Like many others, the Harry Potter series had a big impact on me. I started reading the books at a young age, and they are one of the reasons that I came to love reading. The books may not be some of the best literature ever written, but the world that exists within the pages is so thought-out that readers are easily pulled in.
It’s been many years since I read any of the books within the series, so I decided to reread them and to watch the movie adaptations alongside them. I’m going to compile lists of some of the differences between each novel and its corresponding movie and share them, so fellow Harry Potter lovers can see what changes between each book and movie stood out to me. So, here are the differences that I saw between the book and movie adaptation of the first book of the series, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. Some of the differences are minor, while some could cause larger questions and/or discrepancies to emerge further in the series. Overall, I believe that the movie version of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone did a great job at capturing Harry's experiences within the book while living with the Dursleys and during his first year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
The Dursleys
Mrs. Dursley and Dudley are blond in the book but brunette in the movie.
The Dursleys move Harry into the smallest bedroom after he begins to receive letters from Hogwarts in the book, but he stays in the cupboard under the stairs in the movie.
The trip to the zoo and reptile scene is different. In the book, Dudley brings his friend with him, and at first Harry isn’t going to the zoo until they learn that Mrs. Figg broke her leg. In the movie, unlike the book, Dudley falls into the snake’s habitat and then is stuck inside once the glass returns.
The Train Ride to Hogwarts
In the book, Hermione doesn’t show off her magic by fixing Harry’s glasses, and her appearance is described as "lots of bushy brown hair and large front teeth" (Emma Watson's hair is slightly bushy in the movie, but her teeth are not large at all).
Draco Malfoy introduces himself to Harry on the train ride in the book unlike in the movie in which he introduces himself when they are waiting to enter the Great Hall. Draco is a more active character in the book than in the movie. In the book, Harry first encounters Draco while getting his robes in Diagon Alley, and Draco challenges Harry to a duel to try and get him in trouble.
Peeves the Poltergeist
Peeves doesn’t make any appearance in the film adaptation of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. But he doesn’t seem to play a huge role in the book other than being a nuisance, so not having him in the movie doesn’t seem to affect the overall story very much.
The Forbidden Forest
First, in the book it is Neville who joins Hermione, Harry, and Draco in detention in the Forbidden Forest, not Ron who is actually in the infirmary after being bitten by Norbert. Neville is a more active character in the book than in the movie.
Also, in the book there are three centaurs, who consult the stars, Ronan, Bane, and Firenze, that Harry encounters in the Forbidden Forest. In both the book and movie, Firenze saves him from the cloaked being who killed the unicorn, but in the book Harry hears all three centaurs discuss whether Firenze should have saved him. From this encounter, Harry discerns that it is written in the stars that Voldemort will kill him, which he doesn’t bring up in the movie.
Professor Quirrell
The first encounter between Quirrell and Harry stood out to me because in the book, Quirrell shakes Harry’s hand in the Leaky Cauldron, but in the movie he just stares at Harry’s outstretched hand.
The description of the effect of Harry’s hands on Quirrell’s hands and face is different than the reaction in the movie. In the book, Quirrell’s skin becomes “burned, raw, red, and shiny,” but in the movie, his hands and face crumble into ash.
The Obstacles Protecting the Stone
How Harry, Ron, and Hermione get past the Devil’s snare is a bit different. In the book, Hermione creates a blue flame to help them climb out of the plant. In the movie, Hermione and Harry relax enough for the plant to let go, and Hermione emits a bright light from her wand to free Ron.
In the book, all three characters get on broomsticks to catch the flying key, and the rest of the flying keys do not attack them like they attack Harry in the movie.
After the wizard’s chess match, there is an unconscious troll that Harry and Hermione pass by in the book which isn’t included in the movie.
Hermione solves a logic problem in the book to determine which potions allow her and Harry to pass through the different colored flames. In the book, this is the point where Hermione doubles back to take Ron to the hospital wing and to find Dumbledore.
What are other differences that you've noticed between the book and movie? Do you prefer the book or the film adaptation of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone?
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