Potterheads were ecstatic about the recent television special Harry Potter 20th Anniversary: Return To Hogwarts, which felt warmhearted, nostalgic and little bit teary despite the bespectacled wunderkind’s creator being noticeably absent. So how much more excited will fans be to revisit how it all began, as director Chris Columbus intended it to be seen?
There is now an entire generation for whom Harry, Hermione and Ron grew up within the 16:9 confines of a living room TV, rather than splashed across a cinema screen accompanied by rumbling surround sound and the special buzz that comes from communal movie-watching.
You might like: Watch the trailer for the new Harry Potter reunion. Everything you need to know about Return to Hogwarts.
But that’s the perfect way to watch Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, the first Potter pic, which raises the curtain on much-loved Hogwarts characters, from Dumbledore – here played by the late, great Richard Harris – to Uncle Vernon, Mr Ollivander, Severus Snape and Minerva McGonagall.
Since its release, the Potter franchise has become a pop-cultural behemoth. Plus, who would have guessed that Emma Watson would be as well known for her activism as she is for her acting? Daniel Radcliffe has trounced the child-star curse to become a serious actor of extraordinary range, and Rupert Grint is making waves in M Night Shyamalan’s Apple TV+ hit Servant.
But all of that is in the future, so settle down to watch the impossibly fresh-faced trio take their first steps along a path that would transform their lives and form the backdrop to millions childhoods around the world. As nostalgia trips go, it doesn’t get more spellbinding than returning to Hogwarts.
In cinemas January 20 for a limited time only. ksa.voxcinemas.com/harry-potter
