Powerfully disappointing

Rating: 3/10 (21 December 2005)

I expected so much more from a movie with as tried-and-true a storyline as The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe. Apparently, so much effort was spent perfecting the computer animation that all the other aspects of film-making fell by the wayside. True, the inhabitants of Narnia are diverse and fantastical enough to warrant some digital effort. But the life- lessons of Narnia are not conveyed through the flashy mythical animals, no matter how realistic.
The screenplay was lame - contrived and trite. The cinematography was inconsistent. Scenes that were heavily computer animated were pretty standard, but those that were actually filmed - earlier, pre-Narnia shots and narrow, humans-only shots - were distractingly awkward at times. And lastly, much of the acting was seriously sub-par. Unexpected islands of talent within the cast are provided by the performances of nine-year-old Georgie Henley as Lucy Pevency and James McAvoy as Mr. Tumnus.
Overall, though, I'd say skip it - unless you are a die-hard Narnia fan. Then wait for the DVD and rent it, but don't spend $8.50 and a three-hour excursion to the theater like I did.