This film is an adaptation of C. S. Lewis's book from the popular Narnia series. Unfortunately, the films in this series--this is the third installment--seem to be getting worse as they go along. The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe is the most popular of the books, but, in my opinion, it may be the most accessible, but it is far from being the best. If the films continue like this then I don't think they will do much to promote the discovery of the later-written Narnia books. Dawn Treader, perhaps more than the other books, has a very literary plot that plays out more like a collection of short stories with developing themes than a unified narrative. I think that this film goes wrong in trying to give the work this conventional plot, which not only cheapens the richness of the stories, but also discredits the intelligence of its audience. Lewis wrote the book for children, who can, apparently, accept and enjoy a winding story more than Hollywood gives them credit for. Originally Caspian is driven by a sense of adventure to discover what happens to his father's friends. Finding the 7 lords and racing toward the unknown Eastern edge of the world is enough momentum for the plot. The movie, however, shuffles the encounters, adds the mysterious green mist and the swords, and looses the sweet innocence of each island's lesson as a step along a larger journey.
I found the encounters and driving influences of this film to be flimsy and flat. The growth of the characters feels disingenuous with the exception of Lucy, who embodies all the grace and pluck one could ask of her.
Watching the movie, I was very wrapped up in the story of it all. Dicky's character is really interesting through his complete lack of focus or connection to reality. The leading man himself, however, is little more than a prop--just the product of a family that wanted to love him but just didn't have the space. His girlfriend and father help Micky push back against the destructive forces of his mother and brother, but even so, Micky's resistance is just a product of him allowing himself to be pushed around by another influence. He lacks conviction and will, which are, surprisingly, the characteristics present to a fault in his mother, and developed as a strength in Dicky. Both these characters show an incredible range in the picture. It gives the picture a genuine touch of character--characters who can seem to be one way, and yet possess very contrary traits at a deeper level though neither seems contrived. They seem shaped by circumstance and routine into versions of themselves that they once weren't, but only rarely do their lost-qualities emerge from suffocation.



