Narnia is a more savage place than we remember
Written: Jan 29 '09 (Updated Jan 29 '09)
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Product Rating:
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| Bang For The Buck |
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Pros: Effects
Special Features
Presentation
Cons: Under Developed Characters
Pacing
The Bottom Line: I really enjoyed Prince Caspian. With a few minor issues, the film is WORTH OWNING.
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| xenoranger's Full Review: The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian |
A few years after the Disney release of The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe, Walden Media presents the next in the Chronicles of Narnia, Prince Caspian.
First, a recap. The Pevensie family lives in the United Kingdom during World War II. They flee from the city to the countryside to avoid the constant air raids by the Germans. During their stay at “The Professor’s” home, they discover a portal from our world to the realm of Narnia. After entering the realm of Narnia, the Pevensie family soon gets caught up in a battle that’s waged for 100 years. On the one side, you have Jadis the White Witch (Tilda Swinton), who proclaimed herself the queen of Narnia. On the other hand, you have Aslan (Liam Neeson), who is the rightful guardian and Lord over Narnia. After a great battle, Jadis is killed by Aslan and Narnia is at peace. When the war is over, the Pevensies become the four Kings and Queens of Narnia. Years later, the Pevensies stumble back into our world, only to realize that their 10+ years in realm of Narnia occupied only a mere seconds in our world. Without a way to get back, the second book (and first film) ends.
Lord Miraz (Sergio Castellitto) is bent on becoming king. He’ll ensure power at any cost. Regrettably, he has had no son to ensure the throne remains in his family. As such, he’s kept his nephew, Prince Caspian (Ben Barnes), stick around. When Miraz’s wife bares him a son, all bets are off and Caspian’s life in now in jeopardy. Caspian flees into the woods, where, in a moment of desperation, he sounds a magical horn. Meanwhile, the Pevensie family is back in the UK trying to live life as though their Narnia adventure never happened. Suddenly, while in the subway, they’re sucked back into Narnia. Upon a return to Castle Care Paravell, they discover that their home has been destroyed. The Pevensies gather their weapons, then begin to explore this new Narnia.
The story is a classic, but I’m not sure the film did the book justice. The first part of the story seems rushed. From the moment Caspian is on the run to when he meets the Pevensies, it’s all pretty much a blur. The events make sense, but the sum of events goes by rather quickly. Once the team meets, High King Peter (William Moseley) and Caspian start quarreling. Queen Susan (Anna Popplewell) seems to be trying to keep the peace, while Queen Lucy (Georgie Henley) is the voice of hope and faith. Sadly, King Edmund (Skandar Keynes) takes a back seat in this film. At this point, the film drags a bit.
Despite the uneven pacing, there is a much better visual presentation in this film over its predecessor. The first thing I notice was the dynamic color difference between the Telmarine and Narnian scenes. Narnia was always so colorful and beautiful. Meanwhile, Lord Miraz and the Telmarine visuals remain pale. It seems as if the contrast between the good and evil is very sharp and distinct. Yet Caspian, who starts the story as a Telmarine, somehow manages to blend in both environments. In addition to this, they use special effects to animate some of the Narnian wonders. There are a couple of scenes where the Narnians use nature to combat the Telmarines. These are much better visuals than other films I’ve seen. In high definition, you can tell there was a lot of attention to detail. Sadly, there’s one bear in the film that looks out of place. I’m not sure if the scene was the last one shot, but compared to the CG characters and other effects shots, it just doesn’t look nearly as high quality. This was most notable on the Blu-Ray, but may also be visible in the DVD version.
Regarding the acting, the cast playing the Pevensie family did a good job of reprising their roles. Having read some of the books, I wouldn’t say they were that far off from the characters. What I found odd was the Spanish accent given to Caspian and the Telmarines. I understand the need to differentiate them, but the accent seemed out of place. In the end, the origins of the Telmarines is revealed, but it still doesn’t explain the accent. Sergio’s portrayal of Miraz felt a bit like Gerard Butler’s performance as King Leonidas in 300. The same intensity as well as mannerism was present. Sadly, I half expected Miraz to yell, “this is Sparta!” then kick someone into a pit. Never the less, Sergio played the character well, just not how I would imagine Lord Miraz. With his short part, Liam Neeson brings back the strong voice of Asland. As before, I have no complaints, except to say that Aslan was brief in this film.
The Blu-Ray is chalked full of featurettes and making ofs. By default, it’s a 2 disc set. The first disc has commentary and a slue of languages including Chinese and Farsi. Like earlier DVD’s, it appears that Disney was strategic in their use of the Blu-Ray format. On the bonus feature Blu-Ray, there are Easter eggs hidden in the menus. I’m fairly confident that I’ve found them all, but non-the-less, it’s good to see companies try. I was disappointed in the menu operation. Most Blu-Ray films that I’ve seen pop the menu over the movie. In this case, when you use the pop-menu, the movie continues to play in a small corner of the screen while a massive menu is present. Other Blu-Rays I own pop a transparent menu over the film while it’s playing. This allows you to make adjustments without diminishing the experience. Also, if you have a 2.0 or later Blu-Ray player, you can access web content for Prince Caspian. Sadly, my player is Blu-Ray 1.0.
I own this film, so you can pretty much guess what my final recommendation is. I saw Prince Caspian in the theaters and to own it was a must. If you’re a fan of the book, you may not enjoy this as much, but those who haven’t read the original books will love Prince Caspian. I recommend owning this movie. I strongly recommend owning it on Blu-Ray. With a slew of bonus features, this is the complete package.
Recommended:
Yes
Movie Mood: Action Movie
Viewing Method: Other
Film Completeness: Looked complete to me.
Worst Part of this Film: Pacing
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Epinions.com ID:
xenoranger
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Location: MN, USA
Reviews written: 347
Trusted by: 21 members
About Me:
Even the things I really enjoy deserve low ratings at times.
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