I found out that if you order the Harry Potter Blu-Ray collection from the UK version of Amazon it's about 50% less than ordering from the American site (Thanks, terrible European economy!) and you get Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone without the stupid Sorcerer's Stone Americanization. Technically, this was a first viewing, but it has been excluded from the log as the two films vary by only a single word. So, my copy of the set arrived today and I'm beginning my return journey through the series.
In my previous discussion of the Harry Potter series, I discussed how a number of changes in the second part of the Deathly Hallows were designed to circumvent serious flaws in the source material. Now, I will try to win back the love of J. K. Rowling by praising her for something she did incredibly well throughout the series and that is embedding little bits of information that wouldn't pay off for an entire book or more. It's an amazing part of her writing style that makes me wonder how much of the series she had planned before the she ever put pen to paper. So now I present items from this movie (or the book) that don't mean much in The Philosoper's Stone, but come back big time later on.
Parceltounge- Harry has a little chat with a snake which becomes a critical plot point in The Chamber of Secrets and beyond.
Hagrid can't use magic- Hagrid briefly mentions being banned from using magic, but we have to wait for The Chamber of Secrets to find out why.
Harry's wand- Harry's wand shares a core with Voldemort's which saves his ass big time in The Goblet of Fire.
Chocolate Frog trading card- It didn't make it in the movie, but Dumbledore's battle with Grindelwald is mentioned on the way to Hogwarts. We don't hear the details about it until The Deathly Hallows. But it's really more a lover's quarrel than a battle, which is a fact which never quite came out in the books. (Pun completely intended.)
Scabbers- In the book, Ron's rat is described missing a toe. A critical fact in The Prisoner of Azkaban.
Ghosts- Introduced as a comic device in this movie, ghosts prove to be a valuable information source starting with The Chamber of Secrets.
Snape saves Harry- During the Quidditch scene, there's really no reason why Snape should have been the one to save Harry. Any of the professors could have done it. Sure, it adds an air of suspicion to his character, but Snape is so obvious as a villain that he's obviously not a villain. It's not until The Order of the Phoenix that we really get an idea of how Snape caught on to Quirrell before anyone else (there are a lot of hints beforehand) and it's not until The Deathly Hallows that we find out that Snape pledged his life to protecting Harry. Also, the snitch from that scene also returns in The Deathly Hallows and Snape kills Dumbledore. (That last part has nothing to do with the discussion at hand, it's just my job.)
The Marauder's Map- McGonagall makes a joke about Harry and Ron needing a map of Hogwarts which is a critical tool starting in The Prisoner of Azkaban.
The Voldemort/Harry Psychic Hotline- Pain from Harry's scar is a symptom of their psychic connection which doesn't become a major plot point until The Order of the Phoenix. Voldemort also appears to make a lucky guess that Harry already has the stone, but in light of latter events it might not be a guess at all.
The Invisibility Cloak- Ok, so this is a major tool from the moment it appears, but its not until The Deathly Hallows that we know why it's the best invisibility cloak in town.
The Final Horcrux- Three of the eight previously mentioned points connect Harry and Voldemort one way or another. This adds to the narrative in a number of ways throughout the series, but it also sets up the big reveal that Harry is one of Voldemort's Horcruxes in The Deathly Hallows.
I've probably missed one or seven, but that's the point Harry Potter is such a rich mythology in which every detail matters to the story as a whole. It's a remarkable feat of writing which I have only seen this effectively accomplished in two other series: The Lord of the Rings and Avatar: The Last Airbender. J. K. Rowling would certainly not forget about a one-time plot devise capable of resolving the entire central conflict of the series in under five minutes. (Sarcastic foreshadowing)
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