The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (2005)
Directed by Andrew Adamson
Four kids travel through a wardrobe to the land of Narnia and learn of their destiny to free it with the guidance of a mystical lion.
8 connections found
View:
8 films that influenced this film
What critics say influenced The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
Based on Lewis’ beloved 1950 novel and adapted to the screen by Ann Peacock, Adamson, Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely (“The Life and Death of Peter Sellers”), “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe” begins like John Boorman’s marvelous 1987 memoir “Hope and Glory” in London during the Blitz, an event only referred to in passing in the book.
But Lewis’ bland Christian allegories and moralistic characters come to life thanks to New Zealand-born director Andrew Adamson (“Shrek,” “Shrek 2”) and his talented, mostly British cast, including the otherworldly Tilda Swinton as the sexiest witch since Barbara Steele in “Black Sunday.”
Thus, despite its enormous secular appeal, "The Chronicles of Narnia" could also be called the most effective and moving religious picture since Nick Ray's "King of Kings."
Listening to him, it occurs to me that I might be able to accept Neeson as the voice of Jesus in an animated life-of-Christ film (like Ralph Fiennes in The Miracle Maker ); and Aslan, of course, is Jesus’ Narnian alter ego.
Advertisement
The movie’s CGI, on the whole, is excellent, especially the chattering animals and the climactic battle sequence–which, by the way, can’t escape being a minor knockoff of Peter Jackson’s ground shattering work in LOTR .
The chase scenes, across woods and a perilously thawing frozen waterfall, work well, and the battle scenes, if judged against anything this side of LOTR, are rousing.
Visually, Adamson has obviously been influenced by Jackson’s trend-setting work in LOTR.
Think Braveheart or The Return of the King .
The battle itself is a less exciting version of the battle for Minas Tirith in The Return of the King .
Director Andrew Adamson, in his live-action debut (after Shrek and Shrek 2), stages The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe with a wide-eyed prosaic eagerness that reminds me a little of the Hollywood fantasy films of the late '60s.
The film was directed by Andrew Adamson, who has made an impressive jump from the computer-animated “Shrek” films to “Narnia,” which is a mix of live action and realistic-looking computer animation.
Director Andrew Adamson, of "Shrek" fame, took on the tremendous task of turning this literary work into a fast-paced, adrenaline-fueled motion picture, and Buena Vista Home Entertainment has delivered a worthy Two-Disc Collector's Edition release.
Director Andrew Adamson's previous films were "Shrek" and "Shrek 2," crowd-pleasers that neither hinted at his depths nor suggested what he could do with real actors in a live action film.
C.S. Lewis’ classic work of children’s literature is brought to exuberant life with enticing visuals and bright performances under the guidance of director/co-screenwriter Andrew Adamson ("Shrek" 1 & 2) and a large group of highly skilled animators, production designers and crew.
Cowriter (with Ann Peacock and "The Life and Death of Peter Sellers" writers Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely)/director Andrew Adamson ("Shrek," "Shrek 2") takes something old and makes it new again with this glorious adaptation of the well-loved children's tale.
As for the religious aspect, it is only slightly more obvious than "The Matrix."