WHAT IS IT ABOUT?

Based on the novel by C.S. Lewis, and a follow up to THE LION, THE WITCH, AND THE WARDROBE, in PRINCE CASPIAN, Edmund, Peter, Lucy and Susan are all called back to Narnia. They must help Prince Caspian regain his throne, leading a battle of the Narnia creatures against the Telmarines.

WHO MADE IT?

Director and co-writer Andrew Adamson made the first film THE LION, THE WITCH, AND THE WARDROBE as well as directing SHREK and SHREK 2.

His co-writers were Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely, who also wrote the original, as well as THE LIFE AND DEATH OF PETER SELLERS and YOU KILL ME.

IS IT ANY GOOD?

I loved the C.S. Lewis books. I enjoyed them much more than those of J.R.R. Tolkien. So, when I read they were finally going to be adapted as the LORD OF THE RINGS films were, I was looking forward to them.

Unfortunately, THE LION, THE WITCH, AND THE WARDROBE was a very underwhelming film. It got the look of the books right, but it felt empty. There was no heart to it. Fault, I think, was with the director of that film.

With the second film, the same director was back, so I was a bit worried. I didn’t even bother to see it theatrically.

I should have made the effort.

This is a wonderful film. Fast paced with some spectacular battle scenes. The battle scenes take up much of the film. Unlike a lot of the action films of today, these aren’t edited too quickly. They are all well choreographed sequences.

Much was written about these scenes in the film, how violent many felt it was for a PG rated film. Most of the violence is bloodless. They are intense, but nothing that would cause nightmares. Heck, when I was a kid, CLASH OF THE TITANS was rated PG. That was far more grotesque than CASPIAN, and everyone in my elementary school saw CLASH OF THE TITANS.

The cast all does a very good job. It was great to see Peter Dinklage, one of my favorite actors, as a Narnian. Even under heavy make-up, he still gives a fantastic performance.

Running 2 1/2 hours, the film may seem to be a bit too long, but it never feels that way. It felt a lot shorter than the original.

Director Andrew Adamson has more than proven himself with this feature. Enough so that I will be looking forward to what he does next.

WHAT IS ON THE DVD?

There are two different versions, the standard, film only release as well as the 3 DVD Collectors Edition (that I reviewed). It is also available on Blu Ray.

DISC ONE

The film and an audio commentary by director Andrew Adamson and the actors.

DISC TWO

INSIDE NARNIA: THE ADVENTURE RETURNS (35 minutes) - A very well done documentary on the making of the film. It is a very casual feature that lets you get to know the people involved in making the film. It covers the location work, dealing with the weather, the language barriers with the international cast, as well as the FX.

SETS OF NARNIA: A CLASSIC COMES TO LIFE (24 minutes) - Translating the books, that were written by C.S. Lewis with little description, to the film. Passages from the books are read and the designers talk of how they created the settings from them.

BIG MOVIE COMES TO A SMALL TOWN (24 minutes) - For the river crossing sequence, the entire cast and crew of 1200 went to Bovec in Slovenia, a town of 1600, to live and work. Very interesting piece on the town, the history of it and its role in World War I, along with how they adapted to the film crew.

PREVISUALIZING NARNIA (10 minutes) - How the filmmakers animated the entire film before shooting it, in order to better plan the special effects.

TALKING ANIMALS AND WALKING TREES: THE MAGICAL WORLD OF NARNIA (5 minutes) - The creatures of Narnia.

DELETED SCENES (11 minutes) - Ten deleted scenes with audio introductions from the director.

BLOOPERS (3 minutes)

SECRETS OF THE DUEL (6 minutes) - Choreographing the fight scene.

BECOMING TRUMPKIN (5 minutes) - Feature on Peter Dinklage.

WARWICK DAVIS: THE MAN BEHIND NIKABRIK (11 minutes) - A day in the life of legendary Warwick Davis (RETURN OF THE JEDI, WILLOW), focusing on his 3 hour a day make up process.

There are at least 3 EASTER EGGS that I found (very easy, at the bottom of each menu, on the last item, hit the right arrow). One on the sandwiches they ate on set, another of a “Monster Cam”, and an 8 minute piece on the man who performed in the monster suits.

DISC 3

A digital copy of the film for download to your computer or iPod.

SHOULD I BUY IT?

Yes. This is a highly entertaining film. The 3 DVD Collectors Edition is filled with enough extras that will keep fans of the film busy for hours. It is well worth adding to your collection.

THE CHRONICLES OF NARNIA: PRINCE CASPIAN will be released December 2, 2008 by Walt Disney Home Video on DVD and Blu-Ray.