Kelsey's Review

Summary - Really Great 4.5

The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian takes place one year since the ending of The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe and is based off of the fourth book in C.S. Lewis’ epic series. The films are being released in a different order of the chronological order of the books. The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe is actually the second in the series. However, they do go in order that C.S. Lewis wrote them. This second film will still make sense without seeing the first, but watching both does add more depth to it. The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian takes on the same sense of battling for the good of Narnia by the Pavensie sisters and brothers for the injustice that have been happening to the land and the creatures in it. This time around they aren’t the only royalty fighting for peace, but are accompanied by Prince Caspian, who fights with them through this battle that seems so grim.
Peter (Moseley), Susan (Popplewell), Edmund (Keynes), and Lucy (Henley) have been living in England for the past year, unable to get back to Narnia. As they were warned though, their way in will not be found by looking for it. When they are needed they will find a way. After frustration and thinking that they will just have to accept the fact that they live in England, they are called back in. Prince Caspian (Barnes) of Telmar is the one who calls them. His professor told him stories of Narnia and the kings and queens who once lived there. Caspian’s uncle, Miraz (Castellitto) has always been jealous of Caspian’s crown. After his father had died, it made Prince Caspian the rightful king. However, when Miraz’s wife has a son, he becomes more determined than ever to make sure his son will be king one day. The professor, knowing how badly he wants this and just what he will do to make it happen, helps Caspian escape.
Prince Caspian ends up in Narnia with creatures he and the other Telmaranians thought were extinct. The Telmaranians had attacked them over and over again through out the years, starting shortly after Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy had left. When Prince Caspian comes in contact with these creatures, he ends up making a deal with them. If they fight with him against the his uncle to get his thrown back than he will bring peace between their two lands. Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy soon find Prince Caspian after seeing Narnia very different from the way they left it. They help Prince Caspian to try to restore Narnia to the way it should be. They become worried that Aslan seems to be nowhere around. The kings and queens strength is put to the test in this battle. Peter tries to take control, but there is a bit of power struggle between Caspian and himself, both feeling they should be leading this battle. After Peter’s attack fails, losing half of his army, a darker and more evil route is considered. If this is avoided than they might still stand a chance with united strength and determination.

Acting - Perfect 5.0

The cast was wonderful in the film. William Moseley, Anna Popplewell, Skandar Keynes, and Georgie Henley gave us those four characters from the first film that we know and love. They all showed growth, which was a key element to the movie. You see this the most physically in Skandar Keynes as Edmund and Georgie Henley as Lucy. Although, Peter and Susan are the two that have grown and learned as much as they can from Narnia after this, Edmund and Lucy are the ones who show more development. Edmund is loyal, trustworthy, and even saves everyone from a horrid situation by using his mind rather than being caught by temptation. This is vastly different from his character in the first as he betrayed his brothers and sisters, constantly gave them a hard time, and even threatened the well being of Aslan and Narnia as a whole. Showing this change and exerting such nobility and strength through his mind and tactics, makes him one of the stand out actors in the cast. Georgie Henley shows a lot of maturity through Lucy as well while still having that childlike belief. This could be thought to be naïve by some, but it is proven to be the thing that they needed more than anything else. That strong belief she has, pushes everyone to fight as hard as they do, never giving up until victory is theirs. Since the younger two are having their chance to rise up, the older two have done what they were meant to and now it is time for them to step down. Although this was present in the books not just in the film, they have avoided the Harry Potter problem of having the actors look older than the characters should. At least in the next film, Susan and Peter will make an appearance, but it will only be Edmund and Lucy who venture back in to Narnia.
Ben Barnes also did very well as Prince Caspian. There was a very youthful element to him, but at the same time he seemed very fierce and determined, eager to lead. I saw a lot of passion in him through a troubled and character defining time in Caspian’s life. Warwick Davis, of Leprechaun fame, plays one of the dwarves who was close to giving up hope. He was pushed to considering evil forces as if it was the only way. He brings this character to life and does so with craft and understanding in his third role in a Narnia tale as her acted in two films of the BBC series, Prince Caspian and the Voyage of the Dawn Treader and The Silver Chair. One of his fellow dwarves, who couldn’t help but feel a similar sense of pessimism at first was played by Peter Dinklage. Despite how bad things had been and a feeling of abandonment, he guided the former kings and queens of Narnia, to bring freedom back to the land. Dinklage had a very different appearance here, but he used his authentic tone to bring forth his character. That is one thing I can really appreciate about Dinklage, nearly every time I see him, he is playing a very different character and rising to each challenge that portraying these characters gives him.

Film - Really Great 4.5

As the second film, Prince Caspian keeps the substance and many elements of the first while still bringing more to the table. In this film, there were even more challenges for the characters. They were former kings and queens, but they were still young and had been out of Narnia for ages. Everyone was depending on them. After wanting to be back so desperately, they also had to do it for themselves as well as Aslan. This goes for Prince Caspian as well. Yes, he is the rightful king, but he also has to prove that he deserves to be king. The test is not just a question of his fighting skills, but through his actions that tell what kind of a king he would be. For Caspian, revenge is a major theme. Will he let the injustice that has been committed to him reflect upon what kind of person he turns in to? Aslan in the series is thought about as a representation of Jesus. Through this it is interesting to see how he shows up. Just because Aslan isn’t visually there, it doesn’t mean he isn’t with them. At times you might even suspect him quite literally living through somebody else. There is also great power shown through simply believing. Lucy shows this more than anyone. Her belief brings her to Aslan and since she never stopped believing that they would come back to Narnia, she has shown that it is a part of her.
Visually The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian is a visually beautiful film. We see Narnia in a much more fresh and colorful setting than we left it, almost feeling tropical. This infers prosperity and peace, but it is just the opposite. Telmar is much more dark and gloomy there representing the backstabbing and fighting that goes on. However, Telmar is more prosperous, while Narnia has lost so much. The battles were excellent and believable. The truth of the matter is that we are rooting for the underdogs. They have battled before, but not alone and Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy show great skill, but against the odds since they haven’t been sword fighting back in England. There is struggle and they are fighting under extremes, but if they never give up fighting the Telmaranians than how can they lose? They realize how much depends on this and therefore refuse to give up. There is also that same sense of magical embrace that is always in Narnia, even through the most desperate times. Just like our 4 main characters from England, it takes us away from our world in to another, with endless possibilities. I did like the first slightly better, partly because first being introduction to this world was even more refreshing and adventurous, and partly because this is the book and film I remember the most vividly and therefore is the closest to me personally. The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian is a wonderful film that embraces the characteristics of this the first film, and especially of C.S. Lewis’ well written stories of this land, to show what the next step is, dealing with honor, duty, bravery, maturity, cooperation, and belief.

Edge - Tame 1.5

This Narnia film is full of the battle sequences. Even when there are no official battles, fighting is triggered in the characters. This just shows how a barbaric place our story is shown in. Narnia has been subjected to this, since without this, the whole land was nearly wiped out. Telmar seems to be the one to blame, but simply for the reason of paranoia, thinking the Narnians were dangering, when the Telmarians did just that to their rivals. Really the desire for power and the greed which factors in to that is responsible for this continous violence. This is still a family friendly movie though, so the violence is seen thorugh the actions themselves rather than the graphicness of the effects. There is hardly even any sexual suggestions in the film. There is a almost love story between Prince Caspian and Susan. It is more of a mutal crush between them that is really not acknowledged much. When it is, it is very tame, and althouth in Narnia, Susan and Caspian might have been a wonderful match, but she does have her own world to get back to.

Reality - Fantasy 5.0

The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian is very much a fantasy film. It is still very representative of things that anyone can relate. As I mentioned before, it is an escapist film. When the children originally went there, it was a way to escape the war in England and being seperated from the rest of their family. As viewers, we use the movie to escape too, especially in this film, which is so full of character defining adventures. We can throw ourselves in to them, it is like it is happening tous for the duration of the film.

1 Comment

• cinemaman May 17, 2008 3:23AM

  thought this one was much better than the first one. even though a little lenghty I enjoyed it very much. I hope in a few years they will make a third one.

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