And, of course, there's Dobby, the House Elf, a CGI creation that some have, curiously, compared to Gollum from The Two Towers. While they are both CGI creatures interacting with the cast on a greater level than most CGI creatures have in the past, there is little to base a comparison on aside from that. Dobby's role, while important, doesn't place him on screen that much, and as a character, he doesn't have nearly the depth (or the need for it) that Gollum has. Still, Dobby is a fun character, and convincingly done.

The Quidditch game in this film is almost better than that in "Sorcerer's Stone" - it's faster, furiously-played, and even more dangerous this time around, and, of course, there's a return trip to Diagon Alley as well.

One of the strengths of the Harry Potter series is that the entire story arc has already been planned out, so you don't end up with the improbable coincidences that mark so many other movie sequels, stretching the story a bit too thin and leading to the general decline in quality the longer a series goes on. There are places where you can already see things being built on from the first movie, and hints dropped at what we may see as the series progresses. It really helps give a sense of "reality" (though obviously an altered one) to the world in which the Harry Potter stories take place, and that's a nice change of pace.

The DVD set itself is very nice. The movie transfer looks very good, and the sound is effective even on your basic "built into the TV" sound system. The best part, though, is, of course, the extras. There's a great interview with JK Rowling and the scriptwriter for the movies, that shows just how involved she is with the film series, and the kind of attention being paid to staying true to the books. Also included is an interactive tour of Dumbledore's office, letting you get a closer look at many of the objects lying around. It also has a short behind-the-scenes feature that not only looks at how the office itself was created, but also looks at some of the other sets, props and costumes as well.

My favourite part, though, is the interviews with the students, professors and "more" (adults who aren't teachers at the school). It gives you a few glimpses into the actors away from their characters, and what they've brought to the characters. I did, though, feel a twinge of sadness at seeing the brief bit featuring Richard Harris, because it brought home again that he won't be in any of the future films - and it's hard to see how anyone could replace him.

All in all, I highly recommend this fil, and the rest of the DVD package as well. I've now had it just barely over 24 hours, and am getting ready to watch it for a third time. It's that enjoyable.