A fantastic tale deserves a fantastic movie

Rating: 10/10 (2 January 2006)

The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (LWW) may superficially appear to be another youth inspired romp through arbitrary, meaningless and random prototypical fantasy elements (eg. Harry potter) but is instead an incredible realization of an incredible tale.
LWW succeeds in so many ways that its overall quality as a fantasy epic in the vein of Peter Jackson's adaptation of the classic Lord of the Rings is thoroughly apparent.
Acting in the picture is tremendous and little if not none of the acting can be faulted for being unauthentic. The voice of the King Aslan done by Liam Neeson in conjunction with likely the best computer graphics effects today (surpassing even the convincing Gollum of the Lord of the Rings) stands as one of the high achievements of the films character portrayal. Susan Pevensie also masterfully plays an intelligent yet worried girl who throughout the film transforms into a young woman of courage. The actors chosen for the various roles seem perfect for their respective roles and in this case the White Witch played by Tilda Swinton is a unique yet powerful choice that justifies the peril of Narnia and its 100 year winter.
The landscapes are beautiful and appropriate while all the while being believable. The majority of the movie was filmed in New Zealand much like the epic Lord of the Rings trilogy and so the incredible scenery of the country shine through the movie and are heavily exploited in constructing the incredible scenes of the movie.
The music used during the films (as opposed to the credits) is comparable to the tremendous work of Howard Shore in the Lord of the Rings trilogy. Harry Gregson-Williams does a tremendous job in constructing an atypical score of beautiful singing and moving orchestral pieces whose excellence is reflected in its ability to complement the non-musical aspects of the movie without overtly standing out. In fact it is not until the soundtrack is heard independently of the movie that one realizes the strength and quality of the musical complement of LWW; such a scenario is ideal. Epic yet unusual is a notion that may be used in describing the score of the LWW.
The visual special effects of the movie are so moving and incredible that labeling them as effects does not justify there reality. LWW commands 'special effects' no longer be weighed independently of the heart of film but instead an integral and in the case of LWW an additive component of the story. Creatures such as King Aslan and both mythical and non-mythical beings bring the movie alive and allow the fantastic nature of the CS. Lewis tale to be genuinely visually explored. Moreover real-life actors interact with computer graphically created characters flawlessly and further cement their reality and film existence.
The only drawback to the film will be if it isn't followed by a sequel from the CS. Lewis Chronicles of Narnia series. A tremendous film for any fantasy enthusiast and casual movie-goer alike. The greatness of the film is likely to make a strong impact on the majority who enjoy it and permeate the mind only to expand one's imagination.