Harry Potter and the Digital Video Projector

I took my son and two of his friends to see Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets today. Much to my surprise, the theater was equipped for digital video projection, so we were essentially watching a "video" on a 40-foot screen. I must say the resolution was fine--I wouldn't necessarily have known it wasn't a "film" film--though the colors seemed a bit flat. Some conventional movies have rather flat color, too, though. The sound, surprisingly, was muddy and for several minutes included some kind of background distortion that sounded vaguely like a steam locomotive chugging down the tracks in the distance--as if the Hogwarts Express was constantly passing by. It may have been a problem with the theater's system and speakers rather than the movie itself, though--some kind of feedback, I guess.

Overall, an enjoyable experience, though one of the kids said there was "too much talking" in the movie. That didn't bother me, but I didn't think this second installment was much better than the first--as some critics have said--and not as good in some respects. The novelty of seeing Hogwarts and the characters from the books come to life has warn off, so all that's left is the plot, which I didn't find that exciting (maybe I'm too old and jaded). The effects were better than in the first film, though--the flying car and the Quidditch match were thrilling--and some of the character acting was quite entertaining. Kenneth Brannagh (sp?) was great as Professor Lockhart, and whoever played Lucius Malfoy was terrific. B+