Thursday, April 06, 2006
With the DVD release of Disney's The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe this past week, and the Pendragon's affinity for all things fantasy, I might be expected to comment on the event. I have only seen the movie once, in the theatres, but I do have some thoughts.
First of all, it was well-produced. Having grown up with the BBC production where all the talking animals look like mechanized stuffed animals, it was nice to see Aslan run with muscles rippling like an actual lion and the beavers not be six feet tall. Overall they followed the book fairly well and it was entertaining.
I was disappointed, however, by the handling of the content. Aslan tells Peter at one point that the "fate of Narnia hangs on your courage." Tumnus the Faun tells the Witch she has imprisoned him "because I believe in a free Narnia." The army screams, "NARNIA!" when it charges. The whole emphasis is on a nationalistic fight for Narnian sovereignty, sort of like "Braveheart." In my reading of Lewis' book, the fight was for the soul of Edmund and the outcome was not in doubt because of Aslan's sacrifice. It was not about the courage of the children. The climactic battle sequence seemed like something out of "Lord of the Rings Junior," not the Christian parable that the book was. The book also does not seem to emphasize any feelings of inadequacy on the part of the children when told of their role in the struggle by the beavers. The movie, taking a line from Harry Potter and LOTR (where it does exist), portrays Peter and Susan in particular as reluctant to embrace their destiny. This works in the other movies but not really in this one, where it seems, to me at least, to weaken the character of the children. All except one anyway. Edmund comes off better because of an extended beginning to the story where it is revealed that Edmund is really missing his father's guiding hand. This may be true but Lewis' storyline is less sympathetic, simply portraying Edmund as a weak-willed bully.
That said, the movie is not a total wash, better than I would have expected from Disney. As I said, the creatures are very realistic and Aslan in particular is well-done. He is certainly portrayed in Christlike terms. The little girl who plays Lucy is an amazing actress for her age. Overall rating: 7/10.
First of all, it was well-produced. Having grown up with the BBC production where all the talking animals look like mechanized stuffed animals, it was nice to see Aslan run with muscles rippling like an actual lion and the beavers not be six feet tall. Overall they followed the book fairly well and it was entertaining.
I was disappointed, however, by the handling of the content. Aslan tells Peter at one point that the "fate of Narnia hangs on your courage." Tumnus the Faun tells the Witch she has imprisoned him "because I believe in a free Narnia." The army screams, "NARNIA!" when it charges. The whole emphasis is on a nationalistic fight for Narnian sovereignty, sort of like "Braveheart." In my reading of Lewis' book, the fight was for the soul of Edmund and the outcome was not in doubt because of Aslan's sacrifice. It was not about the courage of the children. The climactic battle sequence seemed like something out of "Lord of the Rings Junior," not the Christian parable that the book was. The book also does not seem to emphasize any feelings of inadequacy on the part of the children when told of their role in the struggle by the beavers. The movie, taking a line from Harry Potter and LOTR (where it does exist), portrays Peter and Susan in particular as reluctant to embrace their destiny. This works in the other movies but not really in this one, where it seems, to me at least, to weaken the character of the children. All except one anyway. Edmund comes off better because of an extended beginning to the story where it is revealed that Edmund is really missing his father's guiding hand. This may be true but Lewis' storyline is less sympathetic, simply portraying Edmund as a weak-willed bully.
That said, the movie is not a total wash, better than I would have expected from Disney. As I said, the creatures are very realistic and Aslan in particular is well-done. He is certainly portrayed in Christlike terms. The little girl who plays Lucy is an amazing actress for her age. Overall rating: 7/10.
// posted by The Pendragon @ 7:02 PM 
