I watched The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe (Disney, IMDB) last night.
First impressions: really very good. Enjoyable, fun, and well done. The story was not destroyed in the making of the movie, and the movie pretty much is true to the Narnia of the book.
The actors who played the kids (Lucy, Edmond, Susan, and Peter) were probably one of the best parts of the movie for me. They were perfect – just the right kids, just the right acting. Very real, very authentic feeling.
I wasn’t crazy about Tilda Swinton, the actress who played the White Witch. OK, but not tremendously compelling. And I really couldn’t get Liam Neeson as the voice of Aslan. Sorry, too many other associations, and it just didn’t sound right.
Other than that, however, I really, really enjoyed this movie.
It’s long – almost 2 hours – but I never felt impatient. The story was neither rushed nor drawn out.
One thing: don’t go in expecting Lord of the Rings. It’s not a Tolkien world – it’s a much smaller cosmos – a more English countryside cosmos. This is not epic adventure with a world-spanning struggle against an ancient enemy. It’s a much more localized story and film. That said, it works. It’s the right size for the story.
But if you come in expecting LOTR, you may be disappointed. At the very least, you’ll have to adjust your expectations.
Very worth seeing – possibly even worth buying … though I’ll be much more tempted to buy it if Disney ends up making all 7 of the books into movies.
PS:
Don’t stop watching when the crdits roll … there’s one more scene to come!