Matt's Reviews: Chronicles of Narnia
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Rating: 2 unicorns
For me, this movie was a bit of a disappointment.
When I was young, I read the whole Chronicles of Narnia series. I quite enjoyed it!
This movie has excellent production values. It has a combination of live-action and
mystical characters, such as the lion. But I found it a relentless war movie.
Perhaps I have to go back and review the book. But in my memory, the book had a certain sense of wonder.
It was not just about war. It was about relationships and a new, creative land.
I found that this movie focused so much on the war between good and evil, that it kept me
on the edge of my seat for the whole movie. There was no sense of tempo.
The movie inevitably demands comparison to Lord of the Rings. Kind of interesting that
both books were written by Englishmen at a time of war. But Lord of the Rings has rich, complex characters.
For example, consider the character Gollum. It's just fascinating to watch his personality unfold and
develop during the movie!
In contrast, the characters in Narnia are pretty flat
and one-dimensional.
It's a good movie if you have a couple of hours on a Saturday.
But it is not the classic that it could have been.
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
Directed by Andrew Adamson; written by Ann Peacock, Mr. Adamson, Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely, based on the book by C. S. Lewis; director of photography, Donald M. McAlpine; edited by Sim Evan-Jones and Jim May; music by Harry Gregson-Williams; production designer, Roger Ford; visual effects supervisor, Dean Wright; produced by Mark Johnson and Philip Steuer; released by Walt Disney Pictures and Walden Media. Running time: 135 minutes.
WITH: Georgie Henley (Lucy Pevensie), Skandar Keynes (Edmund Pevensie), Anna Popplewell (Susan Pevensie), William Moseley (Peter Pevensie), Tilda Swinton (White Witch), James McAvoy (Mr. Tumnus), Jim Broadbent (Professor Kirke), James Cosmo (Father Christmas), Kiran Shah (Ginarrbrik), Liam Neeson (voice of Aslan), Ray Winstone (voice of Mr. Beaver), Dawn French (voice of Mrs. Beaver) and Rupert Everett (voice of Mr. Fox).