I expected a childish story from C.S.Lewis

Rating: 7/10 (5 January 2006)

OK, I didn't read the book and I didn't see the 1988 TV adaptation. Shame on me! However, I did watch this film and I was averagely impressed by it.
First of all, the special effects. There are not so many, but they are subtle. The movie has a lot of animals and they all look like animals (for the first time ever) and there are some clever computer light manipulation and actor physiognomy mapping to make it seem natural.
The story. It is a children's tale. Don't expect much from it. It doesn't explain things and it has a lot of "lucky strikes" typical of a story that is not meant to scare or excite, but to make a point. It has children that fate has put in a very important position and they are more or less forced to act it out, learning a lot about themselves, family and building character. It has a lot of inconsistencies and it fails to keep you into the tale. I found myself shouting "Use the bloody bottle! Shoot the damn bow already!", though, so I guess it all depends on how far you are willing to go.
The actors. Tilda Swinton again plays a powerful creature with mental issues. She does it well. Actually, the movie would have been bad without her. It does make sense in a movie with four or more main positive characters and only one villain. The children... are OK. The big sister is terribly annoying, but maybe that's just me. The others in the cast are either animals (like the beavers from the Milka commercials :) ) or have secondary parts.
The conclusion: a book intended to be a Christian allegory for little children is transformed into a movie. The audience is little Christian children. There isn't much else to be said. Maybe even old Arabs will enjoy it as long as they understand it is a simple tale with lots of inspirational music.