Rated PG for epic battle action and violence.
150 Minutes

Directed By: Andrew Adamson
Written By: Christopher Markus and Andrew Adamson
Based On the Novel By: C.S. Lewis

Staring: Ben Barnes, Georgie Henley, Skander Keynes, Walter Moseley, Anna Popplewell, Peter Dinklage, Warwick Davis, Sergio Castellitto, Pierfrancesco Favino, Vincent Grass, Tilda Swinton, and Liam Neeson as Aslan

Two days ago, I didn’t believe in the existence of talking animals… of dwarves or… or centaurs. Yet here you are, in strengths and numbers that we Telmarines could never have imagined. Whether this horn is magic or not, it brought us together… and together, we have a chance to take back what is ours! -Prince Caspian

Review

As beautifully shot as this film was, it felt a little apathetic. As though it was made to hurry and capitalize on the success of the first, and the warm reception fantasy films have been receiving as of late. While I did thoroughly enjoy Prince Caspian as a whole, the lack of passion behind such an epic and well loved tale was a huge disappointment. With the heart of C.S. Lewis’s incredible story feeling half empty instead of half full, there is a lukewarm excitement about the future of the franchise on film.

As far as the special effects was concerned, I was blown away. It was an utterly beautiful film visually, that sucked you back into the world of Narnia and it’s magical existence. Ultimately, other films can take a note of what a fantasy world is supposed to look like from the Narnia series thus far. If I’ve felt some of the emotion and magic has been missing in this series, it really has nothing to do with how the world appears. It’s incredible, and though clearly has been shot in this universe, feels like another diabolic world entirely.

I’ve always felt all the stories in The Chronicles Of Narnia had a melancholy feel to them, but Prince Caspian really took on the burden of darkness and hopelessness more than I remembered in the book. The enchanting feel of Narnia wasn’t present at all. Instead the setting felt oppressive, making it difficult to take in the visual canopy presented. Clearly the story gave the necessity of characters being held back, doesn’t mean that the entire feel of the film has to be stifling as well.

The acting was again very solid. For a fantasy movie there was incredible commitment and charismatic performances. For the brothers and sisters, I cannot imagine them being better cast, and this time the addition of Prince Caspian played by Ben Barnes made an exceptional showing. Especially since he was more or less the focus of the film. When Peter, Edmund, Lucy, and Susan return to Narnia, I really had the feeling that they were intruding on a time they didn’t understand. It was Caspian’s time and that was a tangible emotion.

As far as epic battles and fights were concerned, it wasn’t completely noteworthy with exception of a few innovative moments. Also some of the scenes have been seen in Lord Of The Rings already, and while it really isn’t the fault of the director, it was Elliot’s vision, I felt like they could have manipulated some of those points differently. (The River coming to life as an example) There are a lot of parallels between Tolkiens work and Elliot’s but I believe since LOTR has already delivered this onscreen, there should be an interpretation of it that takes us away from a movie, that frankly did it a thousand times better, even if they are being true to Caspian. Even the moment when it seemed like they were going to fail and the other Lord Of The Rings shadow emerged (The Trees), it made it feel almost clinical and cliche instead of powerful and climatic.

By the end of Caspian it felt moderately anti-climatic, and also left with the feeling of being slightly depressing and darker. The lack of hope and joy, and all the childlike innocence and discovery being gone was pretty disenchanting. I’m all for another sequel, as this wasn’t an all together misstep, but there definitely needs to be more changes, more time, and more passion for the work the studio is putting into these films. Steming from some of the greatest and most imaginative pieces of fiction ever created there is obviously going to be difficulties in translating that magical world, but if you can’t do it right, you shouldn’t do it at all. I want soul and heart from Narnia, and if that can’t be delivered, lets call it a day.

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