SENTIMENTAL, OVER-DRAMATIZED PLASTIC MILLENNIAL MEDIOCRITY !

Rating: Null/10 (3 April 2018)

As a 35-year-old I obviously remember the old BBC NARNIA SAGA. Good old cheap + kitsch yet charming and classy kids' TV it was, and particularly impressive considering the (then) innovative use of blue screen, and in a low-budget production!
Can't say I think quite so much of this mind ! The child actors are all smug and trendy - trust me, you'll literally lose count of how many times 'LIKE' is used in their DVD commentary; it's every other word ! The effects are over-digital, plastic + generally fake, the acting over-sentimental and unconvincing, and the reassuring simplicity of the BBC version is replaced with a grandoise epic extravagance that defeats the objective of this being a mere children's fantasy novel. OK, so the score was quite beautiful - if a bit excessive for a kids' fantasy, thus reflecting the OTT style of the film in general - but why the trendy pop songs during the end credits?
Overall, this is just plastic millennial crap ! It would at least have SOME merit if they'd featured an actor from the BBC version; think Jenny Agutter's roles in the 1970 + 2000 versions of The Railway Children.