Great for kids, but not for a serious film buff.

Rating: 6/10 (1 January 2006)

First of all, I was amazed at the number of reviews that praise this film as one of the greatest of the year, and even though I am highly outnumbered, and my opinions may not be popular, I feel they must be stated as a contrary to what everyone else is saying.
This movie is not a literal interpretation of the beloved C.S. Lewis book, and while he was a devout Christian, C.S. Lewis denied that the similarities to the story of Jesus in the Chronicles were intentional. Douglas Gresham, artistic and creative director of the C.S. Lewis Co, and C.S. Lewis' stepson has said "If you want to, you can find Christian symbolism in a McDonald's hamburger," (http://www.azcentral.com/ent/movies/articles/1105narnia1105.html).
This movie takes advantage of the subtle Christian symbolism the book offered, and has brought it to the forefront, often adding in its own twists, such as the visual of the "Footprints in the Sand" poem at the end of the film. There is no problem with this, and Walden Media can do as they wish, as they have the rights to the film adaption, but I felt this is something that is often ignored in peoples reviews of this film.
Here are some quotes from other reviewers.
"The acting was excellent and the special effects set a new standard for Hollywood" The acting is decent, but in no way excellent. It appeared to me to have been over direction of the children on the part of the director. Perhaps, he is not comfortable working with children. They did a decent job mind you, but every action, and emotion they conveyed seemed forced. It just seemed obvious to me that they were being walked through each scene by the director. I was also disturbed by the lack of worry for their brother "Edmund the Afterthought" throughout the movie, but especially when they are told of his, and their potential fate.
With the advancements in CGI over the past couple of years, this movie was a huge letdown. The glaringly obvious moments were during the standoff with the wolves. Watch as they jump down the hill. They seem to have forgotten to shade the characters all together. Azlan was the exception to this for obvious reasons, he was very well done. It also would have been nice if they added some cold air effects coming from the mouths of the children when they're in the snowy winter of Narnia. Due to the acting inconsistencies, I just never believed that it was actually cold outside.
"The musical score is appropriately stirring and moody." I am a fan of Harry Gregson-Williams, but felt the music was inappropriate, and out of place. If I listened to this on its own, I think I would really like it, but I felt it just didn't fit. The song at the beginning of the movie was WAY out of place, and almost laughable. You can always count on Disney to try and add a pop-culture touch to the film.
Overall, this is a great movie for families and for kids. Children, who typically could care less about special effects flaws, and bad direction, will be in awe of this film. It is worthwhile to check out this movie, but it would probably be more enjoyable if you brought some kids along.