The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader

The third installment in the big budget Narnian films gives us a more or less solid film with impressive special effects wasted on a hackneyed script and mediocre acting. There are a couple of exceptions in the acting department. The boy playing Eustace hits his mark and the voice work for Reepicheep is handled well. The special effects are dazzling; merging reality with digital almost seamlessly. But my critique of this film is exactly the same as the Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe film (I never saw Prince Caspian): The atmosphere is all wrong.

Lighthearted whimsy is exchanged for somberness. A slow paced voyage is traded for a rapid fire adventure that moves so fast, we cannot enjoy the characters nor the moment. This isn't fantasy, it is a special effects reel. Added negatives include the actors, none of whom (Reepicheep excepted) capture any semblance of the royalty they attempt to portray. The actor playing Caspian is especially dimwitted in playing a king. He seems more like a befuddled commoner who learned a few royal gestures at school somewhere. At no time do you feel nor do his men feel like they are in the presence of a great king (which was the case in the book). The movie takes great liberties with the plot of the book, opting instead for a silly new plot about an evil mist which sucks away slaves in boats. This brings about a couple of new side characters (a father and daughter), neither of whom make much of an impression.

What this movie series need is to RECAPTURE THE MOOD OF THE BOOKS and avoid throwing out the plot for a newer one. They can keep the special effects, but temper them with a story that takes its time and is as entranced with its surroundings as the passengers aboard the Dawn Treader were. Are the producers afraid to elevate the material up to the audience, instead of pandering down to short attention spans? It sure seems so. While taken on its own terms the movie is professionally handled, I guarantee the movie would have stuck in the minds of the audience more if greater pains were taken on a good script and good acting. As it is, you watch the film, leave, and then don't remember much afterward.

I was SO looking forward to the Voyage of the Dawn Treader, and was sorely disappointed.

The film felt like they took the original story, chopped it up, then threw it in a blender with seven magical swords and some ridiculous green mist!

While the film stayed true to main themes of the story, much of the character development and purpose to each of the minor island stories was lost. Unfortunately this meant that most of the magic of the story was lost as well.

I gave the film 6 stars due to the redeeming qualities that were the stunning visuals, some excellent acting (notably by Will Poulter as Eustace), and a beautifully executed final scene.

If you haven't read the book, then you may enjoy this film immensely, but if you are a true Narnia fan, don't go in with very high expectations.

This film is about the Pevensies and their cousin entering Narnia again, in order to help Prince Caspian gather all seven swords of the lords to fight against dark forces.

"The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader" is a good film. It has elements for everyone to enjoy, such as clean humour, excitement, dangers and also psychological elements. The plot is straightforward and easy to understand. It is also filled with excitement, especially the battle with the dragon is quite breathtaking. The plot and the characters engage me a lot. This time, the Pevensies have matured, and hence are a lot less annoying. They even become interesting characters as they battle to overcome their own inadequacies. This subplot is aimed at adults, but it still can be understood by children at face value.

The 3D though, is a lot less thrilling than the film. Most scenes do not have noticeable 3D effects. The scenes that do have 3D are quite underwhelming. There are little scenes in the film that makes use of the 3D technology. I can safely say that watching the 2D version would be just as enjoyable than the 3D version, and you can save a few dollars by doing so.

Chronicles of Narnia: Voyage of the Dawn Treader

It has been a few years now and a studio, director, and production team change since we last had a Narnia film but finally the third film in the series, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, has finally come to screen and what can I say? It is well worth your money for you and your entire family to see it. The film is made by 20th Century Fox and Walden Media, directed by Michael Apted, still with actors Ben Barnes as Prince Caspian, Liam Neesan as the voice of Aslan the Lion, Skander Keynes again as Edmund, Georgie Henley as Lucy, with Will Poulter (Son of Rambow) as their cousin Eustace.

The story centers around Edmund and Lucy returning to Narnia this time with their whiny cousin Eustace where they meet up with Prince Caspian, now King Caspian, onboard the Narnia ship the Dawn Treader. With years of peace enjoyed in Narnia, they are unsure why they are there but soon find themselves on an adventure to battle a mysterious force that threatened Narnia where they face slavers, dragons, temptation, serpents, and learn to become greater than they ever thought they could be. The film follows the plot of the book very well expanding in order to make it flow as a proper story. The additions are perfectly plausible and make the story more cohesive and unlike the changes in Prince Caspian, improve the story. Flowing along quickly, this is by far the shortest in runtime of the series yet also the most powerful and magical, it starts well and ends on a such a high emotional note there are few that will escape unaffected from any screening.

Special effects stand out, with the absence of WETA in the production and special effects I was anxious to see if the new team, actually a fairly large group of small companies, could match what WETA was able to create I am here to tell you YES and in some ways they have surprassed their creations. The dragon and a sea serpent in the film alone are well worth admission, both created with much care and love and really the magic of a fantasy world involved. Other characters from Reepicheep the mouse, a Minotaur, and other creatures are beautiful to behold. The only one that seemed a little down was Aslan who though looking good seems a step down from what WETA created in Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe and Prince Caspian but the rest is so vivid with color and imagination there is little doubt that it will not just capture the imagination of the young but the entire family and keep them from first shot to last frame.

Music is another powerful entry, the strong Narnia theme running through this film giving it wonder and magic that belongs in this type of film. The strongest song though involves the arrival of a dragon, a piece with great power and a pulse that gives one of the most powerful scenes in the film even greater amazement and magic. Do you want to capture the imagination of a child and your childhood, an escapist film that will be great entertainment for the entire family? THIS IS THAT FILM!

Acting has been hit but this one features better acting and character moments than the other films. With fewer characters than the other two films this one can focus more on the characters and each of the main characters get multiple character building moments that give us greater love and really infuses the film with such emotional power that its hard not to be moved, especially by the climax. Everyone from Edmund to Lucy, to Caspian, to Reepicheep, to Eustace, get powerful scenes that culimate in the strongest ending to a Narnia films and one of the most poignant scenes I have seen in a film in a very long time.

Christians out there, do you fear that the Christian themes are stripped out of this movie? Do not fear, this film is as powerfully religious as it is in magic. All of the religious undertones are not covered but are out in the open for all to see. There is no fear, like what Disney had, when it comes to hitting these themes and the director displays them in all their glory with as much power as C.S. Lewis wrote them to be.

The 3D of the film was fine, it does not detract now does it really add. I believe one would be fine seeing it or not seeing it in 3D, whatever you prefer.

Overall, Voyage of the Dawn Treader is a powerful entry in the fantasy genre, a great film for the entire family, and the type of film that belongs in December and should be watched time and time again by young and old alike! I give this film an 8.5/10.

I have watched this film in 3d at a preview screening in London.

First of all, I do not recommend anyone watching this in 3d. It is too dark and the action is just a motion blur. It's dreadful.

As for the film, there is much to enjoy with excellent visual effects, action set pieces (though ruined for me by the 3D) and a couple of stand out characters. But unfortunately there is also much to cringe at in some bouts of terrible dialogue.

The characters of Reepicheep (the kick-ass warrior mouse) and Eustace, (the obnoxious brat cousin) were the most fun with the actor playing Eustace demonstrating excellent comic timing. The relationship between them was funny and touching. And they even brought much needed zest to the action.

But alarmingly, Edmund and Lucy seem to have deteriorated as actors. Some of their emotions are too forced which is a pity. Not sure why, as I would expect them to improve with each film as did the young cast of the Harry Potter movies.

Overall, the story has surprisingly been well adapted considering not a great deal actually happens in the book. But the pacing is good, even though a little episodic. There are much more Christian analogies once again which would please many and irritate others. But I rather like all of the analogies.

I do feel however, that amongst adults, mostly those who enjoyed the Narnia books will enjoy this more than non readers of the books because the story is too bizarre even for a fantasy! But I think most children will enjoy this immensely, regardless if they read the books or not.

With better written dialogue and better handling of the child performances (namely Lucy and Edmund), this could have been a much better film but as its stands its an enjoyable enough entry in this series.

Oh and I will say it again, do not watch this in 3d.