If You Loved Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, Watch These 8 Next

You finished Philosopher's Stone and you need more magic. Some of these are sequels, some are older than your grandparents, and one will start an argument.

Number one is a Potter movie, and it's not the one you think.

1. 8
   The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (2005)7.1

   Narnia is the closest cousin, and the slightly duller one.

   British kids, a magic doorway, a scary adult in charge of evil. Same A+ CinemaScore as Chamber of Secrets, but a 7.1 movie.guru score says the wardrobe beats the story.
2. 7
   Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (2016)7.4

   Same wizarding world, less wonder, way more suitcase.

   David Yates kept the wands and the spells. Audiences beat 80% of movies, critics only 60%, and Guru's Take is a 5.6. Watch it for the creatures, not the plot.
3. 6
   Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002)7.9

   Basically Philosopher's Stone again, which is the point and the problem.

   Same trio, same castle, same school-year shape, plus Kenneth Branagh having the time of his life. A+ CinemaScore, but Guru's Take is 6.4 because it's comfort food reheated.
4. 5
   Flow (2024)9.5

   A tiny animated hero beats most live action fantasy.

   No wands, same wonder: a small creature tossed into a world way too big for it, just like Harry. A 9.5 movie.guru score on only $30.9M worldwide. Criminally under-watched.
5. 4
   The Wizard of Oz (1939)9.5

   The original ordinary-kid-finds-magic-land movie still wins.

   Judy Garland gets yanked out of a gray life into a world of witches, same as Harry's escape from the cupboard. Reported $2.8M budget in 1939, still a 9.5.
6. 3
   Star Wars (1977)9.6

   Star Wars is Harry Potter with spaceships. Prove me wrong.

   Orphan raised by relatives, wise old mentor shows up, turns out he's special, villain dressed in black. Reported $11M budget, $775M worldwide, 9.6 movie.guru score.
7. 2
   Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2 (2011)9.3

   The finale earns its hype, mostly off ten years of setup.

   Same three kids, now grown, closing the story you started. $1.34B worldwide and a 9.3 movie.guru score, but skip the movies before it and half the big moments land soft.
8. 1
   Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004)8.9

   Prisoner of Azkaban is the best Potter movie. Not Part 2.

   Alfonso Cuarón took the same castle and made it moody and weird. Lowest worldwide gross of any Potter sequel at $811.6M, yet Guru's Take is 9.0, beating Part 2's 8.8.

$3,417 says you start Azkaban tonight just to prove me wrong and end up agreeing with me.

Share it: X | Facebook | Copy link

Current mood: ready to fight about it