Phy
05-18-2008, 06:23 PM
I went back and looked at what I wrote about The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe (CoN:LWW, or LWW for short) . At the time, I wrote:
CoH: LWW was ok, I guess.
It should have been as magnificent as the word suggests. It wasn't (for me).
Things I didn't like:
* tepid writing
* tentative acting
* stilted dialogue
* pedestrian pace
* conceding plot points and language
* too careful, not reckless enough
* lacking in wonder, magic, menace, emotional import or impact
* Peter needs to look like he can handle a sword. as it is, it looks he's an actor with a prop.
* I get the animals talking thing, but does it /have/ to sound like they're actors speaking in from of mics? Can't we get the sound to sound like it's in the setting and not picked up in the mix?
Let me just skip ahead a bit and say this film, The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian (CoN:PC, or simply PC), addressed every single negative, and, moreover, turned it into a positive. Every single one.
http://l.yimg.com/img.movies.yahoo.com/ymv/us/img/hv/photo/movie_pix/walt_disney/the_chronicles_of_narnia__prince_caspian/_group_photos/anna_popplewell4.jpg
Friends, this is a magnificent fantasy epic. This film is longer, darker, filled with more temptation and double-dealing, with more realistic villains, and more dangerous allies.
To alter a phrase, this is not a tame movie. And I love that. It's not what I'd call a 'family movie' if that means there is no room for real-world risks. But if we each live in a world where blessing or destruction is only a moment away, this film captures that frisson. And there is real joy in watching people overcome their own fears and become the people they were meant to be despite the lack of a safety net.
This film seemed more 'real' than Lord of the Rings, even with PCs talking animals. They looked, well, real. But more than that, they came across as living, suffering, hopeful entities, full of worth, and each with their own weaknesses and strengths. I believed they were persecuted by the invading Telmarines, I empathized with them, and I loved their grit and humor.
But it is the underlying spiritual elements that most seized me about this film. This film is about life in all it's gusto and temptation and danger, with uneasy loyalties, forgotten promises, and sometimes petty bickering. It's also about dreams for a better life, and faith, and moreover, belief. And it's not corny or preachy about any of it.
It felt to me like what Star Wars would have been as a fantasy (and by that, I mean 4 / 5/ 6). It scared me, thrilled me, challenged me, and most of all enthralled me. It was about death and wonder, about fighting for liberty, about a small, dysfunctional band fighting against impossible odds.
Most of all, I was taken with the symmetry with the notes from today's message at church. We're in the book of Judges, and I wrote down the following notes about observable, recurring cycles in the history of the nation of Israel. They fit very well with the nation of Narnia:
* After years of peace and prosperity, everyone would gradually forget about God and do whatever was right in their own eyes
* Faithlessness ultimately led to servitude
* The people were only spared when they repented of their unbelief and their wickedness
* God heard the cries of His people, and raised up unlikely heroes to lead His people back to victory, both on the battle and in their own heart, resulting again in years of peace and prosperity as they worshiped God.
I saw those same principles play out in Narnia. Even among the Pevensies, we saw temptation, forgetting about what brought them victory to begin with. I was especially taken with the unexpected heroes arc for Peter. Edmund was a wonder in this picture, not just physically bigger, but having a grounded certainty of who he is and where his warrior's power comes from. The girls are also fun to watch, Lucy for her childlike faith, and Susan for her role as a buffer between Caspian and Peter, uneasy allies at best, two alpha males trying to do the right thing, but looking for the right way.
Special mentions go to the cynical dwarf Trumpkin, a fearless feather-sporting mouse named Reepicheep (voiced by an amazing Eddie Izzard, who is swashbuckling without being absurd), and an amazing black centaur named Glenstorm.
The Pevensies must learn who their enemies are, who their friends are, that they are not great because they rule - that they are great because they serve, and that where you put your faith matters.
This was a magnificent film that nailed everything I missed last time around, and improved on the things I thought were ok the last time around.
For instance, the CGI here isn't obvious. It's organic, like the CGI in Minority Report, where it exists not to draw attention to itself, but to sell the setting, the moment, the events. This was a seamlessly effective film where the danger felt real, the settings were amazing, and the risks were tangible.
If you hated LWW, you might like PC. If you were so/so on LWW, you might love PC. And if you loved LWW, PC may wind up being one of your favorite films, ever. It is that much improved, which should count for something.
This was a flat-out great film, and I'm glad I gave it a chance. You should, too.
9 / 10
Summary:
The Pevensie siblings -- Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy -- return in The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian, the newest installment of the classic C.S. LewisThe Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, the one-time Kings and Queens of Narnia find themselves back in the faraway realm they once ruled. But over 1300 years have passed, and the Golden Age of Narnia has given way to the rule of the evil King Miraz. And when the Pevensies meet Prince Caspian (Ben Barnes), the rightful heir to the throne, they embark on a journey to find the legendary Aslan and restore magic and glory to Narnia.
CoH: LWW was ok, I guess.
It should have been as magnificent as the word suggests. It wasn't (for me).
Things I didn't like:
* tepid writing
* tentative acting
* stilted dialogue
* pedestrian pace
* conceding plot points and language
* too careful, not reckless enough
* lacking in wonder, magic, menace, emotional import or impact
* Peter needs to look like he can handle a sword. as it is, it looks he's an actor with a prop.
* I get the animals talking thing, but does it /have/ to sound like they're actors speaking in from of mics? Can't we get the sound to sound like it's in the setting and not picked up in the mix?
Let me just skip ahead a bit and say this film, The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian (CoN:PC, or simply PC), addressed every single negative, and, moreover, turned it into a positive. Every single one.
http://l.yimg.com/img.movies.yahoo.com/ymv/us/img/hv/photo/movie_pix/walt_disney/the_chronicles_of_narnia__prince_caspian/_group_photos/anna_popplewell4.jpg
Friends, this is a magnificent fantasy epic. This film is longer, darker, filled with more temptation and double-dealing, with more realistic villains, and more dangerous allies.
To alter a phrase, this is not a tame movie. And I love that. It's not what I'd call a 'family movie' if that means there is no room for real-world risks. But if we each live in a world where blessing or destruction is only a moment away, this film captures that frisson. And there is real joy in watching people overcome their own fears and become the people they were meant to be despite the lack of a safety net.
This film seemed more 'real' than Lord of the Rings, even with PCs talking animals. They looked, well, real. But more than that, they came across as living, suffering, hopeful entities, full of worth, and each with their own weaknesses and strengths. I believed they were persecuted by the invading Telmarines, I empathized with them, and I loved their grit and humor.
But it is the underlying spiritual elements that most seized me about this film. This film is about life in all it's gusto and temptation and danger, with uneasy loyalties, forgotten promises, and sometimes petty bickering. It's also about dreams for a better life, and faith, and moreover, belief. And it's not corny or preachy about any of it.
It felt to me like what Star Wars would have been as a fantasy (and by that, I mean 4 / 5/ 6). It scared me, thrilled me, challenged me, and most of all enthralled me. It was about death and wonder, about fighting for liberty, about a small, dysfunctional band fighting against impossible odds.
Most of all, I was taken with the symmetry with the notes from today's message at church. We're in the book of Judges, and I wrote down the following notes about observable, recurring cycles in the history of the nation of Israel. They fit very well with the nation of Narnia:
* After years of peace and prosperity, everyone would gradually forget about God and do whatever was right in their own eyes
* Faithlessness ultimately led to servitude
* The people were only spared when they repented of their unbelief and their wickedness
* God heard the cries of His people, and raised up unlikely heroes to lead His people back to victory, both on the battle and in their own heart, resulting again in years of peace and prosperity as they worshiped God.
I saw those same principles play out in Narnia. Even among the Pevensies, we saw temptation, forgetting about what brought them victory to begin with. I was especially taken with the unexpected heroes arc for Peter. Edmund was a wonder in this picture, not just physically bigger, but having a grounded certainty of who he is and where his warrior's power comes from. The girls are also fun to watch, Lucy for her childlike faith, and Susan for her role as a buffer between Caspian and Peter, uneasy allies at best, two alpha males trying to do the right thing, but looking for the right way.
Special mentions go to the cynical dwarf Trumpkin, a fearless feather-sporting mouse named Reepicheep (voiced by an amazing Eddie Izzard, who is swashbuckling without being absurd), and an amazing black centaur named Glenstorm.
The Pevensies must learn who their enemies are, who their friends are, that they are not great because they rule - that they are great because they serve, and that where you put your faith matters.
This was a magnificent film that nailed everything I missed last time around, and improved on the things I thought were ok the last time around.
For instance, the CGI here isn't obvious. It's organic, like the CGI in Minority Report, where it exists not to draw attention to itself, but to sell the setting, the moment, the events. This was a seamlessly effective film where the danger felt real, the settings were amazing, and the risks were tangible.
If you hated LWW, you might like PC. If you were so/so on LWW, you might love PC. And if you loved LWW, PC may wind up being one of your favorite films, ever. It is that much improved, which should count for something.
This was a flat-out great film, and I'm glad I gave it a chance. You should, too.
9 / 10
Summary:
The Pevensie siblings -- Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy -- return in The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian, the newest installment of the classic C.S. LewisThe Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, the one-time Kings and Queens of Narnia find themselves back in the faraway realm they once ruled. But over 1300 years have passed, and the Golden Age of Narnia has given way to the rule of the evil King Miraz. And when the Pevensies meet Prince Caspian (Ben Barnes), the rightful heir to the throne, they embark on a journey to find the legendary Aslan and restore magic and glory to Narnia.