Top 10 Ways Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone Perfectly Sets Up the Wizarding World

Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the Top 10 Ways “Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone” perfectly sets up the Wizarding World.

For this list, we’ll be looking at the special effects, designs and other production elements introduced in the first magical film that would go on to influence the rest of the series.

What do you think is the most influential part of the movie? Conjure up your answers in the comments below!

Within the first few minutes of the movie, we see a seemingly ordinary cat suddenly turn into Professor McGonagall. This transformation was possible because she’s what’s known in the wizarding world as an animagus. Professor Mcgonagall's showed that animagi could become animals pretty much instantly. Since they could also blend in without us noticing they were there, an animagus like Peter Petigrew could pretend to be Ron’s pet rat Scabbers for years. Although Wormtail’s true identity wouldn’t be uncovered for years, Mcgonagall still laid the groundwork for this animagus reveal early on in the series. She taught us a lesson we didn't even know we needed.

After Hagrid taps some bricks behind the Leaky Cauldron, the wall splits to reveal Diagon Alley. Harry's look of wonder mirrored our own. The shopping center was packed with people in cool robes, magical creatures and new brooms on display. And according to Insight Edition’s “Harry Potter Film Vault Collection'' Diagon Alley was one of the first sets to be built. In addition to being part of the very foundation of the film series, this location also set up several plot points. Harry spots a snowy owl before he gets Hedwig. He also hears about the Nimbus 2000 before his pet owl delivers it. It turns out that Diagon Alley is a well-designed location where you can find plenty of foreshadowing.

Speaking of brooms, the first movie took time to show us all the nuances of flight. Although most magical people are seemingly able to use them, not everyone is good at flying. Broom also made a distinctive sound as they streaked through the air in all kinds of directions. And a witch or wizard could operate a new or old model at a moment's notice. Whether Harry was pursuing Voldemort or playing Quidditch, all these flight mechanics came into play throughout the series. Flying looked and sounded so fun that we wanted to soar into the air on our own household brooms. Sadly, we were never able to reach the heights Harry rose to on his trusty Nimbus 2000.

It was important for us to see how creepy the Forbidden forest was firsthand to prepare us for a number of scary encounters there. (xref) And learning about the Hogwarts Express train that brought students to school was vital for many future story beats. (*xref) But the most significant location we saw was the exterior of Hogwarts. The castle’s sprawling design instantly conveyed its immense size and magical nature. This made audiences believe that Hogwarts could hold a nearly limitless number of rooms and secrets. While we didn’t see the entirety of the school in the first film, the castle’s gigantic scale made us excited to explore it. We think we’ll skip the third floor corridor though.

Wands are easily the most important weapon in a witch or wizard’s arsenal. The first film showed us that a variety of spells could be performed with the right words and proper movement. And from Charms Class to Ollivander’s shop, we saw that no two wands looked exactly the same. While those aspects as well as the visual and sound effects that came with them were all important, there’s one fact that was most significant. Unlike brooms, wizards are meant to use specific wands. This seemingly small detail eventually became a major reason Harry ultimately defeated Voldemort. Learning about wands in the first film was important for both audiences and the future of the Wizarding world.

There are many different magical creatures in the Wizarding World. But one major thing most of them have in common is that they were created with digital effects. From the massive Fluffy’s three heads to the tiny dragon named Norbert, the series leaned heavily on CGI for its creatures. And by incorporating practical effects like disgusting drool or an unconscious troll on the bathroom floor, the creature scenes felt like they were fully part of the world. It’s safe to say that there are occasional CGI creature moments that haven’t aged gracefully into modern times. However, committing to rendering trolls, dragons and more with effects early paved the way for even more visually stunning creations in the future.

When “Philosopher's Stone” begins, Harry is a fairly isolated child who has more pleasant conversations with snakes than his muggle relatives. His lonely upbringing is probably why he forms such tight bonds with Ron and Hermione right away. Their friendship and support enables Harry to confront Voldemort. However, he wouldn’t have defeated the villain were it not for the power of love. Lily Potter’s choice to sacrifice herself for her beloved son gave him magical protection against the Dark Lord. By the movie’s end, Harry never forgets how important love and friendship are when fighting against evil. Since both themes become part of complex magical concepts later on, it was vital to see how important they were right away.

Instead of solely depending on special effects to bring the half-giant Hagrid to the screen, a lot of practical methods were used to make him look massive. A combination of forced perspective shots, body doubles and even having him use smaller silverware made us believe he was so tall. Practical effects were also used for the goblins. A section of “The Harry Potter film Vault collection” detailed how individual silicone heads were crafted for each of them. Given the sheer amount of goblins that appear on screen, it’s an incredible practical feat. The effort taken on these practical effects helped immerse us deeper into the world. And the techniques used to create goblins and Hagrid practically would continue to wow us throughout the series.

One of the first pieces of music we hear in the film is “Hedwig’s Theme”. This iconic leitmotif constantly plays in the background of the Wizarding World. Not only is this theme played in every Wizarding World film, but it appears in “Philosopher’s Stone’s” story thanks to Hagrid. Composed by the legendary John Williams, this song always carries a sense of mystery, majesty and magic into any scene where it appears. Who knew that a melody named after Harry’s pet owl would become the defining tune of the entire franchise?

Everyone who helped cast people for the first film deserves to be given a heap of gold from Harry’s Gringotts vault. Pretty much all the actors who played witches, wizards and magical beings were perfectly suited for their roles. We fondly remember Richard Harris welcoming us into the world as Dumbledore and how intimidated we were by Alan Rickman’s Severus Snape. Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson and Rupert Grint captured the main trio’s personalities perfectly in every appearance. And even if we talk about Maggie Smith’s pitch perfect Mcgonagall or Tom Felton’s excellent turn as Malfoy, we would barely scratch the surface of great casting choices. Bringing so many perfect actors into the first film guaranteed the audience would follow their characters to the story’s end.