After directing the first two movies in the Harry Potter franchise, Chris Columbus opted to serve as producer for Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, and passed the baton to Y Tu Mamá También director Alfonso Cuarón. Though "immensely popular" is an understatement when it comes to Harry Potter, Azkaban is somewhat of a departure from its predecessors, and particularly beloved among fans for its surprise ending. Prisoner of Azkaban also marks the introduction of Sirius Black (Gary Oldman), who has escaped from the title prison after 12 years of incarceration. Believed to have been the right-hand-man of the dark wizard Voldemort, whom Harry (Daniel Radcliffe) mysteriously rendered powerless during his infancy, some of those closest to Harry suspect Black has returned to exact revenge on the boy who defeated his master. Upon his return to school, however, Harry is relatively unconcerned with Black. Run by Albus Dumbledore (Michael Gambon) -- who is widely regarded as the most powerful wizard of the age -- Hogwarts is renowned for its safety. Harry's nonchalance eventually turns to blind rage after accidentally learning the first of Black's many secrets during a field trip to a neighboring village. Of course, a loose serial killer is only one of the problems plaguing the bespectacled wizard's third year back at school -- the soul-sucking guards of Azkaban prison have been employed at Hogwarts to protect the students, but their mere presence sends Harry into crippling fainting spells. With the help of his friends Ron (Rupert Grint) and Hermione (Emma Watson), and Defense Against the Dark Arts professor Remus Lupin (David Thewlis), Harry struggles to thwart the Dementors, find Sirius Black, and uncover the mysteries of the night that left him orphaned.

It nearly took Hogwarts-type magic to contain all the extras Warner Home Video packed into the two-disc Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. Warner spared nothing in the creation of this disc. Presented in 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen, the colors pop and the blacks appear deep and rich. The Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround is an amazing audio experience, capturing every explosion and each whisper. English closed captions, English subtitles, French subtitles, and Spanish subtitles are also included. Disc one contains nothing more than the movie, the cast and crew listings, and a couple of trailers. But pop disc two into the DVD player and sit back for a magical experience. Nineteen deleted scenes are presented in anamorphic widescreen. The entertaining "Conversation with J.K. Rowling and Steve Kloves," focuses on the process of adapting the books for the screen. The "Interviews with Students, Professors & More" contains a collection of cast members reminiscing about their filming experiences. Viewers can embark on a 3-D interactive journey in "Dumbledore's Office." Not only does this extra look amazing, but it's an incredibly enjoyable, educating experience. The first choice in this feature is "Build a Scene." This lengthy featurette takes a look at the entire production process by analyzing one location, Dumbledore's office, and everything in it. Interviews with both director Chris Columbus and crew members are included. In the second part, "Tour Dumbledore's Office," viewers can embark on a three-dimensional tour of the room. Enjoyable for fans of Kenneth Branagh is the feature "Gilderoy Lockhart's Classroom." The "Spellcaster Knowledge Challenge" is a nifty little trivia game. As far as DVD-ROM features are concerned, Warner stepped up to the plate in this game, too. From weblinks to an animated Hogwarts timeline, the computer-based features are plenty. But the rather magical "One Voice DVD technology" is amazing, allowing users to navigate through all the DVD-ROM features using their voices. Printable trading cards, games, and jigsaw puzzles round out the features.