Not bad, but not great.

Rating: 6/10 (21 May 2006)

I was a big fan of the Narnia book series when I was a kid and it was not without some skepticism that I went into the theater to see this, the first big-screen incarnation, of the series. That said, I rather enjoyed this adaptation by director Andrew Adamson - who interestingly enough is a native New Zealander like Peter Jackson of "Lord of The Rings Fame" and considerable fortune;) Is there is something in the picturesque rolling landscapes of New Zealand that just imbues filmmakers with the passion and drive to see such large scale endeavors realized? Who can say. In any event, Adamson's previous co-directing credits for the wildly popular "Shrek" & "Shrek 2" and a strong background in visual effects were surely helped in landing him this gig on what has become (if I'm not mistaken, the most successful blockbuster of 2005). Young Georgie Henley sometimes stealing the show with her portrayal of little "Lucy Pevensie" and Skandar Keynes as her brother "Edmund" is also quite well cast and fills this the most dynamic role of the film quite convincingly. Anna Popplewell and William Moseley are adequately cast as "Lucy" and "Peter" respectively but are out-shined (and perhaps rightly so) by the performances of their afore-mentioned younger colleagues. Tilda Swinton as "The White Witch" is flawless: cold and menacing as I remember from the book. Indeed her introductory scene as she seduces young Edmund is quite a memorable moment in the film. Look for a good voice performance by Liam Neeson as the omnipresent "Aslam" as well.
The setting in the film are about as epic and sumptuous as you'd expect, shot in locations ranging from New Zealand to Poland, and the visual effects, while not flawless are generally satisfactory and the scale of the battle is certainly well realized. Of particular noteworthiness are some of the great creature designs by make-up artist Greg Nicotero (it's nice to see that Adamson had the good sense not go with CGI for everything).
On the flip side, though, the pacing for the flick lags a bit and in the end, though I enjoyed the film, it's tough for me to say whether it really captured Lewis' world and characters quite as I remembered it, but then it's been ages since I've read any of those books;) So get out there and give Disney more money why don't you? It's certainly a film that benefits from being seen on the big screen.