- Argument
The Chamber of Secrets follows the book
Unlike the following movies in the series, where things were increasingly cut out, The Chamber of Secrets faithfully followed its source material. It did a great job bringing to life what Rowling wrote.
The argument
The case for Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets rests first on fidelity: it is the most faithful adaptation in the series, with its plot and important details loyal to the book. That matters more for this series than for most, because the books arrived first and had already settled what the story was; an adaptation that departs from them is asking the audience to accept a different version of something they already know. Director Chris Columbus also managed something harder than fidelity alone — keeping the film child-appropriate while setting the stage for the darker tone of the future films, so the series could grow up without this instalment feeling out of step with either end of it. The film's second claim is that it does a disproportionate amount of the series' groundwork. Several important characters are introduced here. This is the movie when we first meet Dobby, and when he becomes a free elf. It is where we are first introduced to Arthur Weasley and see the Burrow for the first time. It is also where we learn more about Voldemort: a Horcrux appears, and Harry's similarities to Voldemort — the ability to speak parseltongue among them — are established. A great deal of what the later films depend on is put in place in this one. Finally, it works on its own terms. Chamber of Secrets is funny, with Gilderoy Lockhart in particular, and it has added suspense and action in the Chamber itself through the Basilisk. Faithfulness, in other words, does not come at the cost of momentum. Taken together these are the qualities by which an adaptation is usually judged: it does a great job bringing to life what Rowling wrote, it carries the weight of the larger story, and it remains enjoyable as a film.
Premises
Counter-arguments
At just under 3 hours, the movie is too long. The pacing is slow and there is a lack of the whimsy seen in the first film. This results in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets being boring. It is unable to hold people’s attention unless they are a devout Harry Potter fan. Making it less faithful to the book by removing some of the content would have made it better to watch.
Rejecting the premises
[Rejecting P1-P2]: It is too long. They should have removed content from the book.