Product: The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian (Two Disc Edition + BD-Live) [Blu-ray] (2008)
Rating: 4.0
I Hope Disney Makes Them All: Three Cheers for the True King
I am going to say up front that I really enjoyed this movie. I was delighted and entertained. Prince Caspian follows The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe as the second installment of the classic Chronicles of Narnia series by C. S. Lewis. It is a strong sequel: the pacing is terrific, the plot moves quickly along, and the visuals are absolutely exquisite, both location and CGI. All of the performances and characterizations are top notch. Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy ARE the characters in my head from the books. Aslan IS Aslan; I couldn't ask for anything more. The introduction of Reepicheep, the valiant and loyal mouse, is wonderful. He leaps perfectly from the book to the screen, as real and alive as I have always imagined him. Trumpkin, Prince Caspian, the Badger, Nickabrick, the Trees (oh, those amazing Trees!!!!!), Miraz, the Doctor, etc., are all that I expected, and in many cases, more.Now, here is where it loses the star: this movie is much more of a departure from the book than The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe was. I can't help it, I lived in Narnia for many years. I still visit at least once a year. I have the chapters, the dialog, the entire series memorized. As I watched this movie, the book was playing in parallel inside my head, so, to me, the changes and omissions were obvious. Most of them were merely annoying, but two things really bugged me.1. The love interest between Caspian and Susan does not exist in the book. So why the need to turn this into a teen romance? I agree with Edmund, I don't want to understand it.2. The constant sparring between Peter and Caspian is totally unnecessary, and it adds nothing, IMHO. In the books, Peter clearly tells Caspian that he has come to put him on his throne, not to take it. He is a very supportive friend. So why the "my crown is bigger than yours" tension? I found it ridiculous and distracting.Again, all the salient points from the book made it to the screen, and overall, I was charmed and enchanted by this movie. Disney is doing a splendid job translating these classics to film. I hope they do all seven. The Narnian in me just wants them to stay closer to the stories that C. S. Lewis wrote. However, that does not prevent me from highly recommending this film.