There can be few films more eagerly awaited than The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe. It has been 30 years since Hollywood first toyed with the idea of bringing CS Lewis’s Chronicles of Narnia to the screen.
But the wait has been absolutely worth it. This re-telling of the story manages to be enthralling and, at the same time, sweet and gentle.
I saw the first screening in America and thoroughly enjoyed it. Lewis’s stepson, Douglas Gresham, who has carefully guarded the rights to the much-loved stories, finally entrusted them to the billionaire Christian financier and film producer Philip Anschutz in the belief that he would remain true to the spirit of the tales.
Anschutz, who enlisted the help of Walt Disney to finance the £80 million epic, has not let him down. The director, Andrew Adamson, whose only previous feature film experience was directing the two Shrek films, has created an exciting adventure story for children.
Ironically, the long wait has helped the film; it simply could not have been made in its current form a few years ago. Like The Lord of the Rings trilogy, it was shot in the spectacular backdrops provided by New Zealand (Adamson’s native land) and like that film, too, it uses 1,700 special effects shots and computer generated images.
There are convincingly natural talking animals, ghoulish creatures, vicious wolves and some intense scenes of battle and death, but no bloodshed. The picture’s lack of gore may disappoint some teenage boys but its classic story of good versus evil combined with rousing battle scenes and the charm of its four stars will ensure success.
Even before the opening credits are over, Adamson firmly establishes time and place, with scenes of German bombers attacking London during the Second World War. The four Pevensie children are packed off from their home in Finchley to the countryside to stay with a mysterious professor (Jim Broadbent) and his fierce housekeeper.
