Year: 2005
Filming: Color
Length: 143
minutes
Genre: Adventure/Christian/Family/Fantasy/Inspirational
Maturity: PG
(for fantasy violence and some scary imagery)
Cast: Georgie Henley (Lucy Pevensie), Skandar
Keynes (Edmund Pevensie),William
Mosely (Peter Pevensie), Anna Popplewell (Susan Pevensie), Tilda
Swinton (Jadis, the White Witch), James McAvoy (Mr. Tumnus), Liam Neeson
(Aslan), Jim Broadbent (Professor Kirk)
Director: Andrew
Adamson
Personal Rating: 5
Stars
***
In addition to the content itself,
some films hold special significance because the nostalgic childhood memories they
drum up. In the case of The Chronicles of
Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, my fondness for it derives
both from this and the fact that I think the producers did just about
everything right in bringing C.S. Lewis’s Christian classic to life for a new
generation of youth.
Georgie Henley
stars as Lucy Pevensie, a British refugee child fleeing London during
the Blitz in WWII. Along with her older siblings, Peter, Susan, and Edmund, she
is sent to live at the estate of a mysterious professor in the English
countryside. While playing hide-and-seek in the mansion on a rainy day, Lucy
stumbles across a large wardrobe which she chooses as her hiding place. To her
amazement, she discovers a magical land covered in snow on the other side. Studying
a lamp-post stuck in the ground, she encounters a quizzical faun named Mr.
Tumnus who invites her to have tea with him at his home.
But what should be
a peaceful environment is under the icy spell of Jadis, the White Witch, who
styles herself Queen of Narnia. She is afraid of humans because of an ancient
prophecy that they will bring about her overthrow, and orders all those who
encounter them to turn them over to her. Tumnus intends to this, but he soon
comes to be quite fond of Lucy, and helps her escape back through the wardrobe.
When Lucy returns to the "real world", her siblings refuse to believe
her fantastic story. However, she manages to return to Narnia and is followed
by her brother Edmund, who encounters the White Witch first hand.
Playing on the
boy’s rivalry with his siblings and love of Turkish Delights, she manages to
convince Edmund that she wants to adopt him and asks him to bring his siblings
Narnia to be his “servants” when he reigns as prince at her royal palace across
the mountains. Reuniting with Lucy before exiting the wardrobe and returning to
their world, he proceeds to deny that he has ever been to Narnia, making his
sister look like either a liar or mentally unstable.
However, eventually all of the Pevensie children
found themselves drawn into the wardrobe and the magical kingdom on the other
side. Befriended by the very chatty Mr. and Mrs. Beaver, Lucy and her siblings
are informed about the prophecy that puts them at the center of Narnia’s
redemption. But when they are encouraged to rendezvous with the all-powerful
lion, Aslan, on the other side of the country, Susan insists that they return
to the real world before any of them can get hurt.
But
Edmund has already started on his way to the ice palace of the White Witch
lured by her false promises of a princely life. Instead of finery, he is
ordered to divulge the whereabouts of his siblings, which he does, still not
completely aware of the Witch’s intent. Then he is thrown into her dungeon where
Mr. Tumnus is being imprisoned. Meanwhile, the beavers and Pevensies manage to
escape Queen Jadis’s wolves through an underground tunnel and are told that
Aslan is the only one who can possibly save their brother from the White Witch.
As they embark on
the perilous journey across Narnia, signs of life are gradually returning to
the icy landscape. Father Christmas, who has not visited in generations, brings
the children presents of a serious nature: Peter receives a sword and shield;
Susan, a bow and arrows; and Lucy, a bottle of special nectar that has the power
to heal all wounds. When Father Christmas comes and goes, it becomes
increasingly apparent that spring is coming to Narnia. Meanwhile, the White Witch
realizes her power and fading and becomes even more desperate in her methods.
The Pevensies
finally reach the resistance camp and meet Aslan, who agrees to help them
rescue their brother. After Edmund is taken to safety, Aslan has a private talk
with the boy and tells his siblings that his betrayal is not to be spoken of in
a gesture of forgiveness. But the White Witch calls a parley and demands that
Edmund should be delivered to her for execution according to her ancient claim
on all traitors. Aslan offers himself in exchange, and slain with a dagger on
the great Stone Table. Meanwhile, Peter must rise to the challenge of leading
the army of Aslan in his stead, even though he is almost certain of defeat. The
result is the ultimate battle of good vs. evil to determine the fate of Narnia and
the power of sacrificial love in the face of blinding hate.
Although I disliked the Narnia books in my youth, this movie
gave me a fresh perspective and deeper appreciation for the mind of C. S.
Lewis. I am impressed with the way he managed to lace Christian allegory into a
children’s fairy-tale in a way that could be appreciated by anyone, and watching
the film actually made me wish I could have a conversation with the author. Also,
as I mentioned, memories from my childhood makes me get a little emotional
revisiting the wardrobe and its many wonders.
There will be
constant comparisons made between The
Chronicles of Narnia and The Lord of
the Rings film franchises with regards to both plot and visuals, and LotR
will always win the prize for more complex and sophisticated contest on both
accounts. But here’s the thing: they really shouldn’t be compared since they
are totally different entities. Tolkien wrote the first “adult fantasy”, and as
such the movies have an almost mythological feel to them. Lewis meant his
Narnia to be more of a classic bedtime story containing a profound message of
redemption through a Christian allegory. Both accomplished what they intended, and
both should be appreciated as such.
While both may be
edifying and deeply religious pieces of classic literature, for me personally,
I find LotR a much more disturbing thing to watch, and if I just want to enjoy
myself, I’d happily go for Narnia any day. For a family-friendly fantasy flick,
I thought this had a nice balance of human emotion and decent special effects. Some
of the CGI may have been a bit cheesy in some of the scenes, but overall I
thought it was tastefully handled. I was especially impressed with the majestic
climax in the battle sequence which was achieved with sweeping grandeur but
barely any gore.
For a family movie for young people
(I hesitate to say “children” because I’ve seen it shelved it the “Teen”
section, and I think that fits just as well), the acting was pretty good. I’ll
admit that the way the children interacted with the "mythical
creatures" struck me as a bit hoaky, and their manner of speaking in
general used modern lingo as opposed to the type speech used by British
people in the 1940's when the story is supposed to be taking place. But for
what it was, it was definitely decent enough. I particularly found Tilda Swinton to be
the perfect pick to play the White Witch, because of her ability to deftly
switch from gentleness to wrath. I also thought the relationship between Lucy and Mr. Tumnus
was darling, and they had a good chemistry on screen.
Anything involving
Aslan appealed to me. I was a bit leery at first how the film would portray the
Great Lion, since it would similar to the difficulty Biblical epics have with
portraying Christ. But I think the producers clinched it. He is not only
powerful and awesome, sacrificial and sorrowful, but also capable of joy and laughter.
He is “real”. Liam Neeson did a great job on the voice, and the computerized
lion really looked like a lion. My two favorite scenes involving Him
prominently have to be his parley with the witch and subsequent death on the
Stone Table. I love His line: “Don’t speak of ancient magic to me, Witch; I was
there when it was written!”
The execution sequence is quite intense, and I think fully
earned the rating “PG” for this film. The details of having the minions of
darkness cut off Aslan’s mane and beat him before strapping him to the Stone
Table brings Christ’s torments vividly to mind in a new way. Also, I found it
poignant that a boy named Peter should be chosen to lead the lion’s army in his
absence. C.S. Lewis was not a Catholic, but he had a high-church view of many
things. I cannot help but wonder if perhaps it was an intentional reference to “the
rock” on which Christ said He would build his Church. Even if it wasn’t
pre-planned, it’s worthy of being pointed out as another layer of
interpretation.
The
Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe is a delightful
family film and spiritual exercise. Perfect for Easter, it still achieves what
Lewis intended, giving the timeless story of Christ fresh color through the
medium of a fairy-tale. Standing out as a technical achievement in contrast to
the BBC adaptation from the ‘80s, it may not be Tolkien, but it is a triumph in
its own right, and a finely-crafted addition to the fantasy genre.
| Peter Pevensie (William Mosely) prepares to lead Aslan's Army |
