MN after SC? What happened to HHB?

[Pardine]

That's a very interesting insight into the behind-the-scenes operations of church operations. Also, don't things have to be lined up and ready to go far in advance of when it would seem necessary? For instance, aren't RelEd departments going to be making their decisions about VBS curricula very shortly, now that Christmas is over? That would probably mean the material to evaluate them would need to be in their hands well before that.

I don't think much of marketing to churches, but it's a factor that can't be ignored.

The problem with being a non-profit entity is you have to zero out the books. You have to make decisions in advance. Moving VBS products from early summer to near the start of school was a horrible stab in the back to the people that make those decisions, which meant that during the summer, instead of kids seeing stuff about VDT, they saw a different product.

If you look at the three movies, you'll see one that was marketed perfectly to churches and was VERY faithful to the book. One that was marketed decently to churches and was unfaithful to the book. One that was marketed poorly to churches and there are mixed opinions, but its largely held to be mostly faithful to the book.

Only one of those has been successful, and I hope that they move forward with that knowledge and apply it.

 

[Aravis Kenobi]

Maybe this thread should move to the Duffers forum since none of the last two pages are related to the topic of the thread itself.

 

[narnianqueen1]

Maybe this thread should move to the Duffers forum since none of the last two pages are related to the topic of the thread itself.

I woke up this morning to take a look at this thread and there has definitely been a shift in topic! However I would like to mention this, I really don't think you can blame PC/DT's shortage based on lack of publicity within the religious communities. LWW is a standalone classic that Christians and non-Christians knew and grew up with. It was a fantastic tale that translated perfectly onto screen because of its simple storyline, and so many people have read LWW since they were kids so naturally would want to see it. And anyway, it doesn't take marketing within churches to make the Narnia movies successful, it all has to do with how well it is produced, and if good enough, word-of-mouth and rave reviews are the crucial and invaluable publicity that these movies need to make money.

Now I hope we can get back on topic.

In regards to the ages, I'm glad NarniaExpert and Aravis agree. Having them raise the ages would also make it feasible for the actors to look more believable when they age them with a little make up, so we can see a glimpse of the future on their wedding day, which is always nice to see.

NarniaExpert, we are still eagerly awaiting your detailed thoughts about the changes you would make for HHB the movie.

 

[BarbarianKing]

I would like to know where does it say (or said) that HBB was going to be made. As far as I know, there was never talk of making HBB anywhere. And I've also been to many Narnia sites. Please tell me where does it say that? The only movies mentioned to be made where SC and MN, that's it.

 

[MissReepicheep]

I want so very deeply to see HHB made. It is such an imaginative story, and would make a brilliant movie. But even if they don't make it... Please, I just want them to make TSC!!!! Even if they don't continue with the whole series, I just want to see TSC!!!! *cries*

 

[Aravis Kenobi]

I would like to know where does it say (or said) that HBB was going to be made. As far as I know, there was never talk of making HBB anywhere. And I've also been to many Narnia sites. Please tell me where does it say that? The only movies mentioned to be made where SC and MN, that's it.

I think you've misconstrued narnianprincess' purpose for this thread. I believe it was Doug Gresham who mentioned that if after TSC, they would most likely make TMN. narnianprincess was wondering why HHB wouldn't come next, as TMN is next to TLB in publication order (the order they're making the films). That's all.

 

[MissReepicheep]

It was actually narnianqueen, but you're right.

I find it curious that they haven't even mentioned HHB. Now that i think of it, I can't think of any time anyone involved in the moviemaking has mentioned making that one.

 

[Aravis Kenobi]

It was actually narnianqueen, but you're right.

I find it curious that they haven't even mentioned HHB. Now that i think of it, I can't think of any time anyone involved in the moviemaking has mentioned making that one.

Oh yeah. Duh *slaps self* (I wrote that post at 12 a.m....and I was pretty tired when I did so.)

I think that HHB is far away in the future as far as the makers are concerned. I think the more immediate discussion is about Silver Chair.

 

[BarbarianKing]

I think you've misconstrued narnianprincess' purpose for this thread. I believe it was Doug Gresham who mentioned that if after TSC, they would most likely make TMN. narnianprincess was wondering why HHB wouldn't come next, as TMN is next to TLB in publication order (the order they're making the films). That's all.

No, i did not misconstrued her statement. If you read her first post, she mentions that the making of MN has been mentioned in "other sites." I would just like to know what other sites is she referring to.

 

[narnianqueen1]

No, i did not misconstrued her statement. If you read her first post, she mentions that the making of MN has been mentioned in "other sites." I would just like to know what other sites is she referring to.

BarbarianKing, I shall put the emphasis on 'mentioned'. However what should be noted more importantly is that Gresham himself did say in his own words about HHB coming after SC. You can't help but advocate what you would love to happen

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Chronicles_of_Narnia_(film_series)#Additional_films

http://www.narniaweb.com/2008/05/horse-and-his-boy-after-the-silver-chair/

Same of course, but quoted on narniafans:

http://www.narniafans.com/archives/1555

And Aravis, no worries, princess is absolutely fine

 

[narnianqueen1]

BarbarianKing, I said the making of HHB has been mentioned in other sites, not MN. It was Gresham's latest interview posted on narniafans that he mentions MN, instead of HHB.

 

[BarbarianKing]

Yes, I did mean to say that it was HBB not MN. And thanks for providing those links. That's all I wanted to know where did it say that HBB could be made next. I had not heard any of that, only about SC and MN.

 

[moonspinner]

Prince Caspian was much older than most people expected, but the older Ben Barnes worked very well. I think they could market this as a movie that will appeal to more demographics.

No, it didn't. One of the things that I heard people complain about the movie was that how could they admire a grown-up Prince who needed four children to fight for him? Some others really missed the story of wee!Caspian and his nurse and his early love for Old Narnia. PC failed because it changed too many things and from all indications, VDT is going to fail for the same reason.

I think they could market this as a movie that will appeal to more demographics.

If by making this movie appeal to more demographics, they end up diluting what makes Narnia Narnia and not Generic Fantasy Movie X, then I really, really hope they don't ever make this movie. Because there are a thousand of generic fantasy books out there just fighting to be made into films that would appeal to wide demographics but there is only one Narnia series. I've gone from desperately wanting to see this film made - so desperate in fact, that I wished the movies had followed the chronological order so that this would have been the third film not the fifth - to dreading what Walden would do with it.

All this is moot, though because it's very unlikely that Walden will make more movies after VDT. Which I, for one, think it's a good thing. Let's re-boot the franchise in ten years with script writers and directors who really 'get' Narnia and produce films that will do it justice and not just adapt the elements of Narnia into Standard Hollywood Action Movie Template.

 

[narnianqueen1]

Yes, I did mean to say that it was HBB not MN. And thanks for providing those links. That's all I wanted to know where did it say that HBB could be made next. I had not heard any of that, only about SC and MN.

You're most welcome BK.

If by making this movie appeal to more demographics, they end up diluting what makes Narnia Narnia and not Generic Fantasy Movie X, then I really, really hope they don't ever make this movie. Because there are a thousand of generic fantasy books out there just fighting to be made into films that would appeal to wide demographics but there is only one Narnia series. I've gone from desperately wanting to see this film made - so desperate in fact, that I wished the movies had followed the chronological order so that this would have been the third film not the fifth - to dreading what Walden would do with it.

HHB is a tale that doesn't need to be diluted at all. If you've read the book, the story is straightforward enough and the book is basically a movie script within itself. Its ability to be translated onto screen I think will be just as good, if not better than LWW.

All this is moot, though because it's very unlikely that Walden will make more movies after VDT. Which I, for one, think it's a good thing. Let's re-boot the franchise in ten years with script writers and directors who really 'get' Narnia and produce films that will do it justice and not just adapt the elements of Narnia into Standard Hollywood Action Movie Template.

I don't agree. If the elements of Narnia were completely adapted to follow the Hollywood model, then it wouldn't be doing so badly. Because that way the movie would have been produced for a hollywood audience, and I really believe it didn't. Perhaps it's because they're trying too hard to please both fans and the rest, that they've caught themselves in between, and have ended up disappointing both. I can not say, what the perfect formula is, however it is not easy to make Narnian films that can appeal to everyone. Actually any book for that matter is difficult to adapt, because it is impossible to make everyone happy. But I for one, would still like to have Gresham on board, because at least we know someone linked to C.S Lewis is attached to the franchise. I really hope that it is now that a lesson has been learned to deal with the movie adaptations differently, as opposed to waiting 10 years for it to be re-booted.

 

[moonspinner]

If you've read the book, the story is straightforward enough and the book is basically a movie script within itself.

If you've read the book you'll know that the story contains a lot of elements that Hollywood will never believe that "lame-stream" audiences will accept. To start with, they will: delete Aslan scratching whip-wounds down Aravis's back; shoe-horn Peter into the story and keep the focus on the Pevensies; cast Aravis as a White girl; delete Shasta's "Walk of Faith" with Aslan; and that's what I can think of in under a minute.

If the elements of Narnia were completely adapted to follow the Hollywood model, then it wouldn't be doing so badly. Because that way the movie would have been produced for a hollywood audience, and I really believe it didn't.

Then why does LWW, the film with the most faithful adaptation to the source material fare heads and shoulders so much better than the others? With PC and VDT doing progressively worse the farther away they depart from the source material? Sure, you can argue about the Summer release of PC or the popularity of the LWW book, etc, but it still does not explain the astronomically wide gap of box office returns.

If there was a Hollywood model that was gauranteed to produce profitable movies as long as it was adhered to, then no film would ever be a flop. And if such a model existed, then unconventional, genre-bursting movies like Titanic (a 3 hour love story?) or Inception (not exactly a "light" popcorn Summer movie) would never have been the unexpected blockbusters that they ended up becoming.

The point is that there is no sure-banking Hollywood model. The mainstream audience is not lame-stream. The average movie-goer is a lot smarter than Hollywood gives them credit for and they will know when your film is really just a cheap imitation of the latest best-selling hit. Which is why Eragon, Golden Compass, Percy Jackson and all the Next "Harry Potter" sensation (TM) films flopped.

Which is sadly why the Narnia films, as they are currently being produced, are almost gauranteed to be mediocre at best. By Apted's own words, they are trying to make Narnia the next Harry Potter and the next Star Wars. Only Narnia is not Harry Potter nor is it Star Wars. It has a charm all on its own which is why these childrens' books have endured for over half a century and are still widely read and beloved till today, Christian apologia or not. But as long as the film producers don't see Narnia, but see a 'Potentially Harry Potter-esque' franchise, then the movies are doomed to failure.

I'm not sure that that's such a bad thing.

 

[Pardine]

Which is sadly why the Narnia films, as they are currently being produced, are almost gauranteed to be mediocre at best. By Apted's own words, they are trying to make Narnia the next Harry Potter and the next Star Wars. Only Narnia is not Harry Potter nor is it Star Wars. It has a charm all on its own which is why these childrens' books have endured for over half a century and are still widely read and beloved till today, Christian apologia or not. But as long as the film producers don't see Narnia, but see a 'Potentially Harry Potter-esque' franchise, then the movies are doomed to failure.

I'm not sure that that's such a bad thing.

And see, I just can't get beyond this. I like Narnia. I read Narnia growing up. I read it frequently as an adult. It's FUN. It's good. It's moral. It's healthy.

According to the CIA World Factbook, Americans identify as the following:

Protestant 51.3%, Roman Catholic 23.9%, Mormon 1.7%, other Christian 1.6%, Jewish 1.7%, Buddhist 0.7%, Muslim 0.6%, other or unspecified 2.5%, unaffiliated 12.1%, none 4% (2007 est.)

That's over 75% Christian! When people talk about Narnia movies not being "made for Christians" and instead being made for the "lamestream audiences", I just want to scream. 3 out of 4 Americans ARE Christian. 3 out of every 4 members of that "lamestream audience" are Christian.

It's huge. And those that aren't, a huge number of them STILL like Narnia, despite its message and despite Christian apologia in it. Why are they changing things and trying to become a huge blockbuster? Narnia ALREADY WAS HUGE.

It's agonizing. The more movies that are being done, the further and further they move away from the books, and by the time HHB rolls around, if it does (just to tie this back onto the topic), it'll be an urban fantasy myth about some kid escaping gang violence in Detroit with the help of Glee cast members.

*sighs*

 

[narnianqueen1]

moonspinner if they do indeed make HHB anything like that, I'd rather they not make it at all. Your glum predictions remind me of how they ruined Avatar: The Last Airbender. Once I found out that they casted caucasian actors for the main characters, who were definitely not supposed to be, I refused to go see it, as I had a gut feeling that alone was not the only thing that was going to be wrong about it. Sure enough, Shyamalan's rep went down and he copped a lot of flak for ruining such a successful series.

by the time HHB rolls around, if it does (just to tie this back onto the topic), it'll be an urban fantasy myth about some kid escaping gang violence in Detroit with the help of Glee cast members.

*sighs*

Haha, I laughed so hard when I read that .

But let's not be so negative. I mean, of course, our discussions are hypothetical, but let us hope for the best. We will only have to wait and see what happens, and if they decide to even go on after DT. If there was anything I could wish for, if they did decide to go on, it was that the script writers, casting directors and directors would come onto sites like narniafans and read threads like this, to understand our frustrations, and perhaps find the answer to their money-making woes. Fingers crossed?