With the book (reviewed here) fresh in my mind, I wanted to re-watch the 2008 movie adaptation of Prince Caspian, the sequel to The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe (book discussed here and movie here). In this movie, the prince summons the four Pevensies back into Narnia to help him defeat his uncle and restore freedom to the Narnians of old.
This movie disappointed me. I expect changes from the book, but they altered the spirit of it. There were lots of small changes and minor rearrangements of material in the novel. That's no huge deal. But here's what bothered me:
- they added a large scene in the middle- the old Narnians storming the Telmarine stronghold- that was unnecessary and almost made the good guys come off as aggressors.
- the children- Peter in particular- didn't act like one who had been saved and changed by Aslan (which happened in the prior book). He was proud and obstinate for much of the film, and had spiteful exchanges with Caspian and others. It was very unlike the book, where Peter was wise and loving for much of it.
- they minimized Aslan's role (and least until the very end).
- they added a minor romance element that the book lacked.
For these reasons, I was let down. There was some wisdom here, like the book, but overall they could have done better.
Rating: C+
No comments:
Post a Comment