Prince Caspian

[claidheamhmor]

On Saturday we went to see The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian. Sadly, I was rather disappointed; I thought it was a lightweight re-hash of the first movie, and it left me feeling rather unsatisfied, a bit like sugar-free candy floss.

Some of the specific issues I had were:

• The acting was generally weak. Ben Barnes as Prince Caspian was pretty, but amateurish.


• The movie structure was really just a remake of the first movie. Too much of the same thing.


• The Christian allegory was really in your face, where the first movie didn't really have that (apart from the Santa Claus "WTF?" moment). Sadly, characters being specifically being asked to abandon logical and rational thinking in place of trusting in "maybes" really felt out of place.


• The bit near the end with the giant water elemental (or Poseidon, or whatever) was another WTF moment. It didn't seem to have a place there.


• The weaponry used didn't seem real. Lord of the Rings set the bar for convincing weapons; Prince Caspian goes back a few decades to shiny, fake-looking ornamental weapons and armour that don't have the right heft and balance. Even Peter's chainmail looked like silver-painted wool; it was too light to be real metal. Susan's bow looked like a Chinese-made toy.


• There was deus ex machina after deus ex machina. It seemed like a badly-run D&D session with a lazy DM who couldn't be bothered to think up a plot that hung together. Narnian forces in dire straits? No problem, Aslan will pop into existence and save the day (but only after heaps of them are dead). Bad guy getting away? No problem, a big water elemental will pop out of the river and grab the bridge the bad guy is crossing. It took away all power from the characters - they were just puppets.

All in all, rather a disappointment.

Comments

[pcb.livejournal.com]

'Caspian a rehash? I thought that's what the original book was, so it sounds pretty faithful ;-D

[claidheamhmor]

*grin*