Various Notes...

[Amber]

Yes, I am back home now. After spending about two days in 
Orlando/Disney, I'm rather sad to be back at my apartment in Tampa. I 
guess you can't live in magic 24 hours a day, can you?

Heidi, no need to apologize for the arm grabbing, I actually enjoyed 
it a bit. It really hit home to me that I was seeing the movie with 
FANS!

I've seen the movie three times now and I can only say that it gets 
better for me with each showing. I can't wait to see it for the 
fourth time next week with my father and brother. First time I saw 
it, reaction was shock and disappointment. I guess my view of "stayed 
very close to the book" and Chris Columbus' view of "stayed very 
close to the book" are vastly different. The first viewing, for me, 
was the most tense and exhausting. I walked out thinking that it was 
a good movie, but a not-so-good book adaption movie. Second time 
viewing was much better and third time was pure pleasure. I was able 
to take it all in stride and just dismiss the thought that some plot 
execution was wrong and just enjoy it.

During the second movie, I brought in my notebook with me and made 
some notes as I watched so that I could remember what I loved, hated, 
and found intriguing. I'll provide them for you all here. Heidi also 
contributed quite a bit as well, being the "Eagle Eyes" person that 
she is. I've also added some clarifying notes to expand upon what I 
was thinking.

Actual: owl at privet drive
Translation: Privet Drive! Owl! It's starting! Augh!

Actual: Dumbledore out of mist
Translation: I wish he had just appeared instead of slowly appearing 
but I suppose it was easier to have him slowly appear out of the mist.

Actual: Hagrid tearing up
Translation: Awwww! Hagrid's all emotional! I love Robbie Coltrane...

Actual: Dudley jumping on stairs
Translation: That is just so perfect and absolutely Dudley-ish, I 
giggled all three times I saw it.

Actual: why burma and not brazil
Translation: Is there a reason to have the snake be from Burma and 
not Brazil?

Actual: Dudley pushes Harry to side, falls in exhibit
Translation: Again, another absolutely beautiful Dudley moment. I 
couldn't stop laughing when Dudley gets up out of the pond to leave 
and finds the glass still there. Petunia's reaction is just as 
priceless.

Actual: No "Amigo"
Translation: The snake doesn't say "Thanksssss Amigo"! What, they 
couldn't spend the half a second to have it say Amigo? Hmph.

Actual: doing uniform in background
Translation: My only "Eagle Eyes" catch. On the day where Harry 
receives the first letter, when he walks into the kitchen with the 
mail, Petunia is dying Dudley's clothes grey in the background for 
Harry's uniform. You can clearly see her poking something in a basin 
with some tongs. Nice little bit for the fans.

Actual: don't move him to bedroom
Translation: Heidi caught this. The Dursley's never move Harry from 
the cupboard to Dudley's second bedroom. I guess this is another time 
constraint issue...

Actual: excellent entrance by Hagrid
Translation: Dear lord! The shaking! The light! The rumbling! 
Perfect, perfect, perfect! The first time I saw it, I actually jumped 
when the door rattled the first time and I knew what was coming!

Actual: Doesn't tie gun in knot
Translation: Nitpick. I understand why they didn't have Hagrid do 
that though.

Actual: great Pertunia Dursley speech
Translation: Who cares that the woman's hair isn't blonde, that 
speech was brilliant! That *was* Petunia Dursley and I loved it to 
pieces each time she said it!

Actual: Leave that night don't go to sleep then go to Diagon Alley
Translation: Nitpick, they don't wait overnight to leave. Again, 
problem done for time issues and I don't mind much.

Actual: another wand store something "Wonderful Wands"
Translation: I think me and Heidi caught this at about the same time. 
When they show the shot of Gringotts, off the right of the screen 
there is a sign for another wand shop. When I saw the movie the third 
time, I tried to read what it said above "Wonderful Wands" but 
couldn't make it out for the life of me. Can anybody else?

Actual: Ginny's eye color is wrong
Translation: Heidi caught this, not me. I never even noticed Ginny's 
eye color.

Actual: Ron has smudge on nose
Translation: Yay! He has the smudge the whole time!

Actual: Plastic around sandwiches
Translation: What's up with that?

Actual: no breathless speech boo!
Translation: I so wanted to hear Hermione's "Nobody in my family's 
magic at all, it was ever such a surprise when I got my letter..." 
speech. Dangitall, they killed it! Boo! Double boo!

Actual: Hermione isn't in Harry's boat, Dean is
Translation: Why couldn't she be in his boat? It says that in the 
book! Grrrr. And the point of that change is...?

Actual: Trevor The Toad!
Translation: Yay Trevor! Yay Neville! *giggles and hugs Neville*

Actual: Hogwarts, a history!
Translation: Woohoo! You rock Hermione!

Actual: D's speech is at wrong place
Translation: Yeah, I know, another nitpick, done probably for time 
constraints.

Actual: granger, malfoy, bones, weasley, potter
Translation: What is UP with the order? Hello?

Actual: hat doesn't fall over eyes
Translation: Nitpick, I guess they wanted us to see the expression on 
the kids' eyes.

Actual: switching sides Harry
Translation: Heidi caught this first when we saw it the first time. 
When Harry first sits down at the Gryffindor table, he's on the right 
side. In the scene where they start eating the Feast, he's on the 
left. Er, yeah, editing problem...

Actual: not nitwit blubber oddment tweak
Translation: It's four words! They had to cut those four words? 
Blasphemy!

Actual: no glasses for percy
Translation: I know I saw that in the trailers but it still bugs me. 
The glasses are important to Percy's character IMO and I don't 
understand why they didn't have Chris Rankin wear them. Maybe they 
thought people would confuse him and Harry? Like, whatever...

Actual: 15 new gryffindors (20?)
Translation: On the stairs, there are about 15 (due to Heidi's 
frantic counting). When the first years go into the Common Room and 
there is that nice overhead shot, I counted again and came up with 
about 18 - 20. So, which is it? Mistake the second time since there 
are about 14 Griffs in the flying lesson?

Actual: slyths in Transfiguration
Translation: Another nitpick. Slyths are in every class with the 
Griffs. But I don't mind so much, it was to show Draco's wonderful 
smirking looks towards Harry and company.

Actual: excellent entrance by Snape!
Translation: We have about a second to realize that the Potions 
lesson is going to happen next when BOOM! the door crashes open and 
Snape strides in with his delicious opening lines. Absolutely 
beautiful!

Actual: Dean knows about Remembrall?
Translation: I believe Heidi mentioned this before but why do they 
have Dean, a Muggle-born, recognize the Remembrall? Bah!

Actual: Hooch blows whistle! not supposed to
Translation: Big nitpick, Neville is supposed to shoot upwards before 
Hooch blows the whistle. The scene doesn't make SENSE the way it is.

Actual: 14 Griffs in flying lessons
Translation: Heidi's keen eyes again. I imagine there were about the 
same number of Slyths.

Actual: everyone knows that Harry is Seeker right away
Translation: Another nitpick but I don't mind due to time constraints.

Actual: McGonagall name on Quidditch plaque
Translation: When Hermione shows the boys the awards case, James' 
name is on it (as a Seeker, not Chaser, bah!) but also is McGonagall. 
Hmmmm.

Actual: excellent Wood and Bludger scene
Translation: Yummy, Oliver Wood! I have fallen in love with the 
accent. He is just so adorable.

Actual: good silence by Dumbledore
Translation: In the Troll scene, I LOVED Dumbledore's 
deafening "SILENCE!". Wonderful.

Actual: get Nimbus right before game
Translation: Nitpick. On the morning of the game, Harry receives the 
broom. Grrr...

Actual: no Wood speech
Translation: I so wanted to see his pep-talk. The one that they 
replaced it with was okay but I'm not entirely satisfied.

Actual: girl on Slytherin team
Translation: There is a girl on the Slytherin Quidditch team! What?

Actual: 30 seconds of stupid winter scene
Translation: Heidi started counting and I joined her. That stupid 
winter scene where Harry walks out with Hedwig and she takes off 
flying takes 30 seconds! It's the most useless scene in the movie! 
All it does is show passage of time! They could've done that some 
other way...

Actual: how did Malfoy know they were going to visit Hagrid?
Translation: So, how did he know? I looked in the scene beforehand, 
the library one, to see if maybe he was lurking in the corner or 
something. Nope, couldn't see him. Maybe the other black-haired kid 
at the table overhead and told Draco? Or maybe Draco has been 
stalking the Trio all this time? I'm sure that notion will send 
slashers and Draco/Hermione shippers into shivers of ecstasy...

Actual: Harry says Draco's name in forbidden forest
Translation: Another Heidi catch. Harry clearly says Draco instead of 
Malfoy when asking him if he is scared.

Actual: big problems with Snare
Translation: Heidi didn't mind this scene but I really did. I hated 
its execution, I don't think it makes that much sense the way it is. 
Truthfully, I'd rather they had cut it out and had the Potions task 
if they were going to butcher the Devil's Snare scene that much.

Actual: Voldemort IS Voldemort
Translation: He looks and sounds EXACTLY how I thought he would. I 
was worried when I heard that the action figure had a green face but 
I shouldn't have bothered. Voldemort is simply perfect.

Actual: Quirrel lost right hand first
Translation: ANOTHER Heidi capture. Hm, correlations between Quirrel 
and Wormtail, anyone?

Actual: Pomfrey in hospital wing?
Translation: That lady who enters the hospital scene towards the end, 
think she is Pomfrey? Probably as we don't *know* if Pomfrey has 
helpers in the hospital wing...

Actual: no cheering?
Translation: No insane cheering, jumping up and down, wild enthusiasm 
while the last-minute points are being handed out. Bah, that ruined 
the mood of the scene for me...

Actual: messed up magic line
Translation: Like whatever. I wanted Harry to say "But they don't 
know that" with regards to the threatening the Dursley's to do magic 
over the holiday break. But I guess you can't win them all.

And that, my friends, is it. The scenes that were the best for me 
were the Harry finds out he's a wizard scene, Halloween and Troll 
scene, Quidditch, Christmas break scene, and getting the 
Philosopher's stone scene (EXCEPT for the Devil's Snare!). I think 
the casting was absolutely brilliant, I don't have any qualms 
whatsoever.

So when is the next book coming out? *sighs*

~Amber