"Prince Caspian" Movie Review

Installment two of C.S. Lewis' classic children's series roared into movie theaters over the weekend. In The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian (PG), Peter, Edmund, Susan and Lucy Pevensie return to Narnia (1300 hundred years after the events of the first movie) to help a young prince reclaim his right to the throne. Andrew Adamson again directs.

Andy: The second in the Narnia series opens with a much darker tone than the first. A violent birth scenes leads the movie off in its Narnia segment, while Peter is engaged in an all out brawl in the underground on the human side. It is an attention getting tone to start the film, and things look promising for the first forty minutes or so. As the film wears on, however, it becomes less and less intriguing, until ultimately you are just kind of waiting for it to end.

Ryan: From a purely visual standpoint Prince Caspian continues the magical world of the Narnia series. From the exotic setting to the talking creatures the movie looks great. C.S. Lewis envisioned a truly imaginary world and the filmmakers have done a superb job in bringing that universe to life. From what I can tell (since I haven't read the book) the movie is a faithful adaptation (in terms of plot); therefore like the book the movie is very accessible to all moviegoers.

Andy: The visuals are generally outstanding, though the use of talking animals still proves problematic to me. I believe it is possible to use talking animals effectively in a movie, but I don’t think this is it. Too often they come across as silly, even when they are not supposed to. And the sword-wielding mouse just seems like Puss-n-Boots from the Shrek series minus the accent. Unfortunately the animal characters seem like cheap gimmicks rather than real characters.

Ryan: Even though Prince Caspian has a visual flair that is enjoyable to see on the big screen, this latest episode falls short compared to the charm of The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe. My biggest complaint about this particular movie is how dependent it is on action. I realize that this is the summer movie season and action sells but the strongest part of the first movie was how the narrative worked on multiple levels. But for the most part Prince Caspian is a straight-ahead action movie. The movie lacks the substance that made the first film respectable.

Andy: One strength of this series is the level of talent they are able to bring in for supporting roles. The first series had the then relatively unknown James McAvoy as Mr. Tumnus. This time around they were able to tap Peter Dinklage, who always gives a solid performance. Unfortunately, none of the children have developed into particularly stellar actors in the three years since the first film, so much of the acting is middling. Coupled with all of the action (read: violence), Prince Caspian ends up feeling a little forced and average.

Ryan: It also baffles my mind how this movie, like the first one, is rated PG. Make no mistake about it Prince Caspian is a violent movie—in terms that it should have been rated PG-13. What I also find problematic is the level of violence perpetrated by the Pevensie children. Granted in Narnia years they aren't technically still children but nevertheless they are represented as children in the movie. That contradiction is not spelled out in the clearest of fashion. Because the notion is so ambiguous, it becomes disconcerting (and somewhat puzzling) to view several scenes where “kids” are committing some terrible acts of violence (even though it is in defense of what is “right”). Ultimately the repercussions of violence is never handled in any manner in the film.

The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian starts out with potential, but eventually stumbles to a final grade of C.