Menu:

Wizard People, Dear Reader

By John Starr
Monday 28th September 2009
What do you get if you cross the most powerful wizard in the world with a sarcastic comic book writer? Well, “Wizard People, Dear Reader,” of course. Re-written by Brad Neely, “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone” is transformed into something disturbingly amusing and satirically critical. Played along with the American version of the movie on mute (à la “the Dark Side of Oz”), Brad Neely creates a world which intersects Rowling's own, but at such levels that the original seems bizarre, incomplete and full of contradictions. This is highlighted at one point by Neely's attribution of “sleepiness” as the reason why the three-headed dog fails to get at the trio of first years. It seems an almost impossible task to write an alternative soundtrack to the entire film, and to make it consistent, but Neely carries this off - hooking the listener with intense hilarity and slander of all the characters and situations. His continuous uses of obscure and fantastical simile alongside the sly references to pop-culture are enough to keep the least imaginative listener in with the vibrant world he paints. Despite this, in order to propel the jokes, Neely is forced into longer set up moments, but even these, in their own right, are amusing in different ways. Just as you feel tired with the pace and direction, Neely pulls something out of nowhere and has you clinging on for more. Brad Neely first came across the idea after pondering on what a lonesome pool-player could be listening to on his headphones. Despite never reading the books, Neely set aside two weeks to write a script for the movie. After gaining popularity among his friends the satire spread rapidly and was shown in a number of cinemas, with the film muted. Warner Bros., however, did not seem too pleased about this and threatened to discontinue the release of future films to these cinemas if they didn't cancel future showings. Neely has released the soundtrack on his website, and it is also available on Illegal Art website; both free of charge.   As a spoof, “Wizard People, Dear Reader” is original, witty and downright hilarious. As a literary work, it is an interesting commentary on Harry Potter as a series and is written with careful thought and a style which is at once alternative and accessible.