The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian
“You may find Narnia a more savage place than you remember.”
Back in 2005 when the first Chronicles of Narnia film, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe was released, a number of adult fantasy fans dismissed the film as brightly coloured kiddie fare.
Of course the movie adaptations of C.S. Lewis’s Narnia Chronicles will never be Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings trilogy but audiences who prefer their fantasy more brutal and battle-filled may find Prince Caspian more to their liking.
In fact, Prince Caspian is surprisingly violent for a family film. Audiences witness firsthand the slaughter of trapped Narnian creatures, loveable mouse warrior Reepicheep (voiced by Eddie Izzard) slices through throats with glee and Prince Caspian’s (Ben Barnes) struggle for the Narnian throne is filled with backstabbing and betrayal of Shakespearean proportions.
All of this makes Prince Caspian sound dreary and depressing, which couldn’t be further from the truth. Plenty of gentle humour counters the film’s heavier moments. In fact, Prince Caspian demonstrates the most heart of the big name blockbusters released so far this year. I’ll admit I even cried a few times.
The film closely follows the plot of Prince Caspian, the novel, with the 4 Pevensie children, Peter (William Moseley), Susan (Anna Popplewell), Edmund (Skandar Keynes) and Lucy (Georgie Henley) magically transported from World War II London into Narnia. Although only 1 year has passed in our world, a full century has passed in Narnia, and the decades have not been kind…
Most of Narnia’s magical inhabitants have been exterminated, turned “wild” or forced into hiding; this after Narnia is invaded by a ruthless group of humans called the Telmarines. Fulfilling a King Arthur "saviour" role, the Pevensie children are called on to help Prince Caspian, a young Telmarine educated in the “old ways” – and rightful heir to the throne – overthrow his evil uncle and return Narnia to the Narnians.
As in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, Prince Caspian really impresses with its special effects and creature design. Having watched the trailer, I was concerned that the film’s battle scenes would feel like a knock-off version of those in The Lord of the Rings. Fortunately, though, these sequences have their own distinct, visually exciting identity – with a collection of mythical Narnian beings, including centaurs, minotaurs and talking animals, facing off against the Telmarines, a human army clearly modelled on the Spanish conquistadors.
It’s worth noting that the makers of Prince Caspian have fleshed out some aspects of the Narnia Chronicles that C.S. Lewis left unexplored – such as the difficulties of making the transition from powerless childhood to adult royalty and then back again. Viewers who found the character of Peter to be arrogant in the first film will be pleased to know that “Peter the Magnificent” learns a much needed lesson in humility this time around.
Of course, what’s especially admirable is that the filmmakers explore these issues without sacrificing the Christian themes that featured so strongly in Lewis’s work.
Faith, in particular, comes through strongly in Prince Caspian. Unwilling to wait for the reappearance of Aslan, characters force their will on situations or turn to dark magic to ensure victory. The results are never positive – even if the latter does produce a literally chilling sequence involving The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe’s White Witch (Tilda Swinton in a charismatic, welcome cameo).
Speaking of performances, they’re generally solid all around in Prince Caspian. The major standout though is Peter Dinklage in a supporting role as Trumpkin, a highly disillusioned but otherwise kind hearted dwarf.
Reviews have been surprisingly mixed for Prince Caspian. Admittedly, there are a handful of dull patches and the romance is a bit of a cliché, but the film’s positives vastly outweigh the negatives. If you’re a big fan of the Narnia series of books (which I am), and if you enjoyed The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe film adaptation, you should love Prince Caspian. I’m also willing to bet that fantasy fans who found the first movie too childish are also likely to have a much more enjoyable experience this time around.
Back in 2005 when the first Chronicles of Narnia film, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe was released, a number of adult fantasy fans dismissed the film as brightly coloured kiddie fare.
Of course the movie adaptations of C.S. Lewis’s Narnia Chronicles will never be Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings trilogy but audiences who prefer their fantasy more brutal and battle-filled may find Prince Caspian more to their liking.
In fact, Prince Caspian is surprisingly violent for a family film. Audiences witness firsthand the slaughter of trapped Narnian creatures, loveable mouse warrior Reepicheep (voiced by Eddie Izzard) slices through throats with glee and Prince Caspian’s (Ben Barnes) struggle for the Narnian throne is filled with backstabbing and betrayal of Shakespearean proportions.
All of this makes Prince Caspian sound dreary and depressing, which couldn’t be further from the truth. Plenty of gentle humour counters the film’s heavier moments. In fact, Prince Caspian demonstrates the most heart of the big name blockbusters released so far this year. I’ll admit I even cried a few times.
The film closely follows the plot of Prince Caspian, the novel, with the 4 Pevensie children, Peter (William Moseley), Susan (Anna Popplewell), Edmund (Skandar Keynes) and Lucy (Georgie Henley) magically transported from World War II London into Narnia. Although only 1 year has passed in our world, a full century has passed in Narnia, and the decades have not been kind…
Most of Narnia’s magical inhabitants have been exterminated, turned “wild” or forced into hiding; this after Narnia is invaded by a ruthless group of humans called the Telmarines. Fulfilling a King Arthur "saviour" role, the Pevensie children are called on to help Prince Caspian, a young Telmarine educated in the “old ways” – and rightful heir to the throne – overthrow his evil uncle and return Narnia to the Narnians.
As in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, Prince Caspian really impresses with its special effects and creature design. Having watched the trailer, I was concerned that the film’s battle scenes would feel like a knock-off version of those in The Lord of the Rings. Fortunately, though, these sequences have their own distinct, visually exciting identity – with a collection of mythical Narnian beings, including centaurs, minotaurs and talking animals, facing off against the Telmarines, a human army clearly modelled on the Spanish conquistadors.
It’s worth noting that the makers of Prince Caspian have fleshed out some aspects of the Narnia Chronicles that C.S. Lewis left unexplored – such as the difficulties of making the transition from powerless childhood to adult royalty and then back again. Viewers who found the character of Peter to be arrogant in the first film will be pleased to know that “Peter the Magnificent” learns a much needed lesson in humility this time around.
Of course, what’s especially admirable is that the filmmakers explore these issues without sacrificing the Christian themes that featured so strongly in Lewis’s work.
Faith, in particular, comes through strongly in Prince Caspian. Unwilling to wait for the reappearance of Aslan, characters force their will on situations or turn to dark magic to ensure victory. The results are never positive – even if the latter does produce a literally chilling sequence involving The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe’s White Witch (Tilda Swinton in a charismatic, welcome cameo).
Speaking of performances, they’re generally solid all around in Prince Caspian. The major standout though is Peter Dinklage in a supporting role as Trumpkin, a highly disillusioned but otherwise kind hearted dwarf.
Reviews have been surprisingly mixed for Prince Caspian. Admittedly, there are a handful of dull patches and the romance is a bit of a cliché, but the film’s positives vastly outweigh the negatives. If you’re a big fan of the Narnia series of books (which I am), and if you enjoyed The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe film adaptation, you should love Prince Caspian. I’m also willing to bet that fantasy fans who found the first movie too childish are also likely to have a much more enjoyable experience this time around.
Comments
I was really impressed with the movie, it is probably the most well-rounded blockbuster in ages. It's really refreshing to see a film that happily takes on Christian themes (as you said) and family issues, with interesting and fallible characters while keeping the action going at a pace.
After the mixed feelings about the new Indy movie, it was great to walk out of Prince Caspian and have precisely zero complaints about it :)
Anyway, everyone I've spoken to (in the flesh) who has watched the film thoroughly enjoyed it.
And mjenks, yeah, you're right. The creatures do seem to integrate better into those films.. Maybe it's because they're functioning in worlds filled with characters who are actually more than just poorly acted cardboard cutouts?