The Greatest Trick

Apparently CS Lewis once said that he never wanted Narnia stories turned into films, as this would result in “buffoonery”. However, Lewis lived in a pre-CGI world. It’s hard to imagine he would have been upset about Andrew Adamson’s adaptation, although I’m sure he would have picked a few nits.

For those of you who have had deprived childhoods, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe is based on the children’s book by CS Lewis, which has become a perennial favourite for many generations. It tells of four wartime evacuee children Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy who are sent to live in a country house with a mysterious but kindly old professor. Here they discover a wardrobe that transports them into the magical world of Narnia – a world of talking animals ruled by the evil White Witch who has cast her frosty spell over the whole country so that it’s always winter but never Christmas. The arrival of the four children has been foretold as the event that will bring about her downfall, and the return of the Great Lion Aslan, the true King of Narnia.

So is it any good? Well, for the most part yes. This is as fine an adaptation as one could probably hope for and as such is a good piece of family entertainment. Unlike the Harry Potter films, the filmmakers haven’t been afraid of reinventing where necessary, and in some places they actually improve on the novel. For example, the opening during the Blitz immediately establishes the children’s characters very well, nicely foreshadowing key events, particularly involving Edmund. Each of the children is given a character arc that is frankly more interesting than those in the book. Peter, frustrated by being too young to fight in World War II, finds age is not an issue in the war against the White Witch. Susan finds that being grown-up and clever doesn’t help much in Narnia, and Lucy is wiser and braver than she was in print. Edmund remains the most interesting character of the four. As he succumbs to narcotic Turkish delight, his cowardice, deception and betrayal is enhanced even further by the well-judged screenplay.

The performances from the children – Georgie Henley, Skandar Keynes, William Moseley, and Anna Popplewell as Lucy, Edmund, Peter and Susan respectively – are all good, but not remarkable. Thankfully they are far more convincing that their counterparts in the early Potter films, but they are nowhere near the exceptional level of, say, Henry Thomas in ET, Haley Joel Osmond in The Sixth Sense or Freddie Highmore in Finding Neverland. Liam Neeson does a good job voicing Aslan, Ray Winstone and Dawn French have fun as Mr and Mrs Beaver, and James McAvoy makes a memorable Mr Tumnus the Faun. Best of all is Tilda Swinton as the White Witch, who doesn’t resort to clichéd cackling and shouting, but instead plays the part with understated menace and icy stares which are far more likely to scare children.

It must be said however, that the special effects are not always special. In some cases they are excellent (the Beavers for instance) but in other places, particularly during the final battle, they are not quite believable. Whilst on the subject of battles, its best to get the inevitable (and unfair) Lord of the Rings comparisons out of the way. No, it’s not anywhere near that dynamic or groundbreaking, but the Narnia Chronicles have always been a very different beast to Tolkien’s epic. This is a relatively simple story, mostly built around an extended chase. In that sense, it’s far more comparable to The Wizard of Oz or Alice in Wonderland. Also, whereas the Rings films (and books) were clearly aimed at adults, this is aimed squarely at children so instead of the muted colours and dark tone of Jackson’s adaptation, Adamson wisely opts for bright colours and opulence.

Unless you have been hiding under a rock, you will know the Narnia stories are often regarded as a Biblical allegory, with Aslan symbolising Jesus Christ. Not true. As CS Lewis himself said, Aslan is not intended to be an allegory of Christ, Aslan is Christ, or Christ how he would appear in a world filled with talking animals. At the end of the fifth book in the Narnia stories, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, this is made completely clear. Peter and Susan are told by Aslan they will see him back in their own world but that he has a different name there. The reason they came to Narnia was to get to know him in their own world. So yes, guilty as charged, the Narnia Chronicles have an unashamed Christian worldview. If you read The Guardian you’ll know that gets right up Polly Toynbee’s nose. Hypocritical killjoys like her warn of how dangerous it is to expose your children to “Christian propaganda”. But all stories are propaganda of one kind or another and the parents among you have to answer a simple question: what kind of propaganda do I want my kids exposed to? CS Lewis’ Narnia stories are propaganda, but they are good propaganda, unlike insidious works such as Phillip Pullman’s His Dark Materials which the likes of Polly Toynbee would rather our children were exposed to.

Oh, and whilst I’m on the subject of critics, please, please, please ignore Jonathan Ross’ stupid review of this film. I have always felt he was a poor replacement for Barry Norman and he continually extols films with little or no cinematic merit, yet slates others with plenty. The truth is The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe has finally been done some justice on the big screen. Superior to the BBC and animated versions in every respect, this is a good, though not great piece of work. Adults may leave a trifle underwhelmed, but to quote Marty McFly in Back to the Future “your kids are gonna love it!”

Simon Dillon, December 2005.