Movie fulfills imagination of local previewers

Harry Potter glossary Haven't read the books yet? Fake it with some of these terms and phrases: Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans: Wizard candy available in such flavors as chocolate, peppermint, spinach, liver, tripe and vomit. Daily Prophet: National wizarding newspaper. Diagon Alley: Cobbled street where wizards can do their shopping. Firebolt: The top broom on the market. Can accelerate from 0-150 mph in 10 seconds. Fizzing Whizbees: Levitating sherbet balls. Galleon: Gold wizarding currency. Exchange rate unavailable. Gringotts: Wizards' bank hundreds of miles under London, run by Goblins. Gryffindor: One of the four Hogwarts houses; includes Harry, the Weasleys and Hermione Granger. Hedwig: Harry's owl, a courier for wizard mail and a gift from Hagrid. Hogwarts: A 1,000-year-old school of witchcraft and wizardry, for ages 11-17. Hufflepuff: A Hogwarts house named for one of the founders, Helga Hufflepuff. July 31, 1980: Harry Potter's birthday. M.O.M.: The Ministry of Magic, in charge of keeping witches and wizards secret from the muggles. Muggle: Wizard term for a non-magic-using person. Nimbus 2000 or 2001: Make and type of broomstick. Harry's first broomstick. Platform Nine and Three-Quarters: The train platform at King's Cross (an actual British railway station) where wizard students embark for Hogwarts. Portkey: Object used to transport wizards from one spot to another at a pre-arranged time. Quidditch: Wizard sport played on flying broomsticks and using four balls. Positions include chasers, keepers and seekers. Ravenclaw: A Hogwarts house named for one of the founders, Rowena Ravenclaw. Slytherin: A Hogwarts house named for one of the founders, Salazer Slytherin. Smeltings: A private boys' school that Harry's muggle cousin, Dudley Dursley, attends. Snitch: Golden Quidditch ball the size of a large walnut, with tiny silver wings. Quidditch match ends only after the elusive Snitch is caught, earning the catching team 150 points. Voldemort: Powerful Dark Wizard whom most refer to as ``You-know-who.'' He killed Harry's parents and left a thunderbolt scar on Harry's forehead in a failed attempt to kill him as a baby.

By Jack Garner
Democrat and Chronicle

(November 16 , 2001) -- "There was nothing in Harry Potter that didn't match what I pictured."

So says 8-year-old Emma Colley, a self-professed Potter fan fresh from Sunday's preview screening of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone.

And that's exactly what filmmaker Chris Columbus and his cohorts are hoping for. They know the film will be viewed by more people with preconceived ideas than any movie in recent memory has been.

Emma, for instance, has read all four Potter books. The Irondequoit third-grader arrived at the screening in the robes of a Hogwarts student. On a scale of one to 10, with 10 a must-see, she gave Harry Potter a 10.

She was among 11 viewers who attended the preview screening at Cinemark Tinseltown and afterwards offered their comments -- some of which appear here. Of the 11, ages 8 to 57, six thought the film deserved a 10. Four gave it a 9, while one went for an 8.

"Everything was brought to life like what I had imagined -- even better," says Janis Vogt, a 54-year-old registered nurse from Fairport who has read all four Potter novels. "Imagination is the key to the Harry Potter books, and this adds to the delight of the books."

Jeanne Sandholzer, 57, who teaches a Harry Potter course at the Rochester Institute of Technology Athenaeum, also was pleased. "I enjoyed every minute."

However, "I was disappointed that Hermione didn't get her wonderful part where she uses logic to determine what potion to use. Why did J.K. Rowling allow that stupid part (in the film) about courage being greater than knowledge? They go together."

Christopher Coger, 14, a sophomore at Rochester's School of the Arts and reader of all four books, also missed the potion segment. To him, that was indicative of what the books offered that the movie couldn't.

"It's a great movie, but the books must be read to get more insight into the characters."

Dana Symons is a 34-year-old University of Rochester doctoral student. She enjoyed herself but, as befits a literature student, also remains loyal to the books.

"The movie was very faithful to the book, but I think it loses something in translation to a different medium. A lot of the charm and humor comes in through Potter's thoughts...and that's just not possible in a film."

Kris Tapper, 14, a Brighton ninth-grader who has three Potter books under his belt, disagrees. "The movie seemed more exciting than the book. The movie was very funny. I hope the other books are going to be made into movies."

Of the group, only Andrew Merzke, 30, of Rochester hadn't read any Potter books. But he says, "Anyone who enjoys fantasy as well as a good time will like this movie. The effects are good, and very believable.

"I think now I might want to read the books to find out more about Harry and get deeper into the stories."

Kyle Brown, 17, a School of the Arts senior who has read all the books, sees the two elements working together.

"My initial reaction is that the film is awesome, but the books gave me more understanding. The movie is a complement to the books, not a supplement."