Newsletter from the C.S. Lewis Society of California

Mark Sommer of Hollywood Jesus Live! has posted several quotes from reviewers about the movie. He received them in a newsletter from the C.S. Lewis Society of California. Here are some of them:

“The Voyage of the Dawn Treader offers a splendid opportunity for the Christian community to support an outstanding portrayal of a much-beloved children’s book written by one of the great culture-shapers of modern times, C.S. Lewis.”
—Philip Yancey, Editor at Large, ChristianityToday

“This is a rip-snorting adventure fantasy for families, especially the younger members who are not insistent on continuity.”
—Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

“The themes of redemption and grace are presented in moving and memorable fashion. Voyage of the Dawn Treader is more than just action-packed—it’s inspiration-packed.”
—Jim Daly, President, Focus on the Family

“We were swept away by this best Narnia yet! With awesome beauty, fierce adventure and delightf;ul humor, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader rises from the printed page to the 3D screen. This is classic Lewis—Narnia returns!”
—Steve Bell, Executive Vice President, Willow Creek Association

“This is a film which will resonate deeply . . . . The spiritual content is what lifts a pure fantasy based on Homer’s Odyessyinto the realm of allegory of the Christian life. . . . Highly recommended for audiences seven and up.”
—Catholic Media Review

“A worthy challenger to the far more popular Harry Potter pictures.”
—Roger Moore, Orlando Sentinel

“Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader is an exciting, well crafted roller coaster ride of holiday entertainment. In many ways, it is one of the best movies this year. Even so, fans of the book will find that the story has been changed in significant ways. . . . but it must be noted there is still a strong faith element, salvation theme and references to the Son of the Creator of the Universe having another name in our world and Lucy and Edmund needing to get to know him. . . . in every respect a four star movie, in terms of entertainment and production values. Whereas the book is episodic, the movie has a focused goal and a classic story arc. The characters are well developed, the dialogue is brisk, the 3D and special effects are good, and the ending is heart-rending.”
—Movie Guide

“Perhaps the best news for Walden is that Dawn Treader proves delightful enough that it should lead to another Narnia film. Dawn Treader also will likely inspire those who skipped the second installment to seek it out and get caught up on the story of Caspian (Ben Barnes), who has a big part in the third film, too.”
—Crosswalk

“Eye-popping and entertaining.”
—New York Post

There are a couple quotes more on the full article, which you can read HERE. Thanks for posting that, Mr. Sommers! I remain optimistic about the box office success of the movie. I noted three points as to why the US opening weekend total ($24.5 million) was relatively lackluster:

1. ~A lot of people still have Finals to work on. They’ll go watch the movie once they’ve finished their Finals.
2. ~A large part of the Northeast is covered in snow/storms, meaning people can’t get to the theaters to watch the movie.
3. ~Almost all of the marketing for the movie said the movie is “Coming to theaters THIS CHRISTMAS.” That means that a lot people don’t even know the movie is out; they think it’s not out till Christmas!

As long as we keep going to watch the film and taking/telling all our friends, I’m sure Walden/Fox can greenlight The Silver Chair! The worldwide total of The Voyage of the Dawn Treader so far is approximately $105.5 million.