Impresses with CGI but not where it counts

Rating: Null/10 (11 April 2008)

Sent away from the city to escape the bombing raids of the war, siblings Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy find themselves in the large home of Professor Kirke. Although bored out of their tiny minds, the older children are not so bored that they escape Lucy flight of fancy about a magical world inside Kirke's wardrobe. They don't, that is, until they stumble into themselves. Initially enjoying the frozen world of talking creatures, things change when the family are betrayed from within and find themselves key players in a war between the forces of good and evil for the very world of Narnia.
Ironically enough it was perhaps a certain amount of fatigue from the Lord of the Rings films that made me decide not to bother with this new film series, even though I had read all the books as a child. I watched it recently on television though and must admit that, in the overall sweep, it does work. Technically it is impressive of course, with the effects being realistic and convincing throughout (well  as convincing as Ray Winstone as a beaver can be at any rate). The battle sequences and the creation of Narnia is all equally as convincing but yet it was not the design and visual delivery where I had a problem at all.
No. Where I felt the film lacked was in the areas of heart and characters. The material is fine and I personally was not put off by the obvious themes from Christianity  although I can understand why some others might. If anything I was surprised by how dark it was with many characters being "killed" across the whole running time of the film. Problem is that it is only really "dark" in these very specific actions  not even "moments" but just in exact acts. This lack of depth sees the film be superficially enjoyable but offer nothing more beyond. Perhaps it is the comparatively short running time that does it but generally the film seems to be constantly moving forward but without ever taking time to sink its roots. For me this mean that I spent a lot of the film watching a spectacle rather than being engaging by a great story.
The script is the clear weakness as it does focus on events rather than characters. In this regard perhaps it is telling that director Adamson has his background in visual effects and animated features rather "films". The casting process has not produced much to work with either, although in fairness the children do not have much to work with even if they had the range (which personally I do not think they did). Keynes, Moseley, Henley and Popplewell are all very English children and in this regard they suit the narrative and the style, however they do not have the range or material to deliver more than "English children". It is a shame because the film does feature a very strong performance from Swinton as the White Witch; she is a real presence and the film is never better than when she is on the screen. Broadbent, is OK; McAvoy is OK; Cosmo is OK; Winstone is fun; French is OK; Everett is a random but enjoyable touch but the best piece of casting is Madsen as the main wolf, his voice being very distinctive and mean.
Overall then this is a technically impressive film that has plenty for the eye if you are looking for a spectacle. However if, like me, you are looking for something with depth, character and heart then this sadly is not the film for you. Having said that, I was not that impressed by the first LoTR film so maybe this series will find its depth with time and I will probably give it a few more chances to impress me with more than CGI.