TheHarry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stonemovie cut an important moment from the books, ultimately missing a chance to drive several important details home. While any book-to-screen adaptation must make cuts to the source, it’s often frustrating which moments are chosen to chop and which stay. Each of theHarry Pottermovies is guilty of this, to some extent, butSorcerer’s Stoneis often lauded as the installment that made the least changes from the book. Unfortunately, a specific obstacle at the end of the firstHarry Potterbook stands as an exception.
At theend of theHarry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stonemovie, Harry, Ron, and Hermione bravely face the obstacles meant to protect the Sorcerer’s Stone. They got past Fluffy and the trap door, fell into a pit of Devil’s Snare, and played a daring game of Wizard’s chess before Harry was left to face Professor Quirrell and the Mirror of Erised. It was an exciting sequence, but this wasn’t all the Golden Trio faced in the firstHarry Potterbook. A potion trial arranged by Professor Severus Snape was another obstacle protecting the Stone, which should never have been cut.
Harry Potter & The Sorcerer’s Stone Cutting The Potions Trial Downplays Harry’s Bravery
This Was Harry’s Final Chance To Turn Back Or Keep Going
In theHarry Pottermovies, the chess room is the final obstacle before Harry confronts Quirrell in front of the Mirror of Erised. He entered this room alone after Ron gave his big “not me, not Hermione, you!” speech and instructed Hermione to stay behind with an unconscious Ron only because his friend had urged him forward. However, in theSorcerer’s Stonebook, Harry chooses to go on alone after the Potions trial room since the vials of potion he and Hermione faced would allow one person to proceed and one person to head back.
The power of choice is a key feature of theHarry Potterbooks, with Dumbledore himself pointing out that Harry is a hero because hechoosesto be - not because of any prophecy.
By choosing to be the one to carry on,Harry was demonstrating his most defining quality—his bravery. It would be precisely this fact that would allow him to face Lord Voldemort and win years later, and it was through this act inSorcerer’s Stonethat Dumbledore first fully realized just how selfless, brave, and, therefore, powerful Harry was. Without this moment in theSorcerer’s Stonemovie, it seemed as if Harry had no real choice but to carry on alone. It’s implied that someone had to stay with Ron, and Harry certainly couldn’t do it after his friend’s magnificent speech. The impact of his own choice was significantly lessened.
Hermione’s Character Is Also Hurt By This Harry Potter Movie Change
The Potions Trial Was Hermione’s Time To Shine
While the follow-up to the Potions trial was a time for Harry to prove his bravery, the event itself was all about Hermione. TheSorcerer’s Stonemovie made it clear that Harry, Ron, and Hermione each had a moment to shine while going after the titular Stone. Harry got to catch the winged key from a broomstick, Ron proved his strategy skills while playing chess, and Hermione demonstrated her intellect and logic while working out the potions puzzle. The room, which contained several potions all in a row, came with a riddle for her to solve, and Hermione barely broke a sweat doing so:
Choose, unless you wish to stay here forevermore,
To help you in your choice,we give you these clues four:
First, however slyly the poison tries to hide
You will always find some on nettle wine’s left side;
Second, different are those who stand at either end,
But if you would move onward, neither is your friend;
Third, as you see clearly, all are different size,
Neither dwarf nor giant holds death in their insides;
Fourth, the second left and the second on the right
Are twins once you taste them, though different at first sight
Hermione let out a great sigh and Harry, amazed, saw that she was smiling, the very last thing he felt like doing.
“Brilliant,” said Hermione. “This isn’t magic – it’s logic – a puzzle. A lot of the greatest wizards haven’t got an ounce of logic, they’d be stuck in here forever. "
“But so will we, won’t we?”
“Of course not,” said Hermione. “Everything we need is here on this paper. Seven bottles: three are poison; two are wine; one will get us safely through the black fire, and one will get us back through the purple. "
Since theHarry Pottermovies cutthe Potions trial,Hermione was instead given the Devil’s Snare problem to solve. However, this had been more of a joint effort in theSorcerer’s Stonebook. Hermione had panicked just as much as her friends, and the three all worked together to find a solution (with Hermione forgetting for a moment that she was a witch and could make fire until Ron reminded her).
Ultimately, the Potions trial was a far better demonstration of Hermione’s strength. Her defeating the Devil’s Snare in theSorcerer’s Stonemovie only reinforced that Hermione can memorize everything she reads and regurgitate it. While this is true, her intelligence goes far beyond that—she has the practical logic far beyond that of even adult witches and wizards. As she said after reading the riddle, even some of the bravest and most powerful would have been stuck in that room forever, but Hermione got them through in a matter of moments.
The Omission Of The Potions Trial Makes No Sense When You Really Think About It
The Trials Were The Final Clue That Quirrell, Not Snape, Was After The Stone
While Hermione and Harry proving themselves through the potions trial is an excellent argument for why it should have been kept in theHarry Pottermovies, it’s not even the strongest. Up to the end ofSorcerer’s Stone, Harry, Ron, and Hermione were confident that Severus Snape was the villain. However, in the book and the movie,Hagrid tells the Golden Trio that “Snape is one of the teachers protecting the Stone.“It was this unintentional slip of information that tipped them off that there were spells and enchantments below Fluffy’s trap door. However, in the movie, Snape’s contribution is nowhere to be seen.
It makes no sense that movie Hagrid would provide this tidbit, but there would be nothing designed by Snape protecting the Stone in the end.
It makes no sense that movie Hagrid would provide this tidbit, but there would be nothing designed by Snape protecting the Stone in the end. This was a significant part of his twist and served as one of the hints that it was actually Quirrell who Harry would find standing in front of the Mirror of Erised. After all,Quirrell also had placed a form of protection in the way of the Stonein thefirstHarry Potterbook—a troll. This detail, combined with the existence of Snape’s potion trial, wasa subtle clue that Quirrell was behind everything since a troll had been the distraction on Halloween night.
The First Harry Potter Movie Should Have Kept This Obstacle (But It’s Clear Why It Didn’t)
There Just Wasn’t Time In The Harry Potter Movie
Overall, there are various reasons why the potion trial should have been kept in theHarry Pottermovies. It gave both Hermione and Harry a moment to show their worth while also subtly revealing who the true villain ofHarry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone was. By cutting this, the films removed the more nuanced aspect of this mystery and threw off the poetic, literary balance that was the protections of the Sorcerer’s Stone. These trials were not only physical obstacles standing in Harry’s way but a metaphor for the overarching journey he and his friends would face over the next sixHarry Potterbooks.
These trials were not only physical obstacles standing in Harry’s way but a metaphor for the overarching journey he and his friends would face over the next sixHarry Potterbooks.
Of course, it must be acknowledged that this wouldn’t have come across the same way in theHarry Pottermovies. While Hermione pondering this riddle was fun in the books, it would have been a difficult moment to bring to the screen, where “show, don’t tell” is a necessity.There just wouldn’t have been room in the ending sequence ofSorcerer’s Stonewithout cutting other essential moments from the story. Hopefully, this is something thatHBO’sHarry Potterremakecan repair since the TV format should mean more time overall. For now, however, fans must content themselves with the events of the book.
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone
Cast
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone - known as Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone in the US - follows the titular Harry Potter as he discovers he has magical powers. Living with his cruel aunt and uncle, the orphaned Harry lives a challenging life that is changed when he meets a gentle giant named Hagrid, who spirits him away to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
