Category: Action / Adventure - Children - Family - Feature Film-action/Adventure - Movie
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DVD The Chronicles of Narnia - The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (Widescreen Edition)
C.S. Lewis's classic novel The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe makes an ambitious and long-awaited leap to the screen in this modern adaptation. It's a CGI-created world laden with all the special effects and visual wizardry modern filmmaking technology can conjure, which is fine so long as the film stays true to the story that Lewis wrote. And while this film is not a literal translation--it really wants to be so much more than just a kids' movie--for the most part it is faithful enough to the story, and whatever faults it has are happily faults of overreaching, and not of holding back. The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe tells the story of the four Pevensie children, Lucy, Peter, Edmund, and Susan, and their adventures in the mystical world of Narnia. Sent to the British countryside for their own safety during the blitz of World War II, they discover an entryway into a mystical world through an old wardrobe. Narnia is inhabited by mythical, anthropomorphic creatures suffering under the hundred-year rule of the cruel White Witch (Tilda Swinton, in a standout role). The arrival of the children gives the creatures of Narnia hope for liberation, and all are dragged into the inevitable conflict between evil (the Witch) and good (Aslan the Lion, the Messiah figure, regally voiced by Liam Neeson).
Director (and co-screenwriter) Andrew Adamson, a veteran of the Shrek franchise, knows his way around a fantasy-based adventure story, and he wisely keeps the story moving when it could easily become bogged down and tiresome. Narnia is, of course, a Christian allegory and the symbology is definitely there (as it should be, otherwise it wouldn't be the story Lewis wrote), but audiences aren’t knocked over the head with it, and in the hands of another director it could easily have become pedantic. The focus is squarely on the children and their adventures. The four young actors are respectable in their roles, especially considering the size of the project put on their shoulders, but it's the young Georgie Henley as the curious Lucy who stands out. This isn't a film that wildly succeeds, and in the long run it won't have the same impact as the Harry Potter franchise, but it is well done, and kids will get swept up in the adventure. Note: Narnia does contain battle scenes that some parents may consider too violent for younger children. --Dan Vancini
Review(s): DVD The Chronicles of Narnia - The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (Widescreen Edition)
good movie, somebody tell us what's on the FOUR DVDS
The four dvd set caught my eye. If anyone actually buys the set, please tell us what's on the other three dvds?
A flawed, but well made, fantasy adventure
A review of The Narnicles of Chronia:
Stop! Don't throw yer Bibles at me!
That twist of the title is just a bit of fun, and by no means is a measure of my opinion of the film. ;-D
In Dec.2005 I had the opportunity to attend a free screening of the new film The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe, at the AMC Theatre, at The Block of Orange, in CA..
All across the country Christian Churches were buying up whole screenings so that their parishners, and members of the community at large could see the film.
One such church was Elements Church, an Assembly of God Affiliated Congregation known as The Church at the Block.
I have never read any of the Narnia Books, but was aware of the Christian, or at least religious, themes of the series.
I am not the most religious of people, but do enjoy a good religiously themed film, and the occasional book.
From what I understand the books were not published in Chronological order of the events they tell about.
It seems that what order to read them is controversial to many.
Some say that reading them Chronologically...
"makes the books more strictly allegorical than they really were intended to be, and gives the impression that they are an extended allegory rather than incidental allusions."
I'll leave that to folks who have read them to squabble over as you can discover by reading the excellent book reviews on Amazon, and other sites.
Being a fan of Fantasy Films, and expecting this one to be a quality production of the genre, I looked forward to seeing it.
The Actors?
Unifomally quite good, especially Swindon as the Witch, and the 2 Boys.
The youngest child actor only had to run around smiling at everything she encountered, cry a few times, and then spoil the reality of the effects of w ( Ah, but to say more would spoil things. ).
The other human actors made little impression in their moments on screen:
The loving Mom, the Housekeeper with a "Thorn up her Butt" attitude, and the Absent-minded Prof who, in the end, maybe knows more than he lets on.
The actor who played the Witches dwarf lacky was a hoot.
The Actor who played Santa was not playing him as the Jolly Ol' Elf, and that's a good thing.
The Animals, and the actors who played/voiced them?
All the main animal characters were realistically drawn, and given voices, and personalities, that kept you interested, and entertained.
The actor who plays the pivital character Fawn was quite good.
The bickering, though loving, Beavers were a hoot, and the wolves suitably menacing.
Aslan, the Lion was suitably mysterious, commanding, and royal.
The other animal characters, of a fantasy nature, were well drawn, and adequate to their various parts in the film, mostly as soldiers, and camp follwers.
The Effects, and Cinematography?
Impressive, and beautifully done.
The landscapes were beautiful to behold.
The rendering of various unfortunate characters turned into frozen Gargolyles by the witch lent a sense of menace to the proceedings.
The Climactic Battle was as violently hectic, and impressively staged as any Fantasy, or Medieval, battle ever filmed, though bloodless ( By that I mean that this wasn't Braveheart, Gladiator, or the Lord of the Rings films. ).
The Story?
Fans of the books, like with the Lord of the Rings Trilogy, know what's going to happen, and have various expectations, and for the most part people seem satisfied with the result as presented.
Those inclined to see the religious elements see them in spades, and will spend hours happily talking them up in Church, and on Blogs, and online forums.
For people like me, though, various things, in the end, detracted from total appreciation of the whole.
But to say why in the way the subject deserves would be a major spoilerfest, and you would hate me for it in the morning. ;-D
My rating for this film should actually be 3 1/2.
good film
While I enjoyed this film and don't agree with all the quibbling over minor alterations necessary in adapting a book into a film, or the alleged religious tone - which might be there if you go looking for it - I'm left wondering why we now have a four disc extended set. There have been two sets already. I realize double-dipping is a way to get fans to fork out more money (like the myriad Lord of the Rings sets have been doing), but is it good? Empty profiteering aside, think of the resources wasted and landfill needed to take up older versions. Our environmental responsibility should affect decisions of commerce and consumption. Would the creator of Narnia be in favor of unfettered greed and environmental custodial abdication?
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