19. Polyjuice Potion 20. Harry and Ron Transformed 21. The Diary 22. Tom Riddle 23. Petrified 24. Cornelius Fudge 25. Aragog 26. Spider Attack 27. Missing 28. Chamber of Secrets 29. Backfire 30. Heir of Slytherin 31. The Basilisk 32. Healing Powers 33. Out of the Hat 34. Dobby's Reward 35. Welcome Back 36. End Credits

[edit] Plot Summary

Just as Harry Potter is packing his bags to leave the Dursleys, he receives a warning from a house-elf named Dobby, that if Harry goes back to Hogwarts, disaster will strike.

And it does. The new stuck-up Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher Gilderoy Lockhart, the wailing bathroom ghost Moaning Myrtle, and the new lessons at Hogwarts seem like only minor details when a mysterious creature starts Petrifying Muggle-born students. But everyone's wondering the same thing: Who set the creature on the Muggle-borns? Could it be Draco Malfoy, the new Slytherin Seeker and a more poisonous rival than ever? Maybe it's Hagrid, whose strange past is finally told. Or could it possibly be the one that everyone at Hogwarts most suspects: Harry Potter himself!

[edit] Differences from the Book

  • In the books, whenever Dobby Disapparates, the usual load crack is heard. But in the film, Dobby appears and disappears quietly.
  • The film shows Dobby levitating the pudding into the sitting room and dropping it on top of Mrs Mason. In the novel, however, Dobby dropped the pudding in the kitchen.
  • A scene is cut where the Ministry sends a letter to reprimand Harry for violating the Decree for the Reasonable Restriction of Underage Sorcery which caused the Dursleys to learn of this rule. This causes a continuity error in the following film where Vernon Dursley already knew that Harry cannot perform magic outside of school. This is because the scene was in the original script and likely filmed; it was not included on the initial DVD release, but will most likely feature on the announced Ultimate Edition.
  • In the book, when Harry arrives at the Weasley's home, Mrs. Weasley makes her sons "de-gnome" the garden. In the film, when they arrive they go straight into having breakfast.
  • The scene where Harry eavesdrops on Lucius and Draco Malfoy's business with Borgin was filmed, but ultimately cut from the film. It is included in the deleted scenes section of the DVD. An alternate version of the same scene, where Harry is caught by Borgin was also filmed and included on the DVD.
  • In the book, Mr. Weasley repairs Harry's glasses in Diagon Alley, but in the film, Hermione repairs them.
  • The part where Arthur Weasley fights with Lucius Malfoy in Flourish and Blotts is omitted. Instead, they only exchange tense words.
  • When they meet in Diagon Alley, Hermione chides Lucius Malfoy for not using Voldemort's name. In the books, she frequently refers to him as "You-Know-Who" and indeed in the fifth film, as in the book, she shows visible reluctance to call him Voldemort.
  • In the film, Argus Filch finds Harry and Ron and takes them to Professor Snape's office, but in the book, Snape himself finds Harry and Ron and takes them to his office.
  • In the book, Hermione has never heard the term "Mudblood" before, and Ron later explained the definition to her. In the film, she has, is deeply offended, and explains what it means to Harry, though Hagrid later defines its origin for Harry and Ron and says exactly what Ron says in the book.
  • Ernie Macmillan's role is diminished to a non-speaking part. The part where he and Hannah Abbott talk in the library about their theory of Harry wanting to attack Justin Finch-Fletchley was cut, but appears on the deleted scenes. Also, Ernie is the one who blames Harry for attacking Justin when he is discovered, Petrified, but in the film, Argus Filch finds Harry and wants to expel him. In the book, it was Peeves who found him, and sung his funny song.
  • As with the previous film, the character of Peeves is omitted completely.
  • Nearly Headless Nick's Deathday Party is omitted.
  • Draco Malfoy falls off his broom and is injured so he has to get sent to the hospital wing in the Quidditch match. In the book Draco emerges unscathed.
  • In the Duelling Club scene, Harry and Draco are the only combatants participating, while in the novel, other classmates in their year are shown participating along with them, such as Hermione, Millicent Bulstrode, Ron, Seamus, Neville, and Justin Finch-Fletchley.
  • Also in the Duelling Club sequence, when Harry speaks Parseltongue, in the book, the reader knows what he says immediately (as was the case when Harry spoke with the snake at the zoo in the film version of Philosopher's Stone), in the film, it's only hissing sounds until Harry explains what he said to Ron and Hermione. Other uses of the language later in the film are left untranslated.
  • A line that Snape spoke in the book "Longbottom causes devastation with the simplest spells", was changed to "Weasley's wand causes devastation with the simplest spells" after Professor Lockhart chose Ron and Harry to demonstrate the Disarming Charm (in the book, Snape spoke instead about Neville Longbottom). The film also changed the line "We'll be sending what's left of Finch-Fletchley up to the hospital wing in a matchbox" to "We'll be sending what's left of Potter up to the hospital wing in a matchbox" as Justin Finch-Fletchley did not duel during the scene, either.
  • Also in the Duelling Club scene, Rictusempra was used like a Stunning Spell which caused Malfoy to be thrown up in a back flip. In the book, Rictusempra was described to give its receiver an uncontrollable tickling sensation. Tarantallegra, a jinx used to force someone to dance wildly and involuntarily, was also not mentioned in the movie. In addition, attacking with a Serpensortia spell was Malfoy's own choice, whereas in the novel, Snape was the one who gave him that idea. Everte Statum was also not mentioned in the book but was used in the film.
  • In the book, Armando Dippet is the one to talk to Tom Riddle about Hogwarts closing. In the film, Dumbledore talks to Tom, although there was supposedly a scene filmed where Riddle and Dippet did talk, which was cut for time and not included on the initial DVD release.
  • In the book, to borrow the Moste Potente Potions book from the library, which had the recipe for the Polyjuice Potion, Hermione had to get a note from Gilderoy Lockhart (which he signed without looking at). In the film, the scene was omitted, and the book was in the regular section of the library.
  • The scene in which Harry, Ron, and Hermione cause a disturbance in Potions class to steal ingredients from Professor Snape was omitted. This caused a continuity error for the film version of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire where Snape accused Harry of brewing Polyjuice Potion by stealing its ingredients "again". It is unknown whether this scene will appear on the Ultimate Edition, as it was not in the original script; however, the scene where Riddle and Dippet talk was not part of the original script either so it is possible.
  • The Polyjuice Potion in the book changes colours as you add the hair. In the film, It does not change colours at all.
  • The effects of the Polyjuice Potion differ from book to film. In the film, Harry and Ron's voices do not change when they become Crabbe and Goyle, forcing them to imitate these voices. This causes a continuity error with Barty Crouch Jr.'s usage of the Polyjuice Potion in the film adaptation of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (although it is possible Crouch was imitating Moody's voice). Also in the film, Harry does not need to remove his glasses, however in the book his vision changes and he takes his glasses off.
  • The scene in the Great Hall during the Christmas Feast, Hermione simply says that she got Millicent Bulstrode's hair off her robes. The novel, however, depicts her and Millicent in the Duelling club where Millicent is headlocking Hermione, and she happens to find black hair on her robes.
  • The part where Hermione gets a get well soon card from Gilderoy Lockhart is omitted, but included in the original script and probably on the extended edition.
  • In the book, Professor Binns explains to the class about the Chamber of Secrets during a History of Magic class, but in the film, Minerva McGonagall explains it to the students during a Transfiguration class as Professor Binns is not in the film. In the game, Professor Flitwick explains it during a Charms lesson.
  • The part when Harry gets his valentine and Draco Malfoy tries to steal Tom Riddle's diary is ommitted.
  • In the book, Harry, Ron and Fang are taken by the spiders to Aragog's lair but in the film they make their own way there. Plus, they never see the Ford Anglia before arriving at Aragog's lair; hence their looks of surprise in the film when it crashes through the spiders to rescue them, although a deleted scene shows them finding the car before they meet Aragog.
  • Ginny's attempt to confide her secret to Ron and Harry is omitted.
  • In the book, when McGonagall and the other teachers volunteer Lockhart to fight the Basilisk, after he has left they make it clear they were joking to get him out of the way and know he isn't up to the job. In the film, this is omitted and they are apparently serious.
  • In the film the Basilisk is seen chasing Harry all around the Chamber of Secrets whereas in the book, Harry's fight against the Basilisk occurs quickly and neatly. In the book, Harry never climbs up the statue nor does he go into the statue.
  • In the book, the statue at the end of the Chamber of Secrets is a full body statue of Salazar Slytherin, while in the film it is only a large statue of Slytherin's head and shoulders.
  • Fawkes does not cure Harry until after Riddle's destruction, as such Ginny wakes up and sees the dying Harry.
  • In the book, to free Dobby Harry puts the diary in his sock, but in the movie he hides his sock in the diary.

[edit] Mistakes

  • Hermione performed the 'Reparo' spell while in Diagon Alley, while subject to the fact she is not supposed to perform magic outside of school. However, she performed the spell on the train in the last film, plus Harry and the entire Weasley clan just used floo powder to get there.
  • While in both the book and film Hermione thinks the black cat hair is Millicent Bulstrode's hair, the actress portraying Millicent has auburn hair.
  • At the beginning of the movie Harry talks to Hedwig, apologising that he cannot let her out of her cage because he isn't allowed to do magic outside of school. The cage still had the key in the lock, so Harry would not have to perform magic to release Hedwig.
  • When Ron is beside the window, his voice can be heard clearly, even though the window is closed.
  • In the beginning of Chamber of Secrets when Fred, George, and Ron pull the bars from Harry's window, the bars fall near the bush under his window. However, when Vernon falls from the window, the bars are gone.
  • When George, Fred, Ron and Harry return to the Burrow, look closely at the Weasley clock: You'll see that Molly's, Percy's, and Ginny's hands are on garden. Yet when we first see Percy and Ginny, they appear in their pyjamas (Ginny coming from upstairs) as if they had just woken up.
  • In the film, one of the things that the clock hands can point to is "Dentist", despite it being inferred in the books that dentists are unneeded and unheard of in the wizarding world.
  • When Lockhart lets the pixies out, you can clearly tell that Hermione knocks the books off the desk on purpose. Also in this scene, if you look closely Hermione can be seen knocking the books off the desk twice.
  • The writing on the wall about the Chamber having been opened was far above Harry’s and Filch’s head. Ginny is much too short to have written it without standing on something.
  • When Mrs. Norris is attacked, after Hermione reads the message on the wall, if you look to the window furthest to the left, it is blue and you can vaguely spot a camera man.
  • "One, two, three, ferreverto." Too bad the words aren't written on the blackboard in back of McGonagall when she's teaching. Instead, very strange figures that are actually backward (the film reel was flipped over for better picture) are what's there. This could also explain a later mistake regarding Harry's wand in his left hand.
  • When Myrtle gets upset and dives into the toilet the water splashes out of the toilet bowl. Yet ghosts supposedly can't affect physical objects at all. There are plenty of people in the real world who can claim otherwise.
  • When Malfoy calls Hermione a Mudblood for the first time, Harry reacts to the word as if he understands what it means but he later states he does not know what a Mudblood is (this can only be seen in the widescreen version. Harry is cut out in the full-screen version).(It is possible that although he did not know what it meant, he could tell it was an insult).
  • In the scene where Harry and Ron are about to be attacked by Aragog's family in the dark forest, the (formerly) flying car comes to save them. Harry, Ron, and Fang scramble to get in the car, and Fang gets in first, on the driver's side. A spider runs up to attack Harry, but Harry repels it with a spell. Just as it's running up to harry, Fang can be seen entering the car a second time.
  • In the Duelling Club scene, after Harry hits Draco with "Rictusempra" and Draco hits the ground, when Snape pulls him up a crew member holding a camera is fully visable in the left corner.

[edit] Film Art

[edit] Acromantula(s)

[edit] Fawkes

[edit] Flying Ford Anglia

[edit] External links

[edit] See also


J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter series
Philosopher's Stone book film game
Chamber of Secrets book film game
Prisoner of Azkaban book film game
Goblet of Fire book film game
Order of the Phoenix book film game
Half-Blood Prince book film game
Deathly Hallows book film  
Other books Other games
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them Harry Potter: Quidditch World Cup
Quidditch Through the Ages Lego Harry Potter: Years 1-4
The Tales of Beedle the Bard Harry Potter DVD Game: Wizarding World
Harry Potter Prequel  
Harry Potter Encyclopedia
(planned)
 
Other films
The Queen's Handbag

IndividualsPlacesTranslations