Am I the only one who didn't like this movie? And having told a number of people that I didn't like it, why do they all make me feel bad for not liking it? Ignoring the Christian message sub-text, you'd think this would be the kind of movie I love. This is the anti-Kingdom of Heaven. It's got an engaging story, good CGI, a manageable running length, and good acting. But I wasn't able to add myself to the chorus of voices exclaiming how wonderful this movie was.
The kids are good - they kind of look like each other so its possible they're siblings and they really act like it, bickering with each other, doing one-upmanship, picking on the kid who's considered the odd one out, etc. But you know, if I wanted to watch a bunch of siblings bicker with each other, I'd pick a fight between mine or watch an episode of Supernanny. I found their actions at some points quite bewildering - Lucy walks into a wardrobe, finds another world...and then goes home to tea with a strange, goat-footed man without a shirt?! Susan's been told there's going to be a war and everyone will die unless they're present...but she still thinks they should all go home? Even Edmund had more guts than that! Peter and Edmund are about 12 and 16...how were they suddenly able to ride horses and do battle in full armour? It's like KOH!
Tilda Swinton as the White Witch is excellent. She's always had a kind of androgenous quality that's played up in a lot of roles she's had, such as Orlando, but here she's dressed up in sumptious furs and dresses, she looks quite beautiful even when she's using her gimlet stare. Evil, but beautiful. I found myself kind of respecting her character for the sheer force of will. Here's someone who knows what they want and aren't afraid of using all their resources to get it. And you know, I got to thinking that if she were truly TRULY evil, she could have just killed Edmund when she met him. According to the prophecy, if there's only 3 children, they can't overthrow her. But I guess we wouldn't have a story then.
The voice actors and the CGI for their respective animals were good too, but I found it distracting to hear such familiar voices and not be able to figure out the actor to the voice (Ray Winstone and Rupert Everett). I got Dawn French easily! And again, the CGI for them is good. The CGI battle with all the centaurs, gryphons and the Witch's Orc-like things was well done, if a bit LOTR-y. I know that when they were 18yo Alexander the Great and William the Conqueror had won several significant battles, but I question the wisdom of going into war under the leadership of a 16yo with no experience. Just nit-picking.
I'd read the book both before and after I knew of the Christian thing and I'll admit that as a kid, I did enjoy the story (less so after I became aware of all the other stuff). The movie remains pretty faithful to the book, however several times in the cinema I found myself looking at my phone and waiting for Aslan to appear and for the final battle to just get started. Perhaps knowing the book too well and what everything meant resulted in my more looking at it from an analytical viewpoint rather than being able to just enjoy it. Who knows.
It's a *meh* reaction from me
2-2.5/5
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