Reviewed
by Lamar Kukuk
5/21/08
Beloved
as they are by millions of fans all over the world, C.S. Lewis' Chronicles
of Narnia make a dicey movie franchise since no human character appears
in more than a few of the seven books and fans continue to debate which
order they should be read in. But there is at least one easy sequel,
Lewis' very first follow-up to his classic The Lion, The Witch and the
Wardrobe, which became a movie blockbuster back in 2005. Prince
Caspian reunites all four Pevensie children in an adventure that's
actually more traditional and movie-friendly than its' predecessor.
While Caspian misses the sensational villainy of Tilda Swinton's White
Witch (she does take a bow in a cameo), it is in most ways a better movie
than Wardrobe, suggesting a long healthy franchise life if only
there were more than one more book with any of the Pevensie kids in it...
A year
after their unexpected departure from Narnia, siblings Susan (Anna Popplewell),
Edmund (Skandar Keynes), Peter (William Moseley) and Lucy (Georgie Henley)
are struggling to readjust to their lives in WWII-era England. But
events in the kingdom conspire to bring them back. A thousand years
after they left, Narnia is ruled by humans who have driven all the magical
creatures who used to live there into exile or extinction. But when
bloodthirsty General Miraz (Sergio Castellitto) sees an opening to claim
the throne by assassination, he sends rightful heir Prince Caspian (Ben
Barnes) on the run. Caspian believes in the stories he's been told
about the glory days of Narnia, so when he's in danger, he blows a horn
that's reputed to have the power to bring back “the Kings and Queens of
Old”. Sure enough, the Pevensie siblings are snatched from Earth
and returned to Narnia, where they team up with Caspian and the surviving
Narnians to wage a pair of epic battles against vastly superior forces.
But young Lucy has seen a vision of the mighty lion Aslan (voice of Liam
Neeson), absent from Narnia since their departure, and embarks on a daring
journey through the forest to enlist his aid. Without him, do the
forces of Good stand a chance against those of Evil?
The
flaws of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe tended to be those
of genre-bending, trying to stuff epic battles, adorable talking animals,
Christian theology and a fairy tale Wicked Witch storyline into a modern
Hollywood blockbuster. While it succeeded on spunk and CGI spectacle,
Prince
Caspian walks the Road More Traveled in following the Magical Medieval
Warfare model of the Lord of the Rings trilogy and more than makes
up in dramatic gravity what it lacks in cheer and campy grandeur.
The story would play out more or less the same without the talking animals
as a 60's Charlton Heston vehicle, particularly since ******SPOILER
ALERT!!!****** once Aslan arrives on the scene, he comes packing some
major Biblical firepower. ******OK, END OF SPOILER****** The
evil army, unlike the menagerie of Evil critters who rode with The White
Witch, is strictly human, and their massive siege weapons are just cooler
(and they ARE cool) versions of what we'd see in one of Ridley Scott's
Medieval blockbusters. The oppressed Narnians have pretty much the
same ax to grind as any cinematic minority hiding out in the woods (Barnes
has a good Robin Hood vibe as Caspian). And all the battle strategies
the Pevensies can muster are useless except for one: hold the line
until reenforcements arrive. That this happens to be my favorite
cinematic battle strategy didn't hurt matters.
The
effects are less elaborate this time, but that actually makes the movie
feel more real than the fanciful Wardrobe, which seemed to max out
its' production values on the Narnians and struggled to make some of Lewis'
more magical conceits feel like anything more than sets. This time,
the centaurs and talking skunks are impressively convincing, but they also
feel as one with their surroundings. The real spectacle *******OOOPS,
BACK TO SPOILER ALERT******* is saved for the finale, when trees attack
with extreme vengeance and we learn that God really kicks ass. Of
course, any Narnia film must be viewed, as Lewis' intended, in part
as a Christian parable, and it's interesting to see how far the climax
is willing to go in its' Old Testament imagery. And it benefits from
the fact that when it comes to Aslan/Jesus symmetry, less is more.
The Divine Lion packs a much bigger punch in his brief appearance here
than his considerable screen time in Wardrobe*******OK, BACK
TO END OF SPOILERS*******
Parents
should take note that Caspian carries perhaps the most dubious PG
rating since PG-13 arrived on the scene. While director Andrew Adamson
is careful to avoid spilling (or even showing) blood, the fact is that
when a wacky animated mouse slits a man's throat, no matter where you put
the camera, a throat still got slit. The body count is massive for
a “family” film, and the tone is kinda dark for easily frightened children.
As always, you know your kids better than I do (which is to say, you know
them at all).
The
guest cast is strong, with Barnes making a good impression as the stalwart
Prince and Castellitto oozing evil. Palace favorite Peter Dinklage
is perfectly pitched as embittered dwarf Trumpkin, and Warwick Davis has
some good scenes as the even more embittered dwarf Nikabrik. My primary
quibble with the casting is that most of Miraz's lieutenants, who jockey
for position in the line of succession, are played by similar looking actors,
and several times I thought “Didn't that guy get his throat slit by a mouse?”
As for the regulars, Swinton is splendid in her one scene, and Neeson's
saintly baritone plays better in the most compact role. I still don't
think any of the Pevensies is ideally cast, but the second time around,
the four kids have the comfort level of a beloved TV cast that's just a
little overmatched by a big screen vehicle.
I've
never read a Narnia book, so it's hard for me to guess how Lewis
die-hards will react to Prince Caspian's darker, less magical tone.
But for adult moviegoers who were happy but not ecstatic about The Lion,
the Witch, and the Wardrobe, the latest Chronicle of Narnia represents
a step in the right direction. Maybe installment #3, The Voyage
of the Dawn Treader, could be a little shorter (Caspian pushed the
limits of my interest in these characters at 2:25), a little less repetitive,
and maybe they could get a little more White Witch in there too. |
