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Rating 2¾
Directed by Andrew Adamson
Written by Andrew Adamson, Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely, based on the novel by C S Lewis
Starring William Moseley, Anna Popplewell, Georgie Henley, Skandar Keynes, Ben Barnes, Sergio Castellito, Pierfrancesco Favino, Damián Alcázar, Peter Dinklage, Warwick Davis, Vincent Grass, Cornell John and Tilda Swinton (cameo appearance), plus the voices of Liam Neeson, Eddie Izzard, David Walliams and Ken Stott
The young Prince Caspian (Ben Barnes), heir to the vacant throne of Telmarine, is helped to escape from a heavily fortified castle by his mentor Doctor Cornelius (Vincent Grass), fearing that Caspian’s uncle Miraz (Sergio Castellito), a Machiavellian presence in the court, intends to have him killed and claim the throne for his newly born son. Caspian flees on horseback into a supposedly haunted forest, pursued by soldiers loyal to Miraz. When suddenly confronted by two Narnian dwarves (played by Peter Dinklage and Warwick Davis) he panics and, afraid for his life, blows a magical horn given to him by Cornelius. Peter, Susan, Lucy and Edmund Pevensie are suddenly swept from an underground station platform in World War Two-era London and back to Narnia, some thirteen hundred years after they had last been there. Together with Caspian, they team up with the many different inhabitants of Narnia to fight the tyranny of Miraz and the Telmarines.
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In my pre-teenage years I read the seven novels by the medievalist and theologian C S Lewis that make up ‘The Chronicles of Narnia’. The first book, ‘The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe’, especially, was a particular favourite of mine, perhaps only challenged by the classic children’s novel ‘The Wind in the Willows’. I have never read the Narnia books again, although in my teenage years the C S Lewis space trilogy counted amongst my favourite novels and I have subsequently read other books he wrote, notably ‘A Grief Observed’.
In 2005, the film production company Walden Media made ‘The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe’ with Walt Disney Pictures. Clearly motivated by the enormous commercial success of the ‘Harry Potter’ films and Peter Jackson’s ‘The Lord of the Rings’ trilogy, it was intended to film all seven books. The film had a $180 million production budget and grossed over $745 million at the box office worldwide. ‘Prince Caspian’ is the second book in the series (the fourth in chronological sequence), written in 1949 and first published in 1951, and the second film, released into cinemas in 2008.
I was disappointed by the first film. It failed to capture my remembrance of the magical quality of the book. The early scenes when the children first discover the wardrobe that acts as a doorway into Narnia feel a little flat. Once Aslan (voiced by Liam Neeson), the lion who Lewis intended as a kind of Christ figure, is introduced, the film seems to disintegrate into a mindlessly tedious planning and battle sequence that clearly hopes to capture the same audience as ‘The Lord of the Rings’. The second film is more successful, simply because the story lacks the magical tone of the first book, so there is less to live up to. Once again, the film amounts to little more than a battle and there are moments when more excitement could be had from watching a kettle boil, but it just seems to have a more satisfying feel to it and a surer hand at the helm (both films were directed by Andrew Adamson).
What immediately differentiates ‘The Chronicles of Narnia’ from ‘Harry Potter’ is the strong Christian religious theme. In ‘Prince Caspian’ we not only get Aslan (Christ), but also a God/Father figure, in the form of the raging water. The books were intended as an allegory and this has resulted in a certain degree of controversy in more recent years, with claims that they are guilty of both sexism and racism. The time in which they were written is certainly a factor. Lewis was responding to the horror of the Second World War, much as did his close friend J R R Tolkien when writing ‘The Lord of the Rings’. However, there is undoubtedly a grain of truth in what has been suggested.
The accusation of sexism stems largely from the portrayal of Susan after ‘Prince Caspian’. She does not actually appear in any of the remaining five books, but is mentioned in two of them. It is the depiction of her in the final book ‘The Last Battle’ that has caused most comment, particularly in response to the description that, “she’s interested in nothing nowadays except lipstick and nylons and invitations.” It has been suggested that Lewis equated Susan to Judas, the biblical traitor. She seem to become, in his eyes, the antithesis of the Virgin Mary, although it should be born in mind that Lewis was an apologist who followed Anglican theology and was thought by some, including Tolkien, to have taken an anti-Catholic stance. Prior to 1931 when he converted to the Christian faith, at the age of 33, Lewis had been an atheist.
‘Prince Caspian’ could be accused of jingoism. The theme seems to be that we only truly come alive and find our destiny when we have a common enemy, one that is two-dimensionally evil and treacherous, and our goal should be to exterminate this enemy from the face of the Earth. I still find it disconcerting, just as I did with the first film, to see the four children so easily turned into warriors and watch them take the lives of others in battle.
William Moseley (Peter), Anna Popplewell (Susan), Georgie Henley (Lucy) and Skandar Keynes (Edmund) are effective in the lead roles. When first introduced, after the opening sequence in Narnia, they are in Strand underground station, which is now closed and, in fact, by the time of World War Two had been renamed Aldwych. Strand Station was opened in 1907, renamed Aldwych in 1915 and finally closed in 1994. In the book, the four children are standing on a railway station platform, not in an underground station.
It seems almost inconceivable that the film has a “PG” rating, given the level of violence, but such is our extremely skewed attitude to these things, it seems that children can apparently happily be shown violence like this, but never shown sex of any kind. Also, I would imagine the power of Disney had something to do with the certification.
‘Prince Caspian’ has a 66% fresh rating at Rotten Tomatoes from 174 reviews. In other words, 60 of the reviews collected are judged to have been unfavourable. It had an eye-watering production budget of $200 million (the special effects are very impressive) and grossed a little under $420 million at the box office. Walt Disney Pictures subsequently announced that it was pulling out of the agreement to make any further films. Walden Media has now teamed up with Twentieth Century Fox and ‘The Voyage of the Dawn Treader’ is due for release sometime in 2010.
Review posted 5 April 2009
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Rating 2½
Directed by Andrew Adamson
Written by Ann Peacock, Andrew Adamson, Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely, adapted from the book by C S Lewis
Starring Georgie Henley, Skandar Keynes, William Moseley, Anna Popplewell, Tilda Swinton, James McAvoy, Jim Broadbent and the voices of Liam Neeson, Ray Winstone, Dawn French and Rupert Everett
The Pevensie children (Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy) are evacuated from London during World War II and taken to live in a country manor house owned by Professor Digory Kirke (played by Jim Broadbent and generally thought to act as a fictional alter-ego of C S Lewis). While playing hide and seek, the youngest sibling, Lucy (Georgie Henley), discovers an old wardrobe in an otherwise empty room. When she hides inside the wardrobe she discovers that it is a doorway into the wintery world of Narnia, where she encounters Mr Tumnus (James McAvoy), a faun who tells her about the White Witch (Tilda Swinton), who has placed a curse on the land, creating one hundred years of perpetual winter, and rules by instilling fear into the hearts of the inhabitants. Peter (William Moseley), Susan (Anna Poppenwell) and Edmund (Skandar Keynes) do not believe Lucy at first, but when Edmund is also drawn into Narnia he encounters the White Witch and is enchanted by her. Eventually, Peter and Susan also find themselves there, where they must join forces with Aslan (voiced by Liam Neeson), a noble lion, and fight the forces of darkness.
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The Chronicles of Narnia is a series of seven fantasy novels for children written by the Irish academic C S Lewis, who taught at Magdalen College, Oxford, between 1925 and 1954 and was then the Professor of Medieval and Renaissance English at Cambridge. Lewis was a friend of the author JRR Tolkien and both were members of the Oxford literary group known as the Inklings. The Narnia books were first published between 1950 and 1956 and drew on mythology and folk legends, as well as Christian religious themes. The story is influenced by the author’s religious beliefs and also by the events of World War II.
The books have caused some controversy over the years, with accusations that they advocate misogyny, racism and religious bigotry. Philip Pullman, the author of ‘His Dark Materials’, is a particularly vociferous critic of books. Equally, some religious groups have criticised the books, claiming them to promote paganism and interest in the occult, despite the fact that Lewis was a devote Christian. The release of the 2006 film version of ‘The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe’, the first of the seven books, renewed these debates, at a time when hostilities between Judeo-Christian and Muslim people was once again a serious cause for concern.
‘The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe’ was, at one time, when I was a young boy, my favourite book. It is probably 35 years or more since I last read it, but I remain very fond of C S Lewis as a writer, largely because of his space trilogy (published between 1938 and 1945) and ‘A Grief Observed’, the book published in 1961 following the death of his wife, the American poet Joy Gresham. The Chronicles of Narnia is intended as a magical journey and never more is that apparent than in the first book. The film somehow fails to conjure up that magic, despite special effects that allows it to visualise Narnia, or perhaps for that very same reason. The special effects are allowed to drive the film and the magic is therefore lost. The 1988 BBC production, consisting of six 30-minute episodes, made for a production budget that would not even be 1% of that of the film, was quite simply better, although I wonder if perhaps my judgement is slightly skewed because I really wanted to be spellbound by the film.
The film critic Cynthia Fuchs best captures the problem encountered in the film, concluding her review by writing, “The children’s indoctrination seems less charming. They are warriors, drawn into killing and a general faith in militarism, into the sense that wars might solve problems, or at the least, beat them into submission. And that is very scary.” The magic becomes dissipated, much like the ‘Lord Of The Rings’ trilogy was ultimately undone by the insistence of Peter Jackson in making each battle bigger and louder than the last, thus taking away from the magic of the story. It is simply another example of CGI effects getting in the way. That the characterisation of the four leads is so bland and tissue-thin is also a factor.
Georgie Henley is very endearing in the role of Lucy and the other young actors portray their roles effectively, given that they have so little to work with. The majority of critics reserved most praise for the performance of Tilda Swinton. Overall, the reviews were generally positive and the film has a 75% fresh rating at Rotten Tomatoes from 202 collected reviews. The film had a whooping $180 million production budget and grossed in excess of $745 million at the box office, making it the second highest grossing film of 2005, behind ‘Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith’.
The second Chronicles of Narnia book, ‘Prince Caspian’ (based on publication dates, not the chronological order of the story), was made into a film in 2008. It had an even bigger production budget, but its box office gross was considerably lower than that of the first film, although it still grossed nearly $420 million.
Review posted 1 January 2009
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Rating 4
Written and directed by Hilary Brougher
Starring Tilda Swinton, Amber Tamblyn, Timothy Hutton, Halley Feiffer and Denis O’Hare
Tilda Swinton, who was also executive producer of this extraordinary film, plays Lydie Crane, a forensic psychologist who is brought in by the prosecutor’s office to conduct a series of interviews with Stephanie Daley, a sixteen-year-old girl, played by Amber Tamblyn, who is accused of the murder of her prematurely born child following a pregnancy she claims not to have even been aware of. Lydie Crane is 29 weeks pregnant when the interviews begin, having given birth to a stillborn baby the previous year after 23 weeks of pregnancy. Stephanie Daley gave birth to her baby in a toilet stall after 26 weeks.
The story takes place in a small, picturesque American town, in which the church, local community and high school all instil strong Christian values into Stephanie. She is also the product of parents who no longer seem able to communicate with one another and she bends to the peer-pressure of her best friend Rhana, played by Halley Feiffer - an actress who was previously very impressive in the film ‘The Squid and the Whale’.
As the interviews slowly unfold we learn more about Stephanie and how her journey also informs that of Lydie, who carries unspoken doubts about both her pregnancy and her marriage to Paul (played by the ever-reliable Timothy Hutton).
Hilary Brougher, the writer and director, has done a tremendous job. Her only previous film, a lesbian sci-fi romantic thriller called ‘The Sticky Fingers of Time’, was made seven years previously. Both films brought her excellent reviews - and with ‘Stephanie Daley’ several award nominations at prestigious film festivals.
Tilda Swinton gives a superb performance, which is perhaps not surprising. I cannot bring to mind an acting performance by her I have seen that is not noteworthy. However, the acting honours must go to Amber Tamblyn, if only for one particularly unsettling scene that I found quite harrowing. To say more about it would be to give away too much of the story, but suffice to say it is a scene that leaves a powerful impression.
The film tackles a difficult subject in a quiet, considered and thought-provoking way and I strongly recommend it.
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The young Prince Caspian (Ben Barnes), heir to the vacant throne of Telmarine, is helped to escape from a heavily fortified castle by his mentor Doctor Cornelius (Vincent Grass), fearing that Caspian’s uncle Miraz (Sergio Castellito), a Machiavellian presence in the court, intends to have him killed and claim the throne for his newly born son. Caspian flees on horseback into a supposedly haunted forest, pursued by soldiers loyal to Miraz. When suddenly confronted by two Narnian dwarves (played by Peter Dinklage and Warwick Davis) he panics and, afraid for his life, blows a magical horn given to him by Cornelius. Peter, Susan, Lucy and Edmund Pevensie are suddenly swept from an underground station platform in World War Two-era London and back to Narnia, some thirteen hundred years after they had last been there. Together with Caspian, they team up with the many different inhabitants of Narnia to fight the tyranny of Miraz and the Telmarines.
In my pre-teenage years I read the seven novels by the medievalist and theologian C S Lewis that make up ‘The Chronicles of Narnia’. The first book, ‘The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe’, especially, was a particular favourite of mine, perhaps only challenged by the classic children’s novel ‘The Wind in the Willows’. I have never read the Narnia books again, although in my teenage years the C S Lewis space trilogy counted amongst my favourite novels and I have subsequently read other books he wrote, notably ‘A Grief Observed’.
I was disappointed by the first film. It failed to capture my remembrance of the magical quality of the book. The early scenes when the children first discover the wardrobe that acts as a doorway into Narnia feel a little flat. Once Aslan (voiced by Liam Neeson), the lion who Lewis intended as a kind of Christ figure, is introduced, the film seems to disintegrate into a mindlessly tedious planning and battle sequence that clearly hopes to capture the same audience as ‘The Lord of the Rings’. The second film is more successful, simply because the story lacks the magical tone of the first book, so there is less to live up to. Once again, the film amounts to little more than a battle and there are moments when more excitement could be had from watching a kettle boil, but it just seems to have a more satisfying feel to it and a surer hand at the helm (both films were directed by Andrew Adamson).
‘Prince Caspian’ could be accused of jingoism. The theme seems to be that we only truly come alive and find our destiny when we have a common enemy, one that is two-dimensionally evil and treacherous, and our goal should be to exterminate this enemy from the face of the Earth. I still find it disconcerting, just as I did with the first film, to see the four children so easily turned into warriors and watch them take the lives of others in battle.
It seems almost inconceivable that the film has a “PG” rating, given the level of violence, but such is our extremely skewed attitude to these things, it seems that children can apparently happily be shown violence like this, but never shown sex of any kind. Also, I would imagine the power of Disney had something to do with the certification.
