Never read the books, but my wife has. We went saturday (11-16-02) and the place was, of course, sold out. I found the movie to be very strong. Witty, with a really good story and great visuals. Some of the highpoints being the castle itself (almost a character unto itself), the curious book that harry finds, and the chamber itself. The ending was good, but led me to a question that I got a slightly disappointing answer to...
SPOILERS AHEAD!!!
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/ LAST CHANCE!
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I asked my wife if Voldemort (sp?) was the ultimate antagonist in all of the books. Unfortunately, my wife said "yes". It will not ruin the movies for me, but it does detract a little when it's always the same villain behind the subterfuge.