CHRONICLES OF NARNIA (retitled thread) (1 Viewer)

[Adam Lenhardt]

That sounds about right. I thought they did a version of the horse one, too, but I could be wrong. "Magician's Nephew" and "Last Battle" are far too controversial even for the solid BBC adaptations.

 

[MatthewLouwrens]

That is correct. No BBC adaptations of The Magician's Nephew, The Horse and His Boy, or The Last Battle.

 

[Harold Southard]

I just found a trailer, if you can call it that. It is Richard Taylor talking about the movie and it shows some of the creatures and weapons. I am glad to see Weta working on this one. Here is where I found it. Can't link to the trailer itself, its java script.

http://movies.go.com/moviesdynamic/m...ovie?id=612181

Genre(s)
Fantasy, Adventure

Starring
Tilda Swinton, Rupert Everett, Dawn French, Georgie Henley, Skandar Keynes, Anna Popplewell, William Moseley, Brian Cox

Director(s)
Andrew Adamson

Writer(s)
Ann Peacock

Release Date
Dec. 9, 2005

Alternate Title(s)
The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe

Web Site
Official Site for The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe

Release
Wide Release

 

[MatthewLouwrens]

Here is a link to the actual trailer.

http://bvbp-qt.vitalstream.com/LionW...Magic_1500.mov

 

[hanson mat]

Bump

I just found a trailer, if you can call it that.

I don't think that is the "official" trailer - just a teaser to get people interested. I would think the release date is too far away for them to be putting it out so soon. Regardless, the footage is awesome - love when the Minotar roars. Also, its pretty cool they are using real weapons.

Anyone heard any updates lately?

 

[Brandon Conway]

NY Times article

A really well written article that discusses Disney's decision on how to make and market the film and the dilemma of the source material being heavily Christian themed books. (Registration required).

 

[Edwin-S]

Making it animated would risk shortchanging it of some of its dramatic impact.

I'm going to have to disagree with this comment. These books would have translated very well into animated films. THE PLAGUE DOGS was animated and it was completely a dramatic film. There was zero humour in TPD and the film worked quite well. I really felt sorry for the dogs in TPD and the ending was especially depressing.

If THE PLAGUE DOGS could be made into a dramatic animated film then I see no reason why the CHRONICLES OF NARNIA could not have been made in the same manner.

Another animated film that was dramatic was WATERSHIP DOWN. It also turned out quite well.

 

[Chris Farmer]

True Edwin, but you still have to deal with the [unfortunate] stigma that animation has to deal with in Western cultures, that of a kiddie medium not worthy of serious material. Garbage, but there you have it.

As for the Christian themes, I'd say do a Lord of the Rings and just make the movies. PJ simply ignored the Christian/Catholic overtones of the books and made the movies without either trying to bring them out or squash them down. They're an integral part of the story's make-up, and should be treated like any other story element. IE, don't give them special attention one way or another, just let the story tell itself.

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

I think that Christian allegory is pretty front and center in "Narnia". Choosing between the secular route and the "Passion of the Christ" marketing route, this is one of the few projects I'm glad they're leaning more towards the "Passion" direction. Which isn't to say I want to see any brutal violence; I just want to see the faith inherent to the books adequately presented.

Tolkien deplored allegory, and as such I don't really have any issue with LOTR's secular adaptations. To me, that is as it should be.

 

[Shawn_McD]

I'm an atheist, but i loved the books...go figure.

 

[Ernest Rister]

The first trailer for The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe is going to be attatched to Episode III accordng to reports this a.m.

Peace out.

 

[Ricardo C]

Thje "Behind the Magic" clip gave me that familiar LOTR-type rush Can't wait for this one, even though I've never read the books, and my entire experience with the world of Narnia is limited to the animated film.

 

[Tony_Ramos]

Guys, I haven't read the books, I plan to. But remember, ppl said that LOTR and Harry Potter could never be made into good movies...

With WETA working on this, it seems almost too good to be true. At least you know they'll have a chance.

Also, this director managed to make Shrek into something pleasing for everyone. I thought part 1 was much better than 2, so that's comforting to me.

Also, even though Tolkien said he was against overt allegory, he himself couldn't help but put some into his books, and they are there for all to see on the screen. Every victory in LOTR is a spiritual one, not a military one. The heroes win through self-sacrifice. That's pretty overtly Christian.

That being said, since I haven't read these books, it might be even more overt. But as someone said, with LOTR, Pete retained the messages w/o conciously focusing on them. I would hope that the same can be done here, so as to not alienate aethiest viewers.

Although, as CS Lewis would say, the stories that resonate with us share similarities that indicate the existence of a higher power

 

[Andy Sheets]

Also, even though Tolkien said he was against overt allegory, he himself couldn't help but put some into his books, and they are there for all to see on the screen. Every victory in LOTR is a spiritual one, not a military one. The heroes win through self-sacrifice. That's pretty overtly Christian.

It has Christian underpinnings, absolutely, but it's not allegorical because there's no direct, in-your-face connection to Christianity in the books or movies. Frodo's suffering is kinda sorta like Jesus, but Frodo is not Jesus. He's still just Frodo. Compare to Narnia, in which Aslan IS Jesus and there's not really any other interpretation that Lewis intended, which is what annoyed Tolkien

 

[Edwin-S]

I would hope that the same can be done here, so as to not alienate aethiest viewers.

Athiests probably won't go to see this film anyway, so why worry about alienating them. Most informed Athiests are probably quite aware of the theist overtones in Lewis's original material; therefore, the movie would be something that they would avoid taking their children to.

 

[hanson mat]

Thje "Behind the Magic" clip gave me that familiar LOTR-type rush

There is a new clip out today that I saw. This new one features the director. You get to see more of the set/costumes. Pretty awesome stuff. I wonder how many of these they are making?

Behind the Magic : The Director

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

Athiests are probably quite aware of the theist overtones in Lewis's original material; therefore, the movie would be something that they would avoid taking their children to.

Why? I highly doubt this is going to be the type of umovie that says "You're gonna burn in HELL if you don't believe in Jesus!" or any such exclusionary tactics like that.

 

[TheLongshot]

To be honest, the religious allegory went right over my head when I read it as a kid. This is comming from someone who was raised Roman Catholic. So, I think it is very possible to do this story on the big screen, and not have people cringe about the allegory.

Jason

 

[clayton b]

As an agnostic, I really only had one problem with all the religious overtones, and that was in The Last Battle. Highlight to read:

I don't care for Susan's fate. After all she did for both Aslan and Narnia, I felt she sort of got left behind. And why? Because she grew up? Because she got interested in the opposite sex (and maybe even *dramatic pause* had intimate relations with the opposite sex)? Now I've only read the series once, and if I remember right Susan wasn't part of the train accident that killed the Pevensie family. But I think that Aslan made it fairly clear that she had strayed from the path and might not be joining them. And why? For forgetting about the land that she loved? There's no indication that she became a bad person, only that she abandoned Narnia in favor of the here and now; to live life to its fullest.

Perhaps someone who knows the series better than I do can set me straight, but that's just how I feel.


Anyway, I believe that the religious overtones will be impossible to erase entirely, but that it shouldn't hamper the average non-religious person's ability to enjoy the films. I'm no church goer and I love the series.

 

[Brandon Conway]

Clayton -

Susan's fate has nothing to do with sex. It's just a simple allegory that parallels a person who had believed in God - had even seen God - but then turned away from the faith. essentially, she denies Christ after having once accepted him. It's not meant to be easy to take - she essentially committed spiritual suicide.