Directed by:
Andrew AdamsonComposer:
Harry Gregson-WilliamsCast:
Georgie Henley, Skandar Keynes, William Moseley, Anna Popplewell, Tilda Swinton, James McAvoy, Jim Broadbent, Kiran Shah, Elizabeth Hawthorne, Patrick Kake (more)VOD (5)
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Family adventure based on the classic novel by CS Lewis. Peter (William Moseley), Susan (Anna Popplewell), Edmund (Skandar Keynes), and Lucy (Georgie Henley) are deported from London to the house of an eccentric professor during World War II. They find life in the house extremely dull, until Lucy discovers a wardrobe that leads to a magical world called Narnia, where animals can talk and all are ruled over by the wise and benevolent lion Aslan (voice of Liam Neeson). The others don't believe her at first, but soon all of them go through the wardrobe and discover all is not well in Narnia. The land is being kept in a perpetual winter by the evil White Witch, Jadis (Tilda Swinton), who turns anyone who doesn't obey her into stone. The children join Aslan and the animals loyal to him in an attempt to vanquish Jadis. (Disney / Buena Vista)
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Reviews (12)
For children under 12 years old, this is a wonderful spectacle. I am not going to deny that I enjoyed it immensely when I was quite young, and I daresay it even trumped Lord of the Rings for me – however, times change, and so do opinions. Today I would say it is just another cult movie alongside Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter, but this time aimed at younger children. Adults will be a bit hesitant, teenagers will probably be rather disappointed. Why? The first stumbling block is the four child actors, the only one I liked was Anna Popplewell as Susan. The other three are just as demented as the families in The Simpsons, or even Family Guy. Skandar Keynes as Edmund is grumpy, obnoxious, and unlikable from the get-go, William Moseley comes across as a serious and wannabe classic-positive-character-with-whom-it-is-easy-to-identify-with type, and Georgie Henley, who is a slowly rising star in the US, and even compared to AnnaSophia Robb and Dakota Fanning, is lovely, but only when she has to be. Otherwise, she is so big-headed, pouty, and smug it is horrible to watch. On the other hand, Tilda Swinton is excellent and gives off a wonderfully icy impression, the digital treatment of Aslan and the magical creatures is breathtaking. The plot is, however, mediocre. All in all: this is an excellent movie for kids under twelve, and an average movie for most adults, the dissatisfied ones may mostly be teenagers or some adults or older people. Andrew Adamson should go back to Shrek. P.S In addition to all of that, another thing: Gregson-Williams' soundtrack is absolutely amazing (especially “The Battle”).
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Aslan, a witch, a bunch of rascals, some animals, and Santa Claus dealing out weapons... The old TV series adaptation is much better. Unfortunately, this is well-made only in technical terms (but not excellent), without a hint of ideas or invention. It’s boring, and if it weren't for the soundtrack and Tilda Swinton, it would be hard to watch to the end. The naivety of the story can hardly be blamed on the filmmakers, because it is already present to a much greater extent in the original book. But they can be reproached for the casting of the child actors. The children are absolutely unbearable, and some of them (or all?) you truly want to kill. The whole thing looks like perfectly standard consumerist and harmless family-friendly (in the bad sense of the term) Hallmark entertainment.
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No grateful spectacle from the dawn of the age of successful teenage fantasy, quite the contrary. If it weren't for the last 20 minutes, this would be the model of a truly unpleasant film for me. The children argue the whole time except for the ending, and their actors (possibly except for Lucy) are incredibly annoying. When combined with special effects that make your eyes hurt, the lecturing Aslan, and the not-so-likeable supporting characters, it's truly a big defeat.
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For adult viewers, this bit of Disney brainwashing is almost indigestible. It conceptually rips of The Lord of the Rings in numerous scenes (mainly through identical camera runs). It’s actually The Lord of the Rings for the youngest children, who can be made happy just by showing them colorful characters running around in a meadow. You won’t find even a nod to adults here.
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An awkward and boring mix of Lord of the Rings (camera swoops, the battle cries, slow-motion shots) and Harry Potter (colorful production design and Victorian-style sets), but boring plot-wise and technically very clunky. The final battle is okay, but the lack of blood and excessive visual effects bring down the overall effectiveness to average. The young actors are surprisingly unlikeable and not very equipped in terms of acting, which could still be bearable if they had anything to work with; the dismal script doesn't give them much space. Beautiful production design and artistic style are not everything, and the film starts to become boring after a while, that is if you are older than twelve.
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Photo © Walt Disney Pictures
![The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe - Photos](http://image.pmgstatic.com/cache/resized/w663/files/images/film/photos/162/354/162354617_dd35a6.jpg)
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