Disappointing compared with the made for TV version

Rating: 5/10 (1 January 2006)

I thought a big budget and more sophisticated techniques would make this better than the 1988 British TV version of the story. But it doesn't. While the digital lion, beavers etc are fabulous creations, they're no more believable than the (very sophisticated) puppetry and costuming used in the earlier films.
It looks too much like "The Lord of the Rings" and some elements are just ludicrous (Gandalf the extraordinary wizard riding a horse at speed without saddle or bridle is believable; a London schoolboy doing it in full armour is just silly).
I don't want to include any spoilers, so won't say any more. If you've seen (and loved) the previous films, I think you may share my disappointment.
If you haven't seen the earlier one, the story makes this version worth seeing.