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COURTESY PHOTO -- Liz Blake
Sophomore Jacki Young shows off her "Harry Potter" collection.
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Mad about Harry
College students eager for new release of Rowling film adaptation
By Kimberley Lufkin
Flat Hat News Editor
Selling out advance ticket sales a week before its opening, "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone," based on the book by J.K. Rowling, has proved to be one of the year's most anticipated films.
Box-office outlets such as Movietickets.com have said that "Potter" tickets have sold faster than any other film this year, beating previous record-holder "Pearl Harbor." While some fans have purchased advance tickets online or over the phone, sophomore Megan Mize said her plan to dress up in a complete witch's costume will secure her the highly valued tickets.
"We'll kick the little kids out of our way to get tickets," Mize said. "When they see the costumes they'll start running."
Along with wearing a witch's costume for the release of the movie, Mize has incorporated the books into her duties as a resident assistant in Landrum Hall. One of her two hall bulletin boards is decorated on a monthly basis with Harry Potter paraphernalia. According to Mize, the books appeal to all ages.
"When we were little kids we always imagined great and wonderful things happening to us," she said. "The way the world is going I think people get so excited about Harry Potter because it's not everyday, it's not terrorism or politics. It's just a little boy in a magic world."
While she may not be dressing in costume for the movie's release, sophomore Jacki Young said that she thinks the books are so popular because of their ability to make the reader feel young again.
"They're [the books are] easy to follow, and the story is easy to get into," she said. "They remind me of being a little kid and remind me of adventures, and I love adventures."
Both Mize and Young said the movie and its characters, especially Daniel Radcliffe, who plays Potter, seem to be accurate representations of Rowling's work.
"I think that the actor playing Harry looks good," Young said. "At first I thought he looked like a cross between Elton John and Elijah Wood, but he's grown on me. I can see him being a good Harry."
Approximately 10,000 people attended the film's London premier last week at a Leicester Square movie theater decorated with 10-story-high paintings of a castle, 3-story-tall flags depicting fictional wizard-school emblems and a moon-like balloon floating above the theater. According to the Nov. 5 London Daily Star, the movie did a solid job of translating Rowling's characters and visuals to the screen. From the previews and reviews she has read, Mize said she also thinks the movie will be a good interpretation of the Rowling's book.
"The commercial looks great, the music sounds good and I've read a lot of different reviews that like it," Mize said. "It doesn't have to solve all the problems in the world -- if it's fun it's worth it."
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