Chronicles of Narnia Prince Caspian Movie Review by ChristineMM

Movie: The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian
Release Date: May 16, 2008
Rating: PG
Produced by: Disney

My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

Today while finishing a different blog post on the sad state of Hollywood movies for young children and families today I suddenly realized that it was today that Prince Caspian was released. I wanted to help contribute to its opening weekend sales, so after a quick check on the movie show times, I shut down the computer and ran out the door with my two sons.

Note: This review contains some details of the story. If you read the book the information will not be new to you and it will not affect your enjoyment of the movie. As with all of my movie reviews I am giving the views as a mother of young children and I am including information that other parents may find useful which is usually lacking from other movie reviews.

The movie is 2 hours and 20 minutes in length, and the movie pace moved along so well that it didn’t drag on. In fact the movie is full of action, starting right off with the opening scent. It has fighting and battle scenes throughout. I’ve never seen so much violence with so little gore. A person is stabbed, no blood. A person is knocked over and they just fall down and don’t move (assumed to be dead), and so on. This avoidance of blood will be applauded by some mothers of young children who know the Narnia stories and want their children to see them in movie form but who fret over the worry of too much gore.

Parents who don’t know what this story is about and who seek peaceful stories devoid of violence should do a little more research and consider reading the stories aloud to their young children before deciding if this movie is right for their family. Parents of sensitive children who have problems with fighting scenes and violence should also take caution. There is an attempted murder by drowning, death by falling from high places, lots of sword fighting, arrow shooting, crossbow shooting and giant stone ball slinging by trebouchets. Truth be told if they did show more realistic outcomes of the injuries the movie would have been rated R. So on the one hand there is violence but other there is not gore yet there was some strong emotion of anger, some fear (that the good characters would get hurt or killed) and some scenes of sadness felt and dramatized by the characters, regarding the loss of life of a few of the Narnian characters, the most dramatic being the crushing death of a satyr. The sounds are loud, including battle cries, which I mention for those parents who have children with auditory sensitivities.

Some artistic license was taken with the movie so it didn’t follow the book completely. Most notably, viewers may be surprised at the creepy scene with witchcraft being performed and the appearance of the White Witch herself (she is absent from the book). The music and special effects were very excellent in that scene and the appearance of the White Witch added an element of evil to the story which was not as strong in that scene in the book.

There was a little humor thrown in especially focusing on the talking Narnian mouse Reepicheep but I was disappointed as I didn’t feel we got to know him enough in the movie, he was a larger presence in the book and in the movie he is a good fighter who cracks jokes. The movie did a good job of getting us to hate the bad guys (the Telmarines) and especially their evil King Miraz and getting us cheering for the good guys (the Narnians). There was a little spark of love between Susan and Prince Caspian. There were several ‘girl power’ scenes with Susan doing battle with her bow and arrow—one has to be impressed at her skill, doing battle sans body protection (in her flowing, lovely gown) amidst angry men in full body armor.

I wished there was a bit more scenes without fighting or battles, the action scenes clearly dominated the movie. The acting was very good with every one of the actors, and we love the new ‘good guy’ characters Prince Caspian and his Professor (Doctor Cornelius) from the start. Those very familiar with the story may not mind the large focus on action and battling as we already know and love the story and we can ‘fill in the blanks’, for us the battle scenes are action packed and exciting. Those who have not read the book may not know enough about the characters to care much about what happens in the story, or they may not ‘get’ the full story--for them this movie will surely seem to be not much more than fighting and action, and if they’re older and if they like the more typical gore in movies, they may be disappointed in this movie. (Don’t be surprised if you read some negative movie reviews for this reason. One review I read today said the writer did not read the book and he didn’t like the movie and now plans to never read the book. What a shame, he didn’t ‘get it’.)

The scenery was spectacular. The special effects were fantastic. The costuming was excellent and I can just imagine girls asking to have some medieval dress-up clothes made and boys asking for toy swords and crossbows. The castle scenes were stunning. (I can imagine sales of toy castles and toy medieval figures for children will soar). The action of the sword battles and the costuming of the battle gear was impressive. Girls and boys alike may show a new interest in medieval times as a result of enjoying this movie. There are plenty of books for young children on the market, and I advise to use their interest as a way to expose them to medieval history. The look of the Narnian creatures was stunning—those flying Gryphons were unbelievable! The walking and attacking trees were fantastic. Perhaps the most mind-blowing special effect was the River God—a gigantic male figure composed of river water. You have to see it to believe it. If nothing else, this movie should win an award for its special effects and costuming.

I felt the spiritual message of the movie was clear right from the start, since this is an allegorical tale I will share the messages referring to God (represented by Aslan the lion). What I gleaned from it were these messages: you do not have to see God to believe in him. God does not have to show us signs that he is real, that he is present in our lives, and that indeed he is watching over us. God watches over everyone even unbelievers and believers who are feeling abandoned and are questioning God’s existence. God does not come in and save the day every time, sometimes people struggle and have to get through situations without direct intervention from God at the time that we wish, hope or pray for His help. God does not prevent bad things from happening to us, there is evil in the world and sometimes we have to deal with it. The times when we see glimpses of Aslan and see his tomb are very moving for Narnia book lovers and believers in God. The scene near the end where one of the dwarves becomes a believer was also moving to me.

My boys were riveted from the start of the movie. Perhaps my favorite part of seeing it with them was at the scene where they showed the Narnian Kings and Queens as being stories in a book that some thought were just fairy tales, my younger son whispered “Thank you Mom for taking us to see this today!” He was completely enthralled by the movie.

This is definitely a film to see on the big screen. It is one whose full impact will be lost when viewing it at home with distractions and on a small television screen and with an inferior sound system.

We’re big Narnia fans in this house. My husband is a bit annoyed that we went to see it without him. We may go to the theatre again with him. I’d not mind sitting to see this again in the movie theatre. And for us, this is worth buying when it is released on DVD, even though it is not the same as seeing it in the theatre.

Overall, I cannot be happier that this movie was made. My husband and my boys are thrilled as well. What families want from Hollywood is more movies like this: great stories with heroes and the battle of good versus evil, with good acting, great special effects and wonderful costuming and scenery.

Comparing Prince Caspian to the First Movie

As to some comments I’ve heard already saying this doesn’t surpass “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe”, it is true. However as lovers of the Chronicles of Narnia will usually tell you, “Lion” is the favorite story of the series. Trying to measure up five sequels and one prequel to the original is usually not a good idea. It was true with Star Wars and it will be true with Chronicles of Narnia. But that is okay—I do hope that the producers will go on to make all the movies as George Lucas did with Star Wars and as is being done with the Harry Potter books. We lovers of the Chronicles of Narnia will enjoy going to see all of the movies, no matter what the movie critics say or if they keep saying it doesn’t surpass the first movie!

Have You Read the Books Yet?

If you have young children and have not read this book series yet I highly recommend it. It makes for a good read aloud to children aged five and older, so long as they can handle the scarier scenes and if their attention spans are long enough to listen to a longer story. Children aged about eight or nine can read this to themselves—in fact this was the first long chapter book that my older son read to himself shortly after his eighth birthday (after having heard it read aloud).

If you plan to buy the books I recommend you buy each volume separately rather than getting a volume with all seven books in one. Unfortunately I owned the big book and found it heavy and uncomfortable to hold. Not too long into reading it, our paperback volume fell apart due to the size and cracking of the spine. So buy the smaller paperback books that are easier on both adult and child’s hands.



Recorded Books has made audio books of these titles which are excellently read aloud by different narrators. Patrick Stewart (whose voice I love) narrated "The Last Battle". They make great listening in the car. Check for those at your local public library or buy the set from Amazon for under $48 (full retail is $99.95).



Focus on the Family produced a full set of dramatized stories which very closely follows the books. They are acted out and have sound effects. We enjoy this set, but only after reading the full text of the books. I recommend this one too, for true Narnia admirers who can't get enough of Narnia. Costco used to sell them for $24.99 for the full set (full retail is $99.95).



A last note on my experience today: While I was in the theatre a man in our row was taking notes on a clipboard using a small light! He must have been a movie reviewer or a journalist or something. I found it highly distracting and we switched rows. I’m writing this review from my memory only as I have never sat in a movie and taken notes!

If you saw the movie and would like to share your opinion please leave a comment. I am curious to see what parents think of the movie and especially what you think if you are a family who loves the Narnia series. I have a feeling that many people will love the movie but the critics won't be so happy with it. Time will tell, but in the meantime tell me what you think.

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