"Prince Caspian" - Movie Review

My wife and I went to see "Prince Caspian", the second film in the "Chronicles of Narnia" series, this weekend. I will admit that I was only half-heartedly interested in going to begin with, in part because I was concerned that the film would succumb to "sequelitis" and fail to live up to the quality of its predecessor "The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe." Fortunately for my misgivings, but less fortunately for fidelity to the source material, "Prince Caspian" is an entertaining, action-filled piece that doesn't feel as long as its stated running time of 2 hours 24 minutes.

The plot in brief: 1,300 years after the action of the first book and film, Narnia has been conquered by its warlike (and distinctly Arab-looking) neighbors, the Telmarines. Prince Caspian, rightful heir to the Telmarine throne, is forced into exile when his uncle Miraz usurps the throne. He falls in with some of the original magical inhabitants of Narnia and summons the four "great kings and queens" - Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy - back to Narnia by means of a magic horn. However, the "kings and queens" are children again, having returned to the real world what was for them a year ago. Despite their setbacks, the five must unite dwarves, centaurs, minotaurs and other native creatures- apparently without help from the powerful mystical lion Aslan - to challenge Miraz and the Telmarines for control of Narnia.

As with any film adaptation of a novel, much gets elided, truncated or modified in order to make a better visual story (and to make the film more appealing to an adult audience). An entire battle scene which doesn't happen in the book, involving a night raid on Miraz's castle, is inserted for dramatic value, and hints of a potential romantic interest between Caspian and Susan appear at several points, as does a tension in the command tent between Peter and Caspian that is largely invented for the film. However, in broad strokes the film is faithful to the outlines of the novel, and is certainly more adult, faster-paced and grittier. Best of all, unlike other films aided by CGI special effects, "Prince Caspian" never seems to be in danger of being overwhelmed by them, even in the climactic battle.

If there is one fault to be laid at the door of "Prince Caspian" it's that none of the good guys really rise to the level of fully realized characters. Caspian himself perhaps comes closest, but even he is rather one-note as the wronged prince. Lucy, the youngest of the four children, spends most of the film complaining about how nobody believes she's seen Aslan, and Peter and Edmund are mostly around to swing swords and make speeches. Susan probably comes out best, between her warrior-maiden battle scenes and the spurious romantic interest. Against these rather flimsy characterizations, King Miraz is a dark star, evil and brilliant, and his henchmen bring some complexity to the plot, aiding Miraz's war against Caspian while scheming behind his back to take advantage of the situation for themselves.

Lastly, although the entire Narnia series, in book form, is an ongoing Christian allegory, the overtones of religiosity are very subtle in this film. Perhaps the filmmakers took a hard look at what could, quite easily, be read as a parable of the Crusades, and decided that the current political and religious climate wasn't the time to be having that particular discussion through the lens of popular entertainment.

On the whole, "Prince Caspian" is like a good rollercoaster - it keeps the fun coming, never slackens its pace, has a few downs to go with the big hills, and by the time you get to the end you know you've been shown a good time. It's not great art, but it wasn't supposed to be. It's definitely worth a matinee admission, but I might balk at paying $9.50 for it.

NOTE: Although the film is rated PG, there were several families at the screening we attended with very small (4-5 years old) children. Since much of their experience of the film consisted of taking frightened children out into the lobby to avoid the scary bits, I would seriously advise against taking your own toddler. This is a young-adult film, not a children's movie. There is violence throughout, and while it is not gory or gratuitous, people (and magical creatures) get killed. This is not "Cars" or "Shrek."

Running time: 2 hours, 24 minutes. Stars Ben Barnes (Caspian), Georgie Henley (Lucy), William Mosely (Peter), Skandar Keynes (Edmund), Anna Popplewell (Susan), Sergio Castellitto (Miraz), Warwick Davies (Nickabrick), and the voice talents of Liam Neeson (Aslan) and Eddie Izzard (Reepicheep).