The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe

Well, that was sweet.

Very faithful to the book, of course. They had found good child actors to play the children, let alone the rest of the cast, and computer animations were good (though not excellent) and costumes and wardrobe (pun intended) were just superb. I have some minor complaints for I'm of course a purist, but I'll concentrate on the good bits here.

Firstly, they had added a bit of a background story for the children which I think worked very well. The movie starts with Germans bombing London and Pevensie children being sent away to the countryside to be safe. Peter, as the eldest, is told to keep the others safe, which of course he takes very seriously as does Susan, and that's a continuous theme throughout the movie. Because of this they have also changed the children's attitude towards the impending war between Aslan's and the Witch's troops - they have actually experienced war and don't want to have anything to do with it (it'll go away, of course). I thought that was a nice touch.

Then there were the beloved characters - Mr. Tumnus was done extremely well, both with the choice of the actor (James McAvoy) and the computer graphics with his faun legs. He looked exactly like you imagined, that you just want to run up to him and hug him and have tea with him and have a delightful chat. Mr. and Mrs. Beaver were great - the computer graphics here weren't that good as they were 100% animation - but the facial expressions together with the fantastic voice actors (Ray Winstone and Dawn French) made you forget all about pretty much instantly. Jadis, the White Witch, had been casted so well with Tilda Swinton - she has that cold and slightly otherworldly look about her. Her wardrobe was a bit bizarre to begin with, but in the end battle she had a full chain-mail gown that was breathtaking. She had also learned a very strange way to move that added to the creepiness of the character.

And then there was of course Aslan. And I'm not ashamed to admit that I cried a little when I saw him for the first time, as I loved him so much as a child. Here the computer graphics were flawless, and Liam Neeson as the voice of Aslan was a good match - there's the gentleness that you need for the character, as well the command. Other notable characters where the gorgeous Patrick Kake as Oreius, the centaur general and the minotaurs on the Witch's side which were done so lifelike I've never seen anything like it. And of course there was the battle scene, which in my mind wipes the floor with anything done in Lord of the Rings, and again I'm not ashamed to admit I cried pretty much all the way through it.

(And in case you want to hear my gripes - they were mainly the size of Jadis - they should have made her a meter taller as she wasn't human, Peter riding a unicorn - you don't ride unicorns, and I can't believe I'm saying this but I wanted to see some blood - in the whole battle there is not a drop of blood to keep the movie PG rated. "Peter, wipe your sword!" - what did he do, drool on it?)

If I hadn't got a little cold (again), I think I would have gone and seen it again already.

You can't add any more comments, but if you wish you can email the author.