BS: Chronicles of Narnia

Subject: RE: BS: Chronicles of Narnia
From: Naemanson
Date: 13 Dec 05 - 06:18 AM

Wakana and I saw it this afternoon. Great film! I was captured early on and rode the ride right through to the end.

Subject: RE: BS: Chronicles of Narnia
From: robomatic
Date: 12 Dec 05 - 01:51 PM

Well, wasn't "Weekend At Bernie's" a riff on The Ressurrection?"

Subject: RE: BS: Chronicles of Narnia
From: JohnB
Date: 12 Dec 05 - 11:53 AM

Yes! but it's a "different" kind of cold. Something to do with the lighting I think.
JohnB

Subject: RE: BS: Chronicles of Narnia
From: Hollowfox
Date: 12 Dec 05 - 11:37 AM

Went to see it last night with three teenagers and a my-age girlfriend. We all enjoyed it, nobody gave a hoot about religious allegory (some knew it was there, some didn't), and all the females agreed that whoever played Mr. Tumnus was a sort of familiar looking cutie and whoever played the main centaur was hot.

Subject: RE: BS: Chronicles of Narnia
From: greg stephens
Date: 12 Dec 05 - 10:22 AM

You're absolutely right about the lack of coats in inclement weather, Charley. But even worse, some of the children were shown with swords, knives, and bows and arrows, and no warnings whatsoever were given about the dangers of sharp instruments of war. Not to speak of the obvious dangers of a young child charging full tilt at a homicidal witch, who is wielding a petrefying(literally) wand, and two swords, with great skill.

Subject: RE: BS: Chronicles of Narnia
From: GUEST,manitas
Date: 12 Dec 05 - 10:20 AM

whoops!

Kids in the the 1940's were harder than kids now. They hadn't got central heating. Their clothes were also made of heavier materials and they would have been more likely to wear underclothes.

Subject: RE: BS: Chronicles of Narnia
From: GUEST
Date: 12 Dec 05 - 10:18 AM

Subject: RE: BS: Chronicles of Narnia
From: Charley Noble
Date: 12 Dec 05 - 09:46 AM

As someone who grew up in a climate with harsh winters and deep snow I was simply appaled that those children were shown trudging through the snow with totally inadequate winter clothing. Where were their mufflers, ear muffs, L. L. Bean boots, their makanacs, not to mention their mittens? Well, at least the third time around someone was smart enough to grab some fur coats from the hangers. But I can't enjoy fantasy when I'm empathetically shivering. And I can't help but worry that soon thousands of youngsters are going to be found frozen like so many popsicles in their suburban outbacks in their night clothes. I bet the smart lawyers are already drafting their class action suits against the producers of this film.

I did think the centaurs looked great!

Cheerily,
Charley Noble

Subject: RE: BS: Chronicles of Narnia
From: jonm
Date: 12 Dec 05 - 08:32 AM

My 9 and 7 year olds loved it, as did I.

As above, I found the Aslan sacrifice scenario thin, even more so than the book, and the battle scenes were overdone, but a cracking romp nonetheless.

Subject: RE: BS: Chronicles of Narnia
From: greg stephens
Date: 12 Dec 05 - 07:31 AM

RonO: re heavy-handed and puerile in parts. I thought the handling of the logical justification/theology of just why Aslan did a deal to sacrifice himself, and why he was resurrected, was very unwieldy. It was badly thought out in the book, and handled even worse inthe film. I think basically CS Lewis was having a bit of trouble shoe-horning the overt equivalence of Jesus and Aslan into the way the story was developing.
As a recent convert(than whom there is nobody more zealous) he wanted to get the full connections into the book(for the benefit of Lucy Barfield, his god-daughter), but the story had its own legs, and would have been happier walking in a slightly different direction(in my exceedingly humble opinion). I am emphatically not joining the secularist attackers of the book and the movie, just saying I think that bit is not all that well thought out. As a whole, I thought the film was tremendous.

Subject: RE: BS: Chronicles of Narnia
From: Gurney
Date: 12 Dec 05 - 03:38 AM

Ron O, my boy says Liz is quite right. Zion acted the part, then they CG'd it.
probability is Russell was telling the truth.

Subject: RE: BS: Chronicles of Narnia
From: WFDU - Ron Olesko
Date: 11 Dec 05 - 10:32 PM

"The symbolism was heavy handed, and puerile in parts"

I'm not sure if I agree with that. What example would you give?

Frankly, the talk of "allegory" and "parable" make it sound like Lewis committed some sort of crime. Fiction, especially fantasy, has dealt with mythology and religion from the very beginning. What is the harm if Lewis did the same?   Again, I really did not read that into it - if I had not heard the complaints before I saw the film I would not have given it a second thought.

Again, it is no big deal. The film did not try to convert anyones beliefs.

Subject: RE: BS: Chronicles of Narnia
From: LilyFestre
Date: 11 Dec 05 - 08:18 PM

Mrs. Duck,

   That is the best comment on the film I have seen yet....especially being that I am taking a 10 and 14 year old to see it later this week! :)

Michelle

Subject: RE: BS: Chronicles of Narnia
From: greg stephens
Date: 11 Dec 05 - 07:04 PM

PS Wasn't Tilda Swanton great ? What a villain. More fun that that pompous lion.

Subject: RE: BS: Chronicles of Narnia
From: greg stephens
Date: 11 Dec 05 - 07:01 PM

Just got back from seeing the movie. Excellent I thought: we took along a Kurdish friend who has limited English, and he thoroughly enjoyed it. Though afterwards he did ask the rather obvious question "Why did Aslan come back to life, I did not really understand".
    I took the opportunity of reading the book two days ago(I'd never read a Narnia book before), as I was interested in getting some images and story in my head in case the Disney was too nauseating. I found it amazingly good, and pretty faithful(as far as you can expect that from Hollywood).
The differences are always amusing, when they turn books into movies. McGrath has already commented on the souped-up battles. Well, if you give little-boy directors big budgets, they'll have computer fun, it's the way of the world/ The golden rule of all screen adapations was followed: always include either a steam train, or a coach and horses going up to a big house.
   The second rule is"never use just a big house, use the biggest stately home you can afford, however silly it looks".
A bit pf PC editing too: the Beaver smokes in the book, but not in the film! The wolf's gory death-throes vanish, as does Peter cleaning his sword of blood. Also the relish with which the White Witch has Edmond tied up, and then starts removing her garments(revealing naked white arms) while preparing to cut his throat. As to Aslan's playful resurrection romp with the two girls ("when all three finally lay together panting in the sun"...cool yourself down, CSL). No, no sign of that at all in the film!
Anway , thoroughly enjoyed it. And I really can't why Polly Toynbee and Phillip Pullman are so upset. The chap's a Christian. He's allowed to be, isn't he? And allowed to write rattling good yarns isn't he? The symbolism was heavy handed, and puerile in parts, but it obviously hits the spot with loads of children, whether Christian or atheist. And the Muslim friend we went with thoroughly enjoyed it. I wouldnt quite give the five-stars, like the Guardian, but pretty damn good. Especially Lucy.

Subject: RE: BS: Chronicles of Narnia
From: McGrath of Harlow
Date: 11 Dec 05 - 06:28 PM

CS Lewis did write allegory on occasion - notably in his book The Pligrims Regress. But the Narnia books were not in any real sense allegorical, but rather analogical, or in a word used in this context by Tolkien, "applicable".

I mean, the narrative has parallels with other stories and with the real world, but it stands on its own. That's a very common aspect of much fiction. But you can't go through it saying this stands for that and that stands for this and so on, in the way you can with a real allegory, such as Pilgrim's Progress, or Lewis's reworking of that.

Subject: RE: BS: Chronicles of Narnia
From: Grab
Date: 11 Dec 05 - 06:08 PM

Not so much a movie review as a book review. Reading between the lines, the movie translates the book pretty well. And I guess that's the problem, since the book was explicitly written as a Christian allegory/parable/whatever by Lewis, whether you choose to pick up on it or not. The Last Battle (the final book in the series) makes this very clear, since it almost strays away from fiction and into Lewis's religious essays.

Graham.

Subject: RE: BS: Chronicles of Narnia
From: bobad
Date: 11 Dec 05 - 06:07 PM

Ron O

You mean to tell me that Porky's 2 wasn't religious allegory ? Gawd, another disillusionment to contend with. Where will it all end ?

Subject: RE: BS: Chronicles of Narnia
From: danensis
Date: 11 Dec 05 - 05:16 PM

I haven't a clue who Polly Whatsit is, but she obviously sees C.S. Lewis as a threat to her atheism. As he is dead, she obviously fears his resurrection?

Subject: RE: BS: Chronicles of Narnia
From: frogprince
Date: 11 Dec 05 - 05:07 PM

I've never seen a froth-mouthed rant like that passed off as a movie review before.

Subject: RE: BS: Chronicles of Narnia
From: WFDU - Ron Olesko
Date: 11 Dec 05 - 05:03 PM

I suppose Porky's 2 could be construed as a religious allegory if you spent too much time analyzing it.

The allegory in Chronicles did not bother me at all. You can read anything you want into a film, but it can also stand on it's own story. There is nothing preachy about this at all.

Subject: RE: BS: Chronicles of Narnia
From: Mrs.Duck
Date: 11 Dec 05 - 01:21 PM

Maddie just returned from seeing it and said it was 'cool'. No greater praise from an eleven year old. We hope to see it sometime.

Subject: RE: BS: Chronicles of Narnia
From: McGrath of Harlow
Date: 11 Dec 05 - 12:07 PM

I know at least one person who's never been too keen on Narnia who reacted to Polly Toynbee's rant the same way as Greg did - felt impelled to go to see the film. And thoroughly enjoyed it.

Subject: RE: BS: Chronicles of Narnia
From: Georgiansilver
Date: 11 Dec 05 - 10:25 AM

Liz, if they weren't real tigers in Gladiator then Russell Crowe must have been telling porky pies, as he complained that one of them, which had come out too quickly had given him a nasty scratch across his shoulder. Not doubting your word...just shows what sort of character he is...with his public brawling, lies etc.
Best wishes, Mike.

Subject: RE: BS: Chronicles of Narnia
From: GUEST
Date: 11 Dec 05 - 08:48 AM

polly toynbee's article here.

Subject: RE: BS: Chronicles of Narnia
From: greg stephens
Date: 11 Dec 05 - 06:16 AM

Polly Toynbee did a great fundamentalist-secularist attack on the movie in the Guardian last week(Monday Dec 5)...any chance of a blue clickie for that from someone?I can't do them.
   It made me determined to see the film anyway, if there's one thing worse than a po-faced Christian, it's a po-faced anti-Christian. I haven't found time to, but I might tonight. But the new King Kong is also beckoning (another bit of religious allegory?).

Subject: RE: BS: Chronicles of Narnia
From: Liz the Squeak
Date: 11 Dec 05 - 06:05 AM

Probably did what they did in Gladiator, got the real tigers to do their bit against greenscreen and then CGI'd them into the finished scene afterwards.

Looking forward to seeing this, having read the book some 32 years ago and re-read it almost annually since then. The BBC production 10 years ago didn't change the pictures in my head, I wonder if the film will make a difference.

LTS

Subject: RE: BS: Chronicles of Narnia
From: WFDU - Ron Olesko
Date: 10 Dec 05 - 11:02 PM

I did not think that there were any real lions in the film. I had heard that they used CG effects for all the characters. It was quite effective.

Subject: RE: BS: Chronicles of Narnia
From: Gurney
Date: 10 Dec 05 - 09:46 PM

Nice lion, the real one. His name is Zion, and he's as daft as a brush. He smooches his friend, Craig Busch, who owns Zion Wildlife Gardens near Whangarei, NZ.

Subject: RE: BS: Chronicles of Narnia
From: jimmyt
Date: 10 Dec 05 - 09:45 PM

I thought it was quite good. I thought the actors were perfectly suited to play their characters. I did, notice, that the susan character had pierced ears and no earrings. SOmehow that sorta got my attention. Maybe I am just being picky, but seems very unlikey that a 13 Y O girl (approx age) in London in the early 40s would have had pierced ears.

Subject: RE: BS: Chronicles of Narnia
From: McGrath of Harlow
Date: 10 Dec 05 - 06:57 PM

Pretty good. I felt it was a pity they felt obliged to hype up the battle. I suppose that's pretty inevitable though.

Big battles were needed in the Lord of the Rings, but in the Narnia stories the scale should be a lot smaller, more of a skirmish than a pitched battle with massive armies clashing. Squadrons of griffins dropping rocks on the enemy, and a napalm style phoenix are spectacular enough, but out of keeping. And it made it feel like a victory by the big battalions, Shock and Awe style, whereas it should be a victory against all the odds by the side that doesn't look like it has a hope. (The Lord of the Rings got that one right.)

Special effects are best when you don't even notice them happening, and accept them as real, until you start thinking about it afterwards, and realise they couldn't have been. Apart from the battles they managed that pretty well, I felt.

Subject: RE: BS: Chronicles of Narnia
From: GUEST,Wesley S
Date: 10 Dec 05 - 05:26 PM

Not yet. But I'm sure we'll get to it over the holidays.

Subject: BS: Chronicles of Narnia
From: WFDU - Ron Olesko
Date: 10 Dec 05 - 04:51 PM

I checked but could not find a Mudcat thread on the new movie, which surprised me.    My son and I saw the film this afternoon and really enjoyed it. I thought the casting was superb and the young actors were wonderful. I could not help but compare it to LOTR, and I think it comared favorably. The effects, many done by the same folks from LOTR, were superb.   

I know C.S. Lewis was against seeing his book turned into a film, but I think if he saw this he would have been pleased.

Has anyone else seen it?