Directed By Andrew Adamson; Screenplay By Ann Peacock, Andrew Adamson, Christopher Markus, & Stephen McFeely; Starring Georgie Henley, Skander Keynes, William Mosley, Anna Popplewell, Tilda Swinton, James McAvoy, Jim Broadbent, Ray Winstone, Dawn French, Rupert Everett, and Liam Neeson.
Based on C.S. Lewis' classic 1950 novel of the same name, the story begins in England during World War II. The four Pevensie children, Lucy (Georgie Henley), Edmund (Skander Keynes), Susan (Anna Popplewell), and Peter (William Mosley), stay in the rural country home of an elderly professor (Jim Broadbent). While playing a game of 'hide-and-seek' one day, they enter into the world of Narnia through a magical wardrobe. Once there, the children discover a charming, peaceful land inhabited by talking beasts, dwarfs, fauns, centaurs, and giants that has become a world cursed to eternal winter by Jadis (Tilda Swinton), the evil White Witch. Under the guidance of a noble lion and mystical ruler, Aslan (Liam Neeson), the children fight to overcome the White Witch's powerful hold over Narnia.
Here’s some background about me. When I was in first grade at elementary school, my class read The Lion, the Witch, & the Wardrobe. After that we watched the 1979 Emmy-winning animated TV movie version directed by Bill Melendez, who was best known for helming the Peanuts specials. Back then, I was very intrigued by the concept of these kids entering into a wardrobe and finding themselves transported to this fantasy world. But with that being said, I didn't remember anything about it until 2005 when I saw a trailer for this film attached to Sky High. I remember as I was watching the trailer, it all started coming back to me. I didn't actually see the movie until the summer of 2006 on Pay Per View. In the fall of 2008, I actually participated in a community theatre production of Joseph Robinette’s stage adaptation, where I played an Aslan follower.
The whole casting here is literally perfect. Georgie Henley, Skander Keynes, William Mosley, and Anna Popplewell all work very excellently together as the Pevensie children. Their chemistry is so lived in that they feel like siblings. Keynes as Edmund in particular has the best character arc out of everyone. Tilda Swinton is incredible as The White Witch. James McAvoy is perfectly humble as Mr. Tumnus. I really enjoyed Jim Broadbent in his little screen time as Professor Kirke. Ray Winstone and Dawn French make for such a memorable couple as the voices of Mr. and Mrs. Beaver. Liam Neeson is so spot on as the voice of Aslan.
From an adaptation standpoint, the writers did a great job of staying true to the original novel. Not only that, but the liberties they took felt like genius decisions. Among them were beefing up character motivations and diving a little deeper into places the book previously didn’t explore. From a directorial standpoint, Andrew Adamson puts his visual effects/animation background to great use here. There’s several stunning action sequences on display. The production design by Roger Ford, the costumes by Isis Mussenden, and the cinematography by Donald McAlpine are each firing on all cylinders. The creature designs consist of a successful hybrid of prosthetic makeup, which it rightfully earned its Oscar for, and digital work. A lot of the visual effects (even by 2005 standards) are really good. Harry Gregson-Williams crafted quite an epic musical score with some heroic themes.
While I wouldn’t necessarily call this movie a legit masterpiece, I still think it’s pretty great. In my opinion, the best adaptation of The Lion, The Witch, & The Wardrobe to date. Even on this most recent re-watch, I was so invested from start to finish, that I teared up at certain points. Netflix currently has a reboot in development. When they eventually release it, I’ll definitely be intrigued to watch. No matter how that’ll turn out, I have a feeling this film will always have a special place in my heart. This movie is currently available to stream on Disney+.
Rating: 5/5
Based on C.S. Lewis' classic 1950 novel of the same name, the story begins in England during World War II. The four Pevensie children, Lucy (Georgie Henley), Edmund (Skander Keynes), Susan (Anna Popplewell), and Peter (William Mosley), stay in the rural country home of an elderly professor (Jim Broadbent). While playing a game of 'hide-and-seek' one day, they enter into the world of Narnia through a magical wardrobe. Once there, the children discover a charming, peaceful land inhabited by talking beasts, dwarfs, fauns, centaurs, and giants that has become a world cursed to eternal winter by Jadis (Tilda Swinton), the evil White Witch. Under the guidance of a noble lion and mystical ruler, Aslan (Liam Neeson), the children fight to overcome the White Witch's powerful hold over Narnia.
Here’s some background about me. When I was in first grade at elementary school, my class read The Lion, the Witch, & the Wardrobe. After that we watched the 1979 Emmy-winning animated TV movie version directed by Bill Melendez, who was best known for helming the Peanuts specials. Back then, I was very intrigued by the concept of these kids entering into a wardrobe and finding themselves transported to this fantasy world. But with that being said, I didn't remember anything about it until 2005 when I saw a trailer for this film attached to Sky High. I remember as I was watching the trailer, it all started coming back to me. I didn't actually see the movie until the summer of 2006 on Pay Per View. In the fall of 2008, I actually participated in a community theatre production of Joseph Robinette’s stage adaptation, where I played an Aslan follower.
The whole casting here is literally perfect. Georgie Henley, Skander Keynes, William Mosley, and Anna Popplewell all work very excellently together as the Pevensie children. Their chemistry is so lived in that they feel like siblings. Keynes as Edmund in particular has the best character arc out of everyone. Tilda Swinton is incredible as The White Witch. James McAvoy is perfectly humble as Mr. Tumnus. I really enjoyed Jim Broadbent in his little screen time as Professor Kirke. Ray Winstone and Dawn French make for such a memorable couple as the voices of Mr. and Mrs. Beaver. Liam Neeson is so spot on as the voice of Aslan.
From an adaptation standpoint, the writers did a great job of staying true to the original novel. Not only that, but the liberties they took felt like genius decisions. Among them were beefing up character motivations and diving a little deeper into places the book previously didn’t explore. From a directorial standpoint, Andrew Adamson puts his visual effects/animation background to great use here. There’s several stunning action sequences on display. The production design by Roger Ford, the costumes by Isis Mussenden, and the cinematography by Donald McAlpine are each firing on all cylinders. The creature designs consist of a successful hybrid of prosthetic makeup, which it rightfully earned its Oscar for, and digital work. A lot of the visual effects (even by 2005 standards) are really good. Harry Gregson-Williams crafted quite an epic musical score with some heroic themes.
While I wouldn’t necessarily call this movie a legit masterpiece, I still think it’s pretty great. In my opinion, the best adaptation of The Lion, The Witch, & The Wardrobe to date. Even on this most recent re-watch, I was so invested from start to finish, that I teared up at certain points. Netflix currently has a reboot in development. When they eventually release it, I’ll definitely be intrigued to watch. No matter how that’ll turn out, I have a feeling this film will always have a special place in my heart. This movie is currently available to stream on Disney+.
Rating: 5/5