Reviews of Harry Potter Years 1-6 Giftset (2009)

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $89.98
Sale Price: $49.99
Today's Bonus: 44% Off

While I value all posted opinions of this product I strongly disagree with the notion that this product is dumb. For anyone who has waited many long years and not purchased any of the movies until now, or anyone who was hooked later in the series, this set is a real value. All the released movies are bundled neatly together and they don't consume much space in my movie library because of the slim packaging.

This set is certainly not for the collector as there is no bonus material whatsoever. This is fine for us as we generally never watch the second disc anyway. If you have been waiting to buy or are new to the series and you don't mind the lack of bonus material this set really makes it easy to start your collection.

If this does not describe what you are looking for then I suggest you do as the other reviewers have suggested and look elsewhere or wait till the complete set releases in several years. For what this product is however (all current movies/no frills), this is a great set.

***Update***

W. Price has educated me that this review shows on the Blu Ray page for this movie as well. He has correctly noted the following.

"Just a note, since this review is cross-posted on the Blu-ray version: the Blu-ray discs *do* include some bonus features (deleted scenes, documentaries, etc.) accessible from the menu button. However, they're easy to miss because there is no title menu and the movie begins playing immediately."(W. Price Nov. 28, 2010 10:28 AM PST)

For clarifications sake, my reivew is of the DVD VERSION.

Click Here For Most Helpful Customer Reviews >>

Some reviewers have indicated there are no bonus materials included with this set but in my experience I found otherwise. While it is true the dvds go directly to the movie when loaded they each also contain a menu which allows access to the bonus material. Just hit your menu button and voila! This set does not include the extended version of the film and does not include all the extras included in the Ultimate Editions but there are extras which include deleted scenes they are simply not integrated into the film. I had some problems getting all the bonus material to play on my PS3 blu-ray player initally but once I visited BD-Live and updated the software they all played great. I've listed the bonus material included for each movie below.

"Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" includes the following bonus content: 7 Additional/Deleted scenes; BEHIND THE STORY -Capturing the stone: casting and bringing the novel to life; Around the world multilanguage clip; Ghosts of Hogwarts; Yearbook character clips; Lessons in Quidditch and What it Takes to Hatch a Dragon Egg; and Theatrical trailers.

"Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets" includes the following bonus content: 19 Deleted and extended scenes; BEHIND THE STORY -Conversation with J.K. Rowling and screenwriter Steve Kloves; Lockhart's Classroom: view his certificates and required reading list; Behind Hogwarts Building a Scene; Interviews with Students, Professors, and More approximately 18 minutes of interviews with the cast; Year One at Hogwarts: a 2 minute look back at the first film; and the Theatrical trailer.

"Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban" includes the following bonus content: 5 Unfinished and Deleted scenes; BEHIND THE STORY -Creating the Vision: Hear from Director Alfonso Cuaron, author J.K. Rowling, and others discuss transforming the novels to the big screen; Head to Shrunken Head; Interviews with: The Heroes, The Gryffindors, The Slytherins, Prof Lupin and Sirius Black, Prof Dumbledore and Rubeus Hagrid, The Dursleys, and The Filmmakers; Choir practice; Care of Magical Creatures; Conjuring a Scene: Uncover movie magic and learn how fantasy characters and creatures are created; and the Theatrical trailers for Years 1-3.

"Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire" includes the following bonus content: 8 Additional and Deleted scenes; BEHIND THE STORY -Harry vs. the Horntail: The first task; In Too Deep: The second task; The Maze: The third task; Meet the champions; He Who Must Not Be Named; Preparing for the Yule Ball; Conversations with the cast; Reflections on the fourth film; and the Theatrical trailer.

"Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" includes the following bonus content: 9 Unfinished and Deleted scenes; Focus Points: 28 Behind the scene Featurettes and production diaries (with the option of playing the movie with these included); The Hidden Secrets of Harry Potter: Explore all the movies in the series for clues to the mystery of Harry's true destiny; Trailing Tonks: Natalia Tena (aka Nymphadora Tonks) leads a very personal film set tour; and Harry Potter: The Magic of Editing Director David Yates and editor Mark Day show how to edit a scene.

"Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" includes 2 discs. The movie disc includes the following bonus content: Maximum Movie Mode hosted by Daniel Radcliffe includes 14 different Picture-in-Picture, Focus Point featurettes, and scene comparisons which can be included in the movie as you watch it; and Warner Bros. BD-Live which includes additional content on both Harry Potter and other films. The bonus features disc includes: 8 Additional/Deleted scenes; Close-Up with the cast of Harry Potter; One-Minute Drills Each cast member has 60 seconds to sum-up their character; First Footage from Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows; J.K. Rowling: A Year in the Life; What's on Your Mind?: Lightning-round Q&A with cast and crew; and The Wizarding World of Harry Potter a sneak peek at the new Universal Orlando Resort.

Best Deals for Harry Potter Years 1-6 Giftset (2009)

I, unfortunately, grew up without owning the movies. So, naturally, I wanted to buy all of them at once, just in time for the November 19th premiere of HP7. I didn't need anything fancy and I'm not, personally, big on behind the scenes or bonus material. This "gift" boxset was perfect. The movies come in thin packages that only really have the film. I can just pop it into the DVD player and enjoy! There are no advertisements beforehand and it goes right to the menu! If you just want the movies, nothing special or extra, this is PERFECT.

Honest reviews on Harry Potter Years 1-6 Giftset (2009)

I got the books in the same way. A 6 book box set, then the 7th as a single book. Now I'm doing the same for the Blu-ray discs. Lucky me (and every HP fan), the seventh movie will be 2 movies, probably a 4 disc box set, or as singles. They're already on my wish list.

I saw some reviews on here before purchasing, claiming "Doesn't have any extra features, etc...". That's nonsense. Loads of extra features, same as the single movies, especially the 2 disc 6th movie.

If the BD Live content doesn't play for you, you may need to upgrade the firmware on the Blu-ray player. Or if the player doesn't have storage, you might need to add local storage from the USB (which it should have.. a USB thumb drive works). Although, Warner Brothers doesn't have much for you on "BD Live", except a horrible user interface and experience. Oh and thanks for the emails.

Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for Harry Potter Years 1-6 Giftset (2009)

The title of this review says it all. I had viewed only 2 of the 6 DVDs in this set when I discovered that they are not complete movies. For whatever reason they have been edited and some of the original material has been removed. If I had known this prior to my purchase I would NOT have purchased it. Now it appears that I will have to purchase each movie individually if I want to watch the complete movie. Even then, I suppose, I will not know what I'm receiving until I view each one. Caveat Emptor.

Best Titanic: 100 Years On Deals

Customer Ratings:

When the "credentials" for this hour long film which looks like it was made for the Fox Channel (Not Fox NEWS channel), but probably wasn't is the fact that it's narrated by the ACTOR who played the role of the Chief Officer in the mega-hit film "Titanic", and Leo DiCaprio and Director James Cameron are featured on the package, you should know you are not in for an honest film abut the ship. But, I went ahead anyway and watched it.

The score which underlies the narration is pure 70s/80s power pop with a constantly beating drum. Not only does the score and the drumming drown out the narrationm, but it is totally out of place. Yes, there is commentary from the National Maritime Museum (in Halifax Canada I'm assuming) but everything else is made up of historical still photos and lots of scenes from the Hollywood motion picture. I'd tell you more, but I'll save my words and your time. This is truly a DVD that is jumping on the timing of the Centenary of the sinking of the Titanic,; nothing more. Don't expect PBS quality here.

Steve Ramm

"Anything Phonographic"

Click Here For Most Helpful Customer Reviews >>

Titanic 100 years on is a disgrace.

I have well over 35 docos about the Titanic and this is by far the most miserable excuse for a documentary about the disaster it has been my misfortune to witness.

Where to start?...the background music styles range from 60's beat instrumentals to 90's dance and 30's jazz....close.....but.....

The editing...........apparently that's what it is, is sloppy, rough and vainly done to look cutting edge. It is an epic fail.

There are various ships related to the Titanic story that are mentioned. Amerika, Baltic, California, Titanic itself.....the picture used you may ask???....The Carpathia................I could go on, but I think you get the drift.

Awful.

Best Deals for Titanic: 100 Years On

The 3d effect makes you feel like you are part of the movie especially the part where they invite Jack to have dinner with themGreat in3D

Honest reviews on Titanic: 100 Years On

I love all things about this tragic ship!! I own the movie on DVD and went to see it twice in 3D.

Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for Titanic: 100 Years On

I've been looking for a video to detail the Titanic story as a supplement to a social studies and reading assignment in my third grade classroom. I think my students deserve to see the actual, available images and to hear the story from historians. This is not the right video.

Too many sensationalized clips are included in this video. It does not present the story chronologically. Instead, the emphasis is on the most popular facts and stories. And worst of all for third grade, it shows a crew member shooting himself in the head from a scene in the popular movie. --Totally extraneous and unfounded information. And it relegates this video to the "can't show in class" pile.

It's too bad someone doesn't put out a kids' video on this topic. Kids are really interested in disasters and tragedies in history. But we have to remember that some content needs to be edited. I've looked at other documentaries with little luck. National Geographic documentaries are also produced with an adult audience in mind so the vocabulary is difficult for kids and the content is labored.

I call this documentary "fluff" because it includes more Hollywood scenes than historical images. Some of the images/film clips are not even the Titanic, but other ships from within the ten years before and after the disaster. The film makers do not take care to distinguish fact from near-fact.